Intel’s latest boasts about its integrated graphics makes me less excited for the Nintendo Switch 2 - and more hyped for the MSI Claw 8 AI+

• Intel has highlighted the improvements of its Arc iGPUs used in the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and MSI Claw 7 AI+ handhelds
• The Arc 140V and 130V both have better power management optimization
• It's resulted in better frame rates and frame pacing across multiple games

Handheld gaming is again growing in popularity, with new AMD and Intel SoCs (System-on-Chip) hitting the market that provide great gaming performance, and Team Blue has taken steps to improve the efficiency of two of its iGPUs.

In an official blog post, Intel confirmed a performance update for both the Arc 140V and 130V iGPUs, claiming a 10% FPS gain and a 25% upgrade on 99th percentile (essentially lowest possible FPS) uplifts across several games at 17W (power consumption). The Arc 140V is present in the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and the MSI Claw 7 AI+ handheld gaming PCs, which both use the powerful Core Ultra 7 258V processor.

This is all possible thanks to the previous Arc Graphics driver 32.0.101.6734, which improved power management at lower wattages (also incorporated in its latest Arc Graphics driver 32.0.101.6739), as Intel highlighted in its release notes. We previously reported on this, but now Team Blue has performance charts to showcase the enhancements.

In games like Cyberpunk 2077, God of War Ragnarok, and Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered, both average FPS and 1% lows see significant improvements between drivers 6732 and 6734 while gaming on 17W TDP. Notably, Fortnite on driver 6734 has the biggest uplift in both average FPS and 1% lows; essentially, this increases smoothness with better frame pacing.

The MSI Claw 8 AI+ is the king of efficiency by the looks of it...

Considering its 80WHr battery and performance capabilities at a low 17W TDP, the MSI Claw 8 AI+ is probably the best handheld gaming PC in terms of efficiency.

I'd be lying if I said I've been using my Asus ROG Ally consistently; it's been mainly collecting dust, because its battery life is poor. As much as I don't mind staying plugged into a wall socket (same as what you'd do with a gaming laptop), it gets frustrating.

I've not had the pleasure of using the MSI Claw 8 AI+ yet, but everything I hear about it makes me want it that much more (especially after the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal). You'd barely need to push the device beyond 17W, and you'll still have great performance - and I can't say the same about the ROG Ally.

Now, if you do want to use the MSI Claw while on battery, it's still going to last a lot longer than the ROG Ally and other handhelds like the Lenovo Legion Go. It's a testament to how MSI turned things around after its initial attempt with the MSI Claw A1M model. Let's hope it can once again outdo itself with a new device in the future...

You may also like...

• Two new laptops with Nvidia's RTX 5060 are coming, and leaked performance makes it seem like 8GB GDDR7 might actually be enough
• I've never been more excited to get my hands on a new handheld: Intel's new graphics driver reportedly provides greater MSI Claw 8 AI+ performance
• The Nintendo Switch 2 could have one advantage over handheld gaming PCs - and it's probably not what you think