The first Copilot+ laptops, powered by Qualcomm’s impressive new Snapdragon X chip, are already hitting the market. However, early reviews have been mixed, with some praising the chips’ efficiency and battery life, while others highlight performance struggles, particularly with games and certain applications.
A new leak suggests that Qualcomm may have more chips up their sleeve, offering hope for these Arm-based Copilot+ PCs. According to files for the Adreno GPU driver, there may be 10 different models of the Snapdragon X chip, not just the six previously known. Among these, three are Plus chips, adding to the existing one.
The unreleased chips include the X Elite X1E-76-100, which is expected to be a 12-core variant. The new Plus lineup features the X1P-62-100, X1P-42-100, and the X1P-40-100. While the specific specs are still unknown, the Plus chips are likely to boast 10 cores instead of 12.
Based on the naming alone, it’s speculated that the X1P-62-100 will be the second-best 10-core chip, while the X Elite X1E-76-100 could be the entry-level 12-core option. However, the actual clock speeds and availability of these rumored chips remain uncertain.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chips aim to compete with AMD Ryzen AI 300 series and Intel Lunar Lake processors, both of which meet the requirements for Microsoft’s Copilot+ program. However, a key challenge lies in the fact that Qualcomm’s chips are Arm-based, relying on a different instruction set compared to traditional x86 processors. While emulation shows promise, current reviews reveal that some applications, especially games, struggle to run smoothly on these PCs. This is an issue that Microsoft is actively working on improving.
Despite the challenges, these new chips offer compelling advantages, including impressive battery life and efficiency. It remains to be seen whether these rumored Qualcomm Snapdragon X chips will become a reality, but their potential impact on the future of Arm-based PCs is undeniable.
