Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite 12 Core CPU Shows Competitive AI & Similar GPU Performance Against Intel Core Ultra

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite 12 Core CPU has been tested against Intel's Core Ultra 7 155H in various benchmarks, showcasing a good lead.

Qualcomm's take on the CPU industry has been a hot topic recently as the Snapdragon X Elite series shows its true colors. As we near the official launch period, several SKUs within the lineup have started to surface, as they intend to compete with the likes of Apple, Intel, and AMD in the computing domain.

While we have seen several Geekbench tests on Qualcomm's CPU SoCs, they haven't been tested on a wide range of synthetic benchmarks up till now. YouTuber and hardware expert Erdi Özüağ has tested Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite X1E80100 CPU running at 28W against the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU, showing what the Arm-based chip has to offer.

Erdi Özüağ compared the two SKUs using different notebooks, Qualcomm's reference design, and a retail unit. His testing involved a multi-dimensional approach, analyzing the SOC's performance in all scenarios to see how its onboard CPU tiles stack against the Intel competitor. The CPU features a total of 12 cores and the system feature 64 GB of LPDDR5x memory.

Starting with UL Proycon benchmarking, Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite X1E80100 CPU managed to "whip off" Intel in performance figures, as the chip managed to gain 1720 points, compared to Intel's Core Ultra 7 155H standing at 476 points. The vast difference in points shows how capable Qualcomm's SKUs are in AI inference scenarios, apparently being ahead of all existing market offers.

Moving on to 3DMark GPU testing, the onboard Adreno GPU managed to come on par with Intel's Xe-LPG, with both almost scoring similar points due to the minimal difference involved within the GPU configuration. Qualcomm also managed to gain an advantage over Intel in Visual Studio Code testing, where the Snapdragon X Elite X1E80100 performed the same code compilation in a much shorter time frame than Intel. These tests depict Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite lineup would be a competitive entry despite being an entirely new lineup and Qualcomm's first experience in the CPU markets.

The point that did amaze me was how the Snapdragon X Elite CPU dominated Intel in AI inference capabilities. Putting the competition aside, Qualcomm has reached something revolutionary here, allowing consumers to have adequate power to perform low-to-mid inferencing tasks on their systems, ultimately promoting an "AI" environment. It will be interesting to see how the debut of the Snapdragon X Elite changes the way we see the notebook segment, especially in gaming and consumer-oriented applications.