Compare Snapdragon X Elite, Apple M3 and Intel

SoC design

Qualcomm, Intel and Apple use SoC (System on Chip) design to integrate all major processing hardware onto one chip, including CPU, GPU and NPU (Neural Processing Unit).

However, even though the companies all use the same SoC design, they are not the same.

Snapdragon X Elite

Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite is a powerful ARM-based SoC designed for Windows. Its ARM architecture allows the X Elite to be significantly more power efficient than x86 versions from Intel and AMD. However, the general problem with ARM-based Windows processors is that they often lack the performance to compete with the aforementioned x86 products - until the X Elite was released.

Snapdragon X Elite uses a 12-core ARM v8 Oryon CPU, Adreno X1 GPU and Hexagon NPU (delivering up to 45 TOPS (trillion operations per second)). Its powerful NPU (and other specs) are why Microsoft partnered with Qualcomm to launch the Copilot+ PC spec.

Intel Core Ultra

Intel's first generation Core Ultra SoC (codenamed Meteor Lake) uses x86 processors that deliver great gaming performance with an 8-core Intel Iris Xe GPU and a 16-core/22-thread CPU with 8 P cores and 8 E core for better battery life.

Using a "multi-chip module" architecture, Intel uses an in-house 7nm process node (for the CPU) and TSMC's 5nm process node (for the GPU) on a single chip. This gives Intel's Core Ultra SoCs some flexibility in manufacturing costs, power efficiency, and performance. An NPU is also added to the Core Ultra SoC, making it capable of running Machine Learning models for AI applications such as facial recognition, voice recognition, and text translation.

Apple M3

Apple M3 is another ARM-based processor with great performance and high energy efficiency. The M3 SoC family includes the standard M3, enhanced M3 Pro, high-performance M3 Max, and the flagship M3 Ultra.

What makes the M3 special is the use of a 3nm process node and TSMC's unified memory architecture, which directly improves performance and power efficiency. Apple's standard M3 is equipped with an 8-core/8-thread CPU, a 10-core Apple M3 iGPU, and a 16-core Apple Neural Engine NPU. Although its numbers may seem less impressive than those of Intel and Qualcomm products, Apple's seamless integration of hardware and software ensures that the M3 processor is used to its full potential, Reduces bloat and eliminates the need for emulation.

Benchmark and compare SoCs

Now let's check out the SoC specs for Intel's Core Ultra 7 155H, Apple's M3, and Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite to see which processor is better for specific tasks.

Media handling

For media processing tasks like video editing, rendering, and streaming, the Snapdragon X Elite, Apple M3, and Intel Core Ultra each have their own strengths.

1. Snapdragon X Elite shines in its AI-enhanced media processing capabilities thanks to the Hexagon NPU, which can perform 45 TOPS. This makes it especially effective for tasks involving real-time video enhancements and AI-based editing tools. However, its GPU performance, while solid, is not as strong as its competitors when it comes to high-end gaming or 3D rendering, often falling behind in real-world tests for such applications. .
2. The Apple M3 uses TSMC's advanced 3nm process node, allowing the SoC to deliver higher performance per watt than products from Intel and Qualcomm. This level of power efficiency, combined with the M3's hardware codec support for AV1, AVC, h265 (8bit and 10bit), VP8, VP9 and JPEG, makes the M3 a capable media processor. with long battery life.
3. The Intel Core Ultra series , with x86 architecture, delivers powerful media processing capabilities, especially for applications optimized for this architecture. Its Intel Arc GPU, while powerful, cannot match the power efficiency of Apple's M3. However, it delivers excellent performance in traditional media processing applications heavily used in Windows environments.

Web performance

Web performance is important for tasks ranging from browsing the web to running complex web applications.

1. Snapdragon X Elite delivers powerful web surfing performance, especially with AI-based enhancements. Its power efficiency allows for extended battery life when performing web-intensive tasks, making it a good choice for those who prioritize mobile web browsing and computer use. light when moving.
2. Apple M3 is designed to excel in web performance, leveraging the efficient CPU and GPU to deliver a smooth and fast web browsing experience. Its integration with macOS ensures web applications run efficiently, making it a top choice for users who spend a lot of time online.
3. Intel Core Ultra offers great web performance, especially for Windows users. Its architecture is well suited for running complex and multitasking web applications, making it a reliable choice for users who often use more complex web applications such as games and photo editors. browser-based.

Productivity and daily work

All three SoCs are capable of performing everyday productivity tasks like office applications, email, and general multitasking, but each SoC has its own advantages.

1. Snapdragon X Elite excels in battery life and efficiency, making it a great choice for users who need a portable device for everyday work. Its powerful NPU and Windows Copilot+ support also enhance productivity applications, providing features like real-time translation and speech recognition.
2. Apple M3 provides seamless performance in productivity apps thanks to tight integration with macOS and other Apple software. Its efficiency ensures that tasks such as word processing, spreadsheets and presentations are handled smoothly, and its excellent battery life supports all-day use.
3. Intel Core Ultra is a powerhouse for Windows productivity tasks, delivering high performance and compatibility with many x86 applications. Its powerful multithreading capabilities enable smooth multitasking and speedy performance in productivity-demanding applications.

Gaming performance

Gaming performance is an important factor for many users, and it's here that the differences between SoCs become more apparent.

Snapdragon X Elite offers pretty good gaming performance, especially with AI-enhanced graphics support. However, it struggles with the latest AAA games, which often require reduced settings for smooth play. Thanks to its power efficiency, it excels at mobile gaming and lighter titles.

In general, currently Snapdragon X Elite is not recommended for gaming because its games are mainly emulated from x86 to ARM. This emulation reduces game performance and is known to cause frame drops even when the machine theoretically has no problem running the game. Furthermore, some games will not run in emulator mode. For this reason, you should not own a Snapdragon X Elite PC if you only plan to use it for gaming.

The Apple M3 offers a solid gaming experience, especially for games available on macOS. Based on reviews, the M3 seems to handle 1080p gaming at low to medium graphics settings quite well. While not suitable for a dedicated gaming laptop, its GPU handles a wide range of games well, and overall system performance ensures longer playtime without significant heat buildup. But for more serious gamers who want a Mac, the article recommends the M3 Pro or even the M3 Max, which are significantly more capable with better cooling systems.

Ultimately, the Intel Core Ultra series is the top gaming choice among the three chip lines. It provides the best performance when playing single-threaded and multi-threaded games. Its Intel Arc GPU also offers the best GPU performance with clock speeds up to 2.25 GHz and supports Direct X12, OpenGL 4.6, OpenCL 3.0 and hardware Ray Tracing. Unlike the Snapdragon X Elite, Intel's Core Ultra SoC offers native support for most PC games without sacrificing performance when emulating. Furthermore, Intel's Core Ultra SoC is often found in laptops with active cooling systems, allowing the SoC to operate in a boosted state for longer periods of time.

Samuel Daniel

Update 26 July 2024