Intel's New Tech Will Make Your Next MacBook Air Run 'BioShock Infinite' On A 4K UltraHD Display , Cool Isn't It???

Can you imagine the next version of Microsoft‘s Surface Pro running the latest first-person shooter on the highest quality settings? What about Apple‘s MacBook Air playing BioShock Infinite while powering a 4K UltraHD external display? While I can’t speak to the hardware roadmap of the aforementioned products, these unlikely scenarios could be a reality thanks to the integrated graphics onboard Intel‘s upcoming “Haswell” processors.

That’s right: your next ultrabook will be capable of a 3840 x 2160 resolution, and will effortlessly run graphically intensive AAA video games like Battlefield 3 without requiring a dedicated GPU from NVIDIA or AMD.
The news comes straight from Intel HQ via a marketing push detailing its next generation of integrated graphics solutions. Intel’s Iris Graphics 5100 will drive the visuals of the new Core i7-4000U chips. Then there’s the significantly beefier Iris Pro Graphics 5200, which should be offered as an option for more traditional notebooks and All-in-One PCs.
As you can see from the chart below, the game-changer is the Intel 4th Gen Core i7-4558U, which more than doubles the capabilities of Intel’s HD 4000 integrated solution.

Could this tech finally enable a Retina display on future MacBook Airs? Absolutely, in addition to powering a triple-screen display configuration. It also means more efficient power usage and significantly less weight in future Haswell-equipped notebooks, and the ability to play modern games and drive a 4K display with upcoming ultrabooks.

Living in the future is amazing, isn’t it? Even better is when your hardware is future-proof.

Intel’s next generation of processors is tipped for an early June release, so expect to see a torrent of new product announcements between now and then. And you can be assured I’ll be benchmarking the new Haswell CPUs the moment I can get my hands on them.