A recent leak of performance benchmarks for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite Arm chip suggests that it is closing the performance gap with Apple’s top M3 silicon. The benchmarks, revealed on the Windows Latest website, showed the Snapdragon X Elite 1800 with a single-core score of 2574 and a multi-core score of 12,562, compared to the M3’s single-core score of 3181 and multi-core score of 15,620.
The benchmarks were generated using Geekbench on a prototype device running early preview builds of Windows 11. While the M3 outperformed the X Elite on the tests, it is important to note that the X Elite was tested on unoptimized preview builds of Windows 11, and finalized hardware may yield better performance numbers.
Analysts believe that Qualcomm’s Oryon CPU cores give them a chance to deliver competitive performance and battery life, potentially challenging Apple’s dominance in the personal computer market. The X Elite chip could offer consumers more choice and potentially lower prices in laptops and PCs.
However, there is skepticism around the benchmarks as the X Elite is still in its pre-production phase. It is advised to view the benchmarks with caution until independent evaluations validate the claims.
The X Elite chip could also play a significant role in AI PCs, with its NPU capable of handling AI tasks quickly and efficiently. This could enhance performance, efficiency, and user experience in AI-driven tasks such as natural language processing and image recognition.
While the X Elite-based computers could pose a threat to Apple’s laptop market share, some analysts believe that Apple’s loyal user base and ecosystem integration may mitigate this threat. Ultimately, the impact on Apple’s market share will depend on factors such as pricing, marketing, and consumer preferences in each segment.
