Windows on ARM: the new Snapdragon X Plus for notebooks priced below 1000 euros

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Qualcomm is introducing three more notebook processors within the Snapdragon Similar to Snapdragon, the latter is likely to be encountered more often

Qualcomm wants to enter the price segment below 1000 euros with the CPU. Previous notebooks have had recommended retail prices starting at 1200 euros; however, dealers now sell models with the cheapest processor, the Snapdragon X Plus (X1P-64-100). Good from 1000 euros – This is a clear sign that purchasing interest is moderate. Snapdragon X notebooks impress mainly with long battery life, which AMD and Intel devices have not yet been able to achieve. They are also the only notebooks on which you can already use the new AI functions of Windows 11, which Microsoft brings to the market with the Copilot+ label.

The requirement for this, namely an AI unit (neural processing unit, NPU) that achieves at least 40 TOPS, is also met on paper by AMD’s Ryzen AI 300 and Intel’s brand new Core Ultra 200V. So far, we have not found any Windows AI functions on notebooks with the new Ryzen, and notebooks with the brand new Core Ultra 200V will not go on sale until the end of the month. They are also more expensive than previous Snapdragon notebooks.

Quite good, but cheap

Even with the X1P-42-100, the cheapest new Snapdragon X model, the saving measures taken by Qualcomm are tolerable. Its eight Orion cores are still more (and faster) than anything found in notebooks as of 2020. The integrated GPU has only half the number of execution units, making it even less attractive to gamers. But gaming has been a dud so far, so the sad and practical effect is limited. Functions that are important for office workers, such as support for up to four monitors, remain the same. This also applies to platform functions such as support for USB4 and Wi-Fi 7. And the Hexagon NPU, as usual, achieves up to 45 TOPS and is therefore suitable for Copilot+.

We were already able to test Qualcomm’s promises on the first test device with the new entry-level model: Asus has already unveiled the Windows tablet ProArt PZ13 at Computex, and it should also be available in this country soon after the CPU is launched. Not surprisingly, the X1P-42-100 achieves the same single-threading results as the previous Snapdragon without Turbo (X1P-64-100, X1E-78-100) and plus/minus one third of multithreading – the performance of twelve cores – in the rendering benchmark Cinebench 2024, as well as in Geekbench 6.3. As expected, not only was the GPU slow, but it also failed the 3DMark Solar Bay subtest, saying that ray tracing was not supported. Qualcomm has not yet answered our question whether the feature has really been removed or whether we encountered a driver error. Initial measurements of battery life indicate ideally more than 24 hours. We will publish a detailed test of the ProArt PZ13 later.

Starting prices

With the new CPU, device prices should be significantly cheaper than before. Qualcomm’s CEO already announced device prices at Computex starting at US$700, but taking into account exchange rate fluctuations and the taxes usually included in price quotes in this country, we would be surprised if the devices are to arrive in the next few days at a price lower than the manufacturer recommended 900 euros. Actual dealer prices will be exciting. We expect notebooks from all the manufacturers that have already jumped on the Snapdragon bandwagon – and perhaps even more will be added.

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Future tests will have to clarify whether even cheap Snapdragon notebooks have both efficient components and firmware maintenance to achieve particularly long battery life like their more expensive siblings. The ProArt PZ13 mentioned above is not an indicator in this regard: it is said to cost 1500 euros, which leaves a lot of scope for more expensive components, for example in terms of energy-efficient screens. What is certain, however, is that the world of Snapdragon is the cheapest entry into the world of notebooks with powerful NPUs or Copilot+: all notebooks with AMD’s Ryzen AI 300 and Intel’s Core Ultra 200V cost four figures. And not just over 1000 points, but sometimes even over 2000 euros.

(mu)