Qualcomm introduces the Snapdragon X Elite. On paper, this processor should outperform Intel and AMD’s x86 chips and deliver performance on par with Apple’s ARM CPUs.

Will Qualcomm finally make Windows on ARM a relevant option? The chip designer is definitely trying with the introduction of the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite. This processor is expected to power Windows laptops in the near future and would be both more powerful and more economical than existing processors from Intel or AMD that are based on the x86 architecture.

Those are big words, as all incarnations of the Snapdragon 8cx and its derivatives have flopped before. Qualcomm has been trying to break into the Windows ecosystem with these chips for years, but in vain. The latest generation can only be found in the Microsoft Surface Pro 9 and Lenovo ThinkPad X13s Gen 1, where the chips cause more trouble than added value. Still, the Snapdragon X Elite is promising.

Because with this chip, Qualcomm is not simply bringing a new version of the mediocre 8cx onto the market. The Snapdragon With this knowledge, Qualcomm developed this Snapdragon X Elite.

Oryon

The chip itself consists of twelve brand new Oryon CPU cores. They have a base clock of 3.8 GHz with a peak frequency for individual cores of up to 4.3 GHz. Ironically, Qualcomm doesn’t opt ​​for a configuration with different core types on one chip. This is remarkable because the idea that efficiency cores and performance cores support each other came from Arm and has also been adopted by the x86 specialist Intel for several generations. Qualcomm doesn’t like the Snapdragon X Elite and relies on twelve powerful cores.

Nevertheless, the Oryon cores are economical. Based on its own testing, Qualcomm says the chip is either twice as fast as the Intel Core i7-1355U with the same power consumption or performs just as well but with 68 percent lower power consumption. Performance at the level of the Intel Core i7-13800H is also possible with 65 percent less power: The X Elite consumes 30 watts, while Intel’s Core i7 requires 90 watts.

According to the chip designer, the new CPU can even compete with Apple’s M2 processor. Based on our own Geekbench testing, the Qualcomm processor’s peak performance would be about 50 percent higher than the Apple M2.

Adreno GPU and Hexagon NPU

The Oryon CPU cores are supported by an unnamed Adreno GPU that supports DirectX 12. The GPU is said to support a 4K laptop display at 120 Hz as well as up to three external UHD displays or two 5K displays. The drivers are upgradable, it sounds like, but that strikes us as less of a benefit and more of a bare minimum for anyone building hardware for a Windows computer today.

Qualcomm is also enthusiastic about the GPU. The Adreno chiplet is said to be 80 percent faster than the AMD Radeon 780M in the mobile Ryzen chips and twice as fast as the Iris Xe graphics in Intel Core processors. In other words: The Snapdragon X Elite should offer the same performance with a fifth of the power consumption.

Additionally, Qualcomm is still excited about its built-in Hexagon NPU. Anyone releasing hardware or software today has to say something about AI to appease the hype gods, and Qualcomm is dutifully following that tradition. The NPU can accelerate AI tasks and that’s very nice, but there aren’t that many AI tasks that need to be accelerated on a Windows laptop right now. Some things, like blurring the background during a video call, benefit from this and in the near future there will undoubtedly be features that work better on an NPU. AMD and Intel also built an NPU into their CPU, so Qualcomm could hardly lag behind.

ARM support on Windows

However, NPU support may be Qualcomm’s final concern. With the Snapdragon Apple’s ARM-based M chips are a success in large part because Apple is fully immersed in the ecosystem. In addition to a powerful chip, the laptop builder offers a good emulator for legacy software as well as comprehensive developer support.

Qualcomm’s ARM chip will only be a success if Microsoft also primarily supports ARM. Windows 11 does run on ARM, but today that experience is messy compared to Windows on x86. The emulator isn’t efficient enough, not all apps work on ARM, when apps are available for x86 and ARM, the Windows Store doesn’t always download the right version, and Microsoft itself treats ARM versions of its own applications as an afterthought. Additionally, Microsoft has not yet managed to convince developers to put as much effort into Windows on ARM as they have into Windows on x86.

Migration to a new architecture is always a chicken and egg story. Qualcomm has laid the egg here: the chip is there. Whether the laptops follow suit and whether you should buy them now depends on the enthusiasm of the Microsoft and Windows 11 app developers. The fact that Nvidia is also working on an ARM CPU for Windows can only help to finally shake up the ecosystem.