Intel uses NUC 11 Extreme equipped with ARC Alchemist graphics card
At the 2022 investor conference, Intel built a host using the NUC 11 Extreme, codenamed Beast Canyon, for a demonstration. A picture posted by Raja Koduri, Intel senior vice president, chief architect, and general manager of the Architecture, Graphics, and Software Division, on social platforms, shows that the console is running the Shadow of the Tomb Raider game, and its front panel is also replaced with the Intel Arc logo. Raja Koduri confirmed that the runtime has XeSS technology-enabled.
With the photos released this time, at least it can be said that the Alchemist graphics card is already available. In addition, it also confirmed another rumor that “the Shadow of the Tomb Raider game will be one of the first games to support XeSS technology. Previously exposed are Hitman 3 and Galaxy Breaker, of which Galaxy Breaker is likely to be the first game to support both AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution and Intel XeSS. Raja Koduri also said that he already uses an ARC brand of Alchemist graphics card on his home PC.
The NUC 11 Extreme can be loaded with a full-size discrete graphics card and is equipped with two 8Pin external power supply ports, which are very compact in design. Many people are curious about what graphics card is used in the NUC 11 Extreme demo, but Raja Koduri did not disclose the specific model. In fact, the external power supply cable of the NUC 11 Extreme has certain requirements for the design of the graphics card, so the guess is not necessarily the top Alchemist graphics card.
According to Intel, the first batch of ARC brand discrete graphics cards will be for notebook platforms and will be launched in the first quarter of 2022. In the second quarter of 2022, a version for the desktop platform will be launched, which should be the most anticipated by players, while the workstation version will be released in the third quarter of 2022.
