Qualcomm introduces the Snapdragon X Plus. This is a slightly lighter version of the Snapdragon

Qualcomm shows the Snapdragon X Plus. This is a light version of the previously announced Snapdragon X Elite. The architecture of both chips is very similar and they share the same NPU and Adreno GPU, although the Plus version is slightly weaker in the core area than its big brother.

The Snapdragon X Plus is equipped with ten computing cores, clocks at 3.4 GHz and has no boost functionality. In contrast, the X Elite has twelve computing cores at 3.8 GHz and a boost capacity of up to 4.3 GHz. Both chips have exactly the same Oryon cores on board, which are manufactured in 4 nm and are flanked by 42 MB cache.

Few details

This ARM processor is somewhat comparable to its big brother, for example a Core i5 compared to a Core i7. In other words: Both chips seem to be very powerful, but only one of the two is equipped for top performance.

The technical comparison is difficult. Finally, Qualcomm remains very sparing with details about the new chips. This way we know how much cache the X series has, but not the distribution across tiers. We know the number of cores, but not the distribution. AMD and Intel tend to go deep when it comes to releasing new chips, especially when they outperform the competition. Everything here remains quite superficial.

Qualcomm previously claimed that its Snapdragon X Elite outperforms the best from Intel and AMD. There are too few technical details to analyze these claims. The performance per watt of the Snapdragon The chip designer also repeats this claim for the Snapdragon X Plus. This lightweight processor is also said to deliver better performance than traditional x86 chips.

Misleading benchmarks?

Qualcomm relies on Geekbench tests that we have to believe in, without providing any evidence as to why performance would be better. However, these benchmarks are not beyond debate. The technology website SemiAccurate even states that Qualcomm is outright cheating.

Based on anonymous sources from manufacturers and Qualmcomm itself, SemiAccurate determines that the numbers transmitted are not reproducible. The performance of the chips themselves is said to be half as high as Qualcomm publicly claims.

Wait

We do not know the sources ourselves and cannot verify these claims. In our opinion, the results raise enough doubts about the Snapdragon X Elite and the new X Plus. We have to test for ourselves how good the chips really are. We think it’s wise not to immediately order a Snapdragon X Elite laptop until independent results confirm the performance claims.