Intel Unveils New AI PC Chip, Claims Dominance Over Qualcomm
Intel,a company recently embroiled in controversy over its chip performance, has launched its latestgeneration of Core Ultra laptop chips, strategically timed to coincide with a significant drop in the US stock market’s chip sector.
The new chips, partof the Ultra 200V series, are designed to compete with Qualcomm and AMD in the burgeoning AI PC market. They are targeted towards thin and lightlaptops, and their key advantage, aside from impressive performance metrics, lies in their support for the traditional x86 architecture, unlike Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X series, which uses the ARM architecture.
A Lineup of Ultra Chips
Intel unveiled nine chips in the Ultra 200V series, all featuring eight cores (four performance cores and four efficiency cores). The chips are differentiated by their maximum CPU boost frequency, GPU core count, and NPU engine count.
A notable feature of this generation is the integration of memory directly into the chip, offering consumers only two options: 16GB or 32GB. Intel has also removed Hyper-Threading technology, resulting in 8 cores, 8 threads for all chips.
The three-digit product names followa consistent pattern: the first 2 denotes the second generation of Core Ultra chips, the second digit indicates the processor frequency tier, and the third digit is either 6 or 8, corresponding to two memory levels.
Performance Claims and Comparisons
Intel insists that its new chips outperform the competition,particularly Qualcomm. The flagship chip, the Ultra 9 288V, is claimed to match the performance of Apple’s M3 chip in multi-threaded performance/power consumption curves. It also boasts 40% lower power consumption than Qualcomm’s flagship X1E-80-100 chip at the same performance level.
However, Intel’s own graphs reveal that under high power conditions, the 8-thread Ultra 9 288V falls short of the performance of previous generation Intel chips with 14 or 22 threads, as well as the 12-core, 24-thread AMD HX 370. This suggests that the chip is more accurately positioned as a low-power champion.
Graphics and AI Capabilities
Intel emphasizes the graphics prowess of its chips, claiming 68% higher frame rates than Qualcomm’s flagship AI PC chipin 1080p medium settings. It also highlights that dozens of games are simply unplayable on Qualcomm chips.
Using XeSS super-resolution technology, Intel claims to achieve 45fps in Cyberpunk 2077.
In terms of AI performance, Intel asserts that its chips comprehensivelyoutperform Qualcomm’s offerings.
Awaiting Reviews
With the first laptops featuring the new chips from Dell and ASUS set to be publicly reviewed soon, the common advice for consumers considering an AI PC upgrade this fall is to wait for the reviews.
Tech media outlet The Verge notes that earlier testsof new computers from Qualcomm and AMD revealed that their actual performance fell short of their marketing claims. AMD’s chips didn’t live up to their surpassing Apple tagline, and while Qualcomm chips excelled in battery life, they proved unsuitable for gaming.
A key question surrounding Intel’s new chips is whetherthey can maintain high performance while unplugged.
Intel has also confirmed that the initial release will not include features like real-time subtitles from Microsoft Copilot Plus AI. These features will be rolled out as free updates starting in November.
For those seeking more cores and threads, rumors suggest that Intel will release its next-generation Arrow Lake chips in October, catering to users with higher memory, core, and thread requirements.
Conclusion
Intel’s launch of its new Core Ultra chips marks a significant step in the ongoing competition for the AI PC market. While the company’s claims of dominance over Qualcomm are ambitious, the truetest lies in real-world performance and independent reviews. Consumers looking for a new AI PC this fall would be wise to wait for these evaluations before making a purchase.
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