Intel Core G3 Extreme Panther Lake Chip May Bring 12 Xe3 GPU Cores To Gaming Handhelds

At its CES 2026 presentation, Intel announced both its Core Ultra Series 3 processors (codenamed "Panther Lake") as well as a forthcoming reference platform for gaming handhelds based on the chips. Looking at the available configurations of the Core Ultra Series 3, it certainly seems like these parts are nearly tailor-made for the handheld PC gaming device market. Well, if the latest rumor is correct, there may be handheld-specific SKUs on the way.

Much in the same way that AMD repackaged its "Phoenix" laptop silicon as "Ryzen Z1 Extreme" and "Strix Point" as "Ryzen Z2 Extreme," Intel is purportedly planning to launch chips called Core G3 and Core G3 Extreme based on "Panther Lake." These SoCs will reportedly be slightly detuned from the top end Core Ultra Series 3 models, likely for power efficiency; as tuners will well know, backing of just a little on clocks and voltage can have ...