Windows 11 Competes with MacBook: Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme Achieves Impressive Geekbench Scores

The launch of the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme marks a significant advancement for Windows 11 on Arm, bringing it closer to the performance benchmarks set by Apple’s M4 series. However, it still trails behind Apple’s latest 10-core M5 in terms of single-core performance. The Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme X2E-96-100, Windows 11’s most powerful Arm chip to date, achieved an impressive Geekbench single-core score of 4, 072 and a multi-core score of 23, 611.

Remarkably, the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme is part of a broader X2 lineup. Previous benchmarks for a reference device running the Snapdragon X2 Elite (the second-tier chip) revealed scores of 3, 849 in single-core and up to 16, 222 in multi-core performance, underscoring the capabilities of these processors.

Overview of Snapdragon X2 Series Variants

Before delving into specific benchmarks, let’s examine the key specifications of the various Elite and Elite Extreme WeUs within the Snapdragon X2 series:

SKU	Cores	Max / Base CPU Clock	GPU	TDP	Memory (Type / Bandwidth)	NPU
X2E-80-100	12	Up to 4.7 GHz / 3.4 GHz	Adreno X2-85	55W	LPDDR6-9600 / 156.3 GB/s (128-bit)	80 TOPS
X2E-84-100	12	Up to 4.7 GHz / 3.4 GHz	Adreno X2-90	70W	LPDDR6-9600 / 156.3 GB/s (128-bit)	80 TOPS
X2E-88-100	18	Up to 4.7 GHz / 3.4 GHz	Adreno X2-85	55W	LPDDR6-9600 / 156.3 GB/s (128-bit)	80 TOPS
X2E-90-100	18	Up to 4.7 GHz / 3.4 GHz	Adreno X2-90	70W	LPDDR6-9600 / 156.3 GB/s (128-bit)	80 TOPS
X2E-96-100 (Elite Extreme)	18	Up to 5.0 GHz / 3.6 GHz	Adreno X2-90	82W	LPDDR6-9600 / 156.3 GB/s (128-bit)	80 TOPS

Additionally, there exists a Snapdragon X2 Plus WeU, which is not detailed here as it targets low-end hardware and does not compete with the X2E chips. For our current focus, we’ll center on the highest performing CPUs available for Windows on Arm.

Early insights from YouTuber Alex Ziskind, who had early access to these Snapdragon chips, provided Geekbench screenshots highlighting the capabilities of the reference units running the X2 Elite “Extreme.”

Performance Comparison: Snapdragon X2 vs. Apple M Series

X2E-80-100 Performance Insights

Geekbench tests reveal that the 12-core Snapdragon X2E-80-100 chip scores approximately 3, 850 in single-core performance and 16, 171 in multi-core. This positions it comfortably above the Apple M3, which typically scores around 2, 997 single-core and 11, 464 multi-core. Additionally, it compares favorably against the M3 Pro’s mid-range multi-core scores.

X2E-88-100 Performance Overview

Moving to the X2E-88-100 variant, which features 18 cores and scores around 3, 838 in single-core, its multi-core performance impressively peaks at 20, 320. When benchmarked against Apple’s M3 Max, which usually lands in the low 21K range, it demonstrates competitive performance.

X2E-96-100: The Ultimate Arm Processor for Windows 11

At the top of the lineup is the Snapdragon X2E-96-100, recognized as the most potent Arm processor supporting Windows 11. With a single-core score of 4, 072 and a multi-core score of 23, 611, it competes effectively with the M4 Max, which generally achieves around 26, 000 in multi-core scenarios.

To summarize, here is a comparative table illustrating the performance of Snapdragon X2 variants alongside Apple’s M lineup:

Chip / Variant (source: WindowsLatest.com)	Cores	Geekbench 6.5 Single-core	Geekbench 6.5 Multi-core
X2E-80-100	12	3, 850	16, 171
X2E-88-100	18	3, 838	20, 320
X2E-96-100 (Elite Extreme)	18	4, 072	23, 611
Apple M3	Base	2, 997 (2, 976–3, 093)	11, 464 (10, 655–12, 031)
Apple M3 Pro	12	3, 136 (3, 078–3, 146)	15, 422 (14, 691–15, 877)
Apple M3 Max	16	3, 134 (3, 031–3, 175)	21, 220 (21, 083–21, 409)
Apple M4	10	3, 783 (3, 715–3, 913)	15, 426 (15, 172–15, 564)
Apple M4 Pro	14	3, 918 (3, 870–3, 976)	23, 081 (22, 696–23, 164)
Apple M4 Max	16	4, 070 (4, 025–4, 102)	26, 814 (26, 610–26, 873)
Apple M5	10	4, 351 (4, 298–4, 367)	18, 053 (17, 795–18, 126)

There is no doubt that the Snapdragon X2 series presents a formidable platform for Windows 11. The onus is now on Microsoft to enhance Windows 11, ensuring it can effectively compete with Apple’s robust offerings.

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