Load shedding might be paused, but the cost of living in South Africa is still a reality. Dropping R20,000 on a massive rig is not always an option. Enter the new era of integrated graphics. If you want to play Apex Legends or CS2 on a budget, the AMD Radeon 890M vs Intel Arc B390 iGPU showdown is exactly what you need to watch.
The Evolution of the Modern iGPU
Gone are the days when integrated graphics struggled to render simple colours on a screen. Today... the silicon inside the latest processors packs a serious punch. You no longer need to spend a fortune to enjoy casual multiplayer titles.
Both AMD and Intel have completely re-engineered their chips. This means you can get fantastic 1080p performance without the extra heat and power draw. It is the perfect solution for budget-conscious gamers.
AMD Radeon 890M: Team Red Keeps Pushing
AMD has dominated the iGPU space for years. The Radeon 890M is built on their highly efficient RDNA 3.5 architecture. Featuring 16 Compute Units... it delivers incredible frame rates for esports titles.
You will find this chip powering some of the most popular everyday laptops on the market. It handles games like Valorant and Dota 2 with absolute ease. AMD has also refined their driver support to ensure maximum stability.
Intel Arc B390 iGPU: Battlemage Enters the Chat 🚀
Intel is not backing down. The Intel Arc B390 iGPU brings their much-anticipated Battlemage architecture to the masses. It features improved XeSS upscaling technology. This allows the iGPU to render games at lower resolutions and upscale them beautifully.
This level of tech was previously reserved for dedicated graphics cards. Now... Intel is putting it directly onto the CPU die. The B390 excels in media encoding and offers surprisingly solid 1080p gaming performance.
Optimise Your RAM ⚡
Integrated graphics rely heavily on your system memory. Always ensure your setup runs dual-channel RAM at the highest supported speeds to squeeze every last frame out of your iGPU.
Choosing the Best Integrated Graphics for Light Gaming
So... which chip wins the AMD Radeon 890M vs Intel Arc B390 iGPU battle? If raw rasterisation performance is your main goal, the Radeon 890M takes a slight lead in most gaming benchmarks. However... the Arc B390 offers incredible value if you also need robust video encoding features.
Building a budget-friendly system around these chips can save you thousands of Rands. You can easily find amazing value in our pre-built PC deals if you want a ready-to-use desktop. Alternatively... if you want maximum performance for your specific budget, exploring the best gaming PC deals is always a smart move.
Ready to Upgrade Your Setup? Whether you prefer the raw power of AMD or the cutting-edge upscaling of Intel, Evetech has you covered. Explore our massive range of PC components and build the ultimate rig for your budget today.
