Laptops soon to be cheaper? New processor to pave the way.
Qualcomm made its breakthrough in the Windows-on-ARM market in 2024. The Snapdragon X family has been expanded to include powerful models, and in 2025 the company is aiming to conquer the masses.
The new Snapdragon X chip aims to survive in the highly competitive entry-level Windows computer segment, not only for laptops but also for desktop PCs in the lower to mid-range price segment. At CES 2025, Qualcomm presented its new Snapdragon X platform, which is part of a series of AI innovations from the company.
Growth in laptop chips from Qualcomm
For the launch of the Snapdragon X processors, Qualcomm has highlighted major improvements compared to older Intel processors. However, there were no concrete comparisons with the latest Intel Core or AMD Ryzen chips. Nevertheless, we can assume the same energy efficiency of the higher-class ARM chips, even if the performance figures for CPU and GPU are lower.
One notable aspect of the new chips is the support for AI-powered applications. Qualcomm emphasizes that over 50 apps are accelerated by the integrated NPU (Neural Processor Unit). These include professional content creation tools and exclusive apps that use the Hexagon NPU. With a performance of 45 TOPS for AI applications, the new chips qualify for Microsoft's "Copilot+" branding.
This is a first for the Snapdragon X family. The new laptop chips will also power desktop PCs after a development set was previously canceled. You can look forward to ARM-based devices that will enter the mini PC market. Brands such as Dell and Lenovo are planning to launch the first laptops and desktops with the new processor as early as early 2025.
AI trends in other markets
However, Qualcomm did not only remain active in the PC sector. Numerous announcements for other areas were also presented at CES 2025, including mobility, smart home and B2B solutions. The central theme of 2024 remains unchanged: Artificial intelligence.
Qualcomm's in-house exhibition Snapdragon Summit: the summary
For the Digital Chassis automotive platform, which focuses on connected vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), there were new partnerships with companies such as Alpine, Amazon, Hyundai Mobis and even Royal Enfield. Qualcomm used CES to demonstrate its latest self-driving technologies in collaboration with BMW.
In the smart home sector, the company announced plans to enter the smart TV market, which is currently dominated by Taiwanese rivals such as MediaTek. The QCS8550 platform promises AI-powered processing and fast connectivity for TVs, including support for the AV1 codec.
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