Intel Processor N200 vs Microsoft SQ1 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx
Intel Processor N200
► remove from comparisonThe Intel Processor N200 is an entry-level mobile CPU for thin and light laptops from the Alder Lake-N series. It was announced in early 2023 and offers no performance cores and 4 of the 8 efficient cores (E-cores, Gracemont architecture). The chip does not support HyperThreading and clocks with up to 3.7 GHz. The performance of the E-cores should be similar to old Skylake cores (compare to the Core i7-6700HQ). All cores can use up to 6 MB L3-cache.
Performance
The performance is clearly lower than the Core i3-N300 and N305 due to the reduced core count. Compared to older processors, the N200 should be similar to a Core i5-8250U (4 cores with HyperThreading, 3.4 GHz, 15W) when the power limit is not restricting performance.
Features
The Alder Lake-N chips only support single channel memory with up to DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200 or LPDDR5-4800. The chip also supports Quick Sync and AV1 decoding (most likely same engine as in Alder Lake). Furthermore, Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 are partly integrated (but no Thunderbolt). External chips can be connected via PCIe Gen3 x9 (via the PCH).
The integrated graphics adapter is based on the Xe-architecture and offersall 32 EUs (Execution Units) operating at only 450 - 750 MHz. Due to the single channel memory, low clock speeds and low shader count, the gaming performance of the iGPU is very limited.
Power consumption
The N200 has a base power consumption of only 6 W and is therefore suited for fanless cooling. The CPU is built with a further improved 10nm SuperFin process at Intel (called Intel 7).
Microsoft SQ1
► remove from comparisonThe Microsoft SQ1 is a ARM based SoC for Windows tablets (Surface Pro X). It is based on the Snapdragon 8cx but with higher clocked CPU and GPU cores. The CPU cores clock with up to 3 GHz. The 4 Kryo 495 Gold cores are based on the ARM Cortex-A76 architecture (for performance) and clocked at up to 3 GHz (2.84 GHz for the 8cx) under load (no single core Turbo). The 4 Kryo 495 Silver cores are small ARM Cortex-A55 cores for power efficiency and clocked at 1.9 GHz (unverified) under load. The integrated X24 LTE modem supports up to 2 Gbps download speeds. Furthermore, the SoC integrates ac-Wifi and a dual-channel 32-bit 1866 MHz LPDDR4x memory controller.
The processor performance should be similar to a Intel Core i5 8th gen U-series (e.g. i5-8250U) according to Qualcomm. However, this is only the case for native ARM64 compiled Windows apps which are not that many (in mid 2019). 32 bit applications and games for AMD/Intel run in a rather slow emulation and 65 bit apps wont start at all.
The integrated Adreno 685 graphics card is a higher clocked version of the Adreno 680 in the Snapdragon 8cx. Microsoft claims 2 TFlops theoretical performance compared to the 1.8 for the Adreno 680 (+11%).
The chip is very power efficient as its produced at TSMC in the modern 7 process. Therefore, laptops using the Snapdragon 8cx can be passively cooled (no fan) and should not throttle under constant load.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx
► remove from comparisonThe Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Compute Platform (or SD8cx) is a ARM based SoC for Windows laptops. It integrates a similar CPU part as the Snapdragon 855 (same cores but without the Prime Core feature) and is manufactured in 7nm at TSMC. The 4 Kryo 495 Gold cores are based on the ARM Cortex-A76 architecture (for performance) and clocked at 2.84 GHz under load (no single core Turbo). The 4 Kryo 495 Silver cores are small ARM Cortex-A55 cores for power efficiency and clocked at 1.9 GHz under load. According to Qualcomm, the clock speed should not be reduced under constant load with typical (fanless) cooling. The integrated X24 LTE modem supports up to 2 Gbps download speeds. Furthermore, the SoC integrates ac-Wifi and a dual-channel 32-bit 1866 MHz LPDDR4x memory controller.
The processor performance should be similar to a Intel Core i5 8th gen U-series (e.g. i5-8250U) according to Qualcomm. However, this is only the case for native ARM64 compiled Windows apps which are not that many (in mid 2019). 32 bit applications and games for AMD/Intel run in a rather slow emulation and 64 bit apps wont start at all (but an emulator should come in Windows in 2021).
The integrated Adreno 680 graphics card is a beefier version of the Adreno 640 in the Snapdragon 855 and should be twice as fast as the old Adreno 630 (in Windows laptops) and offer a 60% higher efficiency.
The chip is very power efficient as its produced at Samsung in the modern 7 nm process (7LPP). Therefore, laptops using the Snapdragon 8cx can be passively cooled (no fan) and should not throttle under constant load.
Model | Intel Processor N200 | Microsoft SQ1 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Series | Intel Alder Lake-N | Qualcomm Snapdragon | Qualcomm Snapdragon | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Codename | Alder Lake-N | Cortex-A76 / A55 (Kryo 495) | Cortex-A76 / A55 (Kryo 495) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Series: Snapdragon Cortex-A76 / A55 (Kryo 495) |
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Clock | 1000 - 3700 MHz | 3000 MHz | 2840 MHz | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
L3 Cache | 6 MB | 2 MB | 2 MB | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cores / Threads | 4 / 4 4 x 3.7 GHz Intel Crestmont E-Core | 8 / 8 | 8 / 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TDP | 6 Watt | 7 Watt | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Technology | 10 nm | 7 nm | 7 nm | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
max. Temp. | 105 °C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
iGPU | Intel UHD Graphics Xe 750 32EUs (Rocket Lake) (450 - 750 MHz) | Qualcomm Adreno 685 | Qualcomm Adreno 680 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Architecture | x86 | ARM | ARM | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Announced | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manufacturer | ark.intel.com | www.microsoft.com | www.qualcomm.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Features | X24 LTE Modem, Adreno 685 GPU | X24 LTE Modem, Adreno 680 GPU |