AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H vs Intel Core i9-13980HX vs AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS

AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H

The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H is a processor for big (workstation) laptops based of the Rembrandt generation. The R7 6800H integrates all eight cores based on the Zen 3+ microarchitecture. They are clocked at 3.2 (guaranteed base clock) to 4.7 GHz (Turbo) and support SMT / Hyperthreading (16 threads). The chip is manufactured on the modern 6 nm TSMC process. This is a professional version of the consumer R7 6800H with additional managment features and the Microsoft Pluton Security processor.

The new Zen 3+ is a refresh of the Zen 3 architecture and should not offer a lot of changes. The chip itself however, offers a lot of new features, like support for USB 4 (40 Gbps), PCI-E Gen 4, DDR5-4800MT/s or LPDDR5-6400MT/s, WiFi 6E, Bluetooth LE 5.2, DisplayPort 2, and AV1 decode.

A big novelty is the integrated GPU Radeon 680M, that is now based on the RDNA2 architecture and offers 12 CUs at up to 2.2 GHz. It should be the fastest iGPU of all at the time of announcement.

Performance

The average 6850H in our database matches the Intel Core i7-11800H, AMD Ryzen 7 4800H, AMD Ryzen 9 4900H in multi-thread benchmark scores. Which puts it slightly behind the powerful 12th Gen Alder Lake-H processors; still, this is a more than decent option for your 3D-rendering jobs and gaming on the go as energy efficiency is good here. More on that below.

Your mileage may vary depending on how high the CPU power limits are, and how competent the cooling solution of your system is.

Power consumption

This Ryzen 7 has a default TDP (also known as the long-term power limit) of 45 W. A high-performance cooling solution is a must for a CPU like this.

Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H is built with TSMC's 6 nm process for great, as of late 2022, energy efficiency.

Intel Core i9-13980HX

The Intel Core i9-13980HX is a fast high-end mobile processor of the Raptor Lake-HX series. Is was announced in early 2023 and is based on the desktop Core i9-13000K with combined 24 cores and 32 threads. Eight fast Raptor Cove performance cores (P-cores) with HyperThreading that clock between 2.2 GHz (base) to 5.6 GHz (single core Turbo). The sixteen Gracemont cores are smaller and slower and optimized for efficiency. They clock between 1.6 GHz (base) and 4 GHz (Turbo).

Compared to Alder Lake, Raptor Lake offers improved P-Cores (Raptor Cove micro-architecture) with bigger Caches and more E-Cores (same Gracemont micro-architecture). Furthermore, the chip supports faster DDR5 memory (up to 5600 MHz for the 13980HX).

Performance

The average 13980HX in our database is in the same league as the Core i9-13950HX and the Ryzen 9 7845HX, as far as multi-thread benchmark scores are concerned.

Thanks to its decent cooling solution and a long-term CPU power limit of 143 W, the Alienware m18 R1 is among the fastest systems built around the 13980HX that we know of. It can be at least 10% faster in CPU-bound workloads than the slowest system featuring the same chip in our database, as of August 2023.

The CPU is still produced on a further improved 10nm FinFET process (Intel 7) that allows the higher clock speeds. The power consumption is specified at 55W base power up to 157 Watt max. Turbo power.

AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS

The AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS is a processor for big (gaming) laptops based on the Rembrandt generation. The R9 6900HS integrates all eight cores based on the Zen 3+ microarchitecture. They are clocked at 3.3 (guaranteed base clock) to 4.9 GHz (Turbo) and support SMT / Hyperthreading (16 threads). The chip is manufactured on the modern 6 nm TSMC process. The HS variant offers a 10 W lower TDP and therefore a lower sustained performance than the HX version.

The new Zen 3+ is a refresh of the Zen 3 architecture and should not offer a lot of changes. The chip itself however, offers a lot of new features, like support for USB 4 (40 Gbps), PCI-E Gen 4, DDR5-4800MT/s or LPDDR5-6400MT/s, WiFi 6E, Bluetooth LE 5.2, DisplayPort 2, and AV1 decode.

Performance

The average 6900HS in our database matches the Intel Core i7-12800H in multi-thread performance while managing to keep up with the more power-hungry 6900HX. "Top of the crop" is precisely the right phrase to describe this Ryzen 9 series chip, as of Q4 2022, and it will have no difficulty ripping through any task imaginable for years to come.

Your mileage may vary depending on how high the CPU power limits are, and how competent the cooling solution of your system is.

A big novelty is the integrated GPU Radeon 680M, that is now based on the RDNA2 architecture and offers 12 CUs at up to 2.4 GHz. It should be the fastest iGPU of all at the time of announcement.

The TDP of the APU is specified at 35 Watts and therefore better suited for thin and light laptops. The power efficiency should be very good, thanks to the improved 6 nm process  and additional power saving features in the 6000 series.