Intel Could Take The Handheld Crown From AMD With Panther Lake

Intel technically revealed Panther Lake backmost successful October 2025, starring with the Xe 3 graphics architecture, which Intel claimed was a massively improved integrated graphics chip. Well, soon aft these caller laptop processors were ‘launched’ astatine CES 2026, I’ve yet been capable to beryllium down and trial it for myself.

And portion the Asus Zenbook Duo I utilized to effort retired the Intel Core X9 Ultra 388H isn’t precisely what I’d telephone a ‘gaming laptop’, what with it not having a discrete graphics chip, it’s much than susceptible of playing AAA games astatine precocious settings. You conscionable person to temper your expectations a bit. If you inquire me, though, a bladed and airy laptop playing games astatine precocious settings isn’t the astir breathtaking happening successful the world. What’s going to beryllium overmuch much absorbing is however Panther Lake is going to execute successful handheld gaming PCs.

The Laptop Processor arsenic a Handheld Processor

While Intel has hinted astatine a handheld-only Panther Lake spot making its mode to marketplace immoderate clip this year, we don’t needfully person to hold that agelong to spot these laptop CPUs marque their handheld debut. After all, determination are plentifulness of gaming handhelds retired determination utilizing laptop chips – adjacent if they’re not precisely the astir businesslike models retired there.

Handhelds similar the Ayaneo Kun and the GPD Win 4 person been utilizing full-fat laptop CPUs since earlier the Steam Deck adjacent existed, and that’s not going to halt immoderate clip soon. These chips are powerful, particularly for the benignant of lower-resolution show you find connected a handheld, but frankincense acold they’ve been held backmost by subpar artillery life.

That’s 1 of the reasons, aft all, wherefore Valve elected to flip a 15W customized AMD APU successful the Steam Deck, different it’d tally retired of artillery aft an hr similar these different handhelds. That was besides the driving unit down AMD’s Z-series chips, starting with the Z1 Extreme that showed up successful the ROG Ally and the archetypal Legion Go.

And for the past fewer years, these Z-series chips person been benignant of the default erstwhile it comes to gaming handhelds, giving AMD the bulk of the handheld market. However, with the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and its Lunar Lake-powered Core Ultra 7 258V, Intel started to sneak into the market.

That was, similar the Intel Core Ultra X9 388H I tested successful the Zenbook Duo, a laptop chip, albeit 1 with a somewhat little 37W max power.

I’ve done a batch of the investigating connected the MSI Claw 8 AI+, and 1 happening that’s fascinating astir that handheld is however agelong the artillery lasts. In PCMark10, which is admittedly not a gaming test, the Claw 8 lasts much than 15 hours, compared to 10 hours from the Legion Go 2. Obviously, those numbers are a batch smaller erstwhile you’re really playing games, but it shows however overmuch amended Intel is astatine handling artillery life.

And, successful my aboriginal tests of Panther Lake, the caller Core X9 Ultra 388H is getting northwards of 17 hours successful the Procyon Office Productivity artillery test. That’s not the aforesaid test, but the workloads being tested are akin capable that I’m decidedly funny successful seeing thing similar this successful a handheld.

Panther Lake Gaming Handheld Chips Are Already Going to Be a Thing

Back astatine CES 2026, Intel told america that a Panther Lake handheld spot was connected the horizon. We don’t cognize thing astir what this spot volition really look like, conscionable that it’s called the “Intel Core G3” and that it’s coming immoderate clip this year. But either way, I’m excited to spot what it tin do.

I’m not going to unreal that it’s going to beryllium arsenic almighty arsenic the Core Ultra X9 388H recovered successful the Zenbook Duo, but I bash deliberation it’s going to beryllium close. After all, Intel does assertion that this G3 spot volition beryllium leveraging the afloat powerfulness of the Arc B390 graphics successful the 388H, conscionable apt with little CPU cores and possibly a trimmed down NPU (neural processing unit).

We won’t cognize however Intel is going to spec this happening retired until it’s announced, but if it’s the aforesaid B390 that’s successful Panther Lake, we mightiness beryllium looking astatine 60 fps gaming successful high-end games with precocious graphics settings. And that’s earlier Intel’s caller multi-frame procreation enters the equation.

For instance, successful Cyberpunk 2077 astatine 1200p with the High preset and XeSS acceptable to “Quality”, I was capable to get an mean of 65 fps successful a portion of gameplay from the opening mission. When I turned connected framework generation, that fig went up to 103 fps with FG acceptable to 2x and 160 fps astatine 4x multi-frame generation. Now, those higher numbers pushed latency up from 45-55 sclerosis of PC latency up to astir 72 sclerosis with 4x framework gen, but I don’t cognize however overmuch that matters successful a azygous subordinate RPG.

AMD’s Old Architectures

If Intel’s nascent handheld spot does travel with the aforesaid B390 GPU arsenic its high-end Panther Lake laptop chips, Team Blue could really propulsion up of AMD. As bully arsenic the Ryzen Z2 Extreme is, AMD’s handheld spot uses RDNA 3.5 graphics, which isn’t precisely ancient, but it’s besides a procreation down the flagship Radeon RX 9070 XT that debuted astatine the aforesaid time. More importantly, it can’t leverage Team Red’s latest upscaling tech. And that’s the champion handheld spot AMD has to connection astatine the moment.

The remainder of the Z2 bid of handheld chips is successful a overmuch worse position. The regular Z2 is utilizing an RDNA 3 GPU, and the Z2 Go, chiefly recovered successful the entry-level Legion Go S, has an RDNA 2 graphics core. For reference, RDNA 2 debuted backmost successful 2020.

In AMD’s defense, it makes consciousness to brace lower-end processors with older architectures to prevention cash, but if Intel is coming to marketplace with a handheld spot that offers a faster and much businesslike architecture, it’s not hard to ideate that Team Red has to beryllium sweating a small bit. It’s going to beryllium a fewer months earlier an Intel Panther Lake handheld gaming PC makes its mode to market, but erstwhile it does, I’m going to beryllium precise funny to get it successful the laboratory to spot however it holds up against AMD’s established Z-series chips.

Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor astatine IGN and the PC components queen. You tin travel her @Jackiecobra