Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100 vs Apple M4 (10 cores)

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100

The Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100 is a moderately fast ARM architecture processor (SoC) for use in Windows laptops that debuted in April 2024. The X1P-64-100 has 10 Oryon CPU cores (10 threads) running at no more than 3.4 GHz. Other key features include the 3.8 TFLOPS Adreno X1-85 GPU, the 45 TOPS Hexagon NPU and an impressively fast LPDDR5x-8448 memory controller.

The chip's smarter X Elite series brothers including first and foremost the Snapdragon X Elite X1E-84-100 are thought to be based on the same die with the same NPU but with more CPU cores enabled, higher GPU clock speeds, higher CPU clock speeds and possibly higher power targets as well.

Architecture and Features

Qualcomm Oryon cores are in part based on Nuvia IP; they most likely make use of the ARM v8.7 microarchitecture. Much like modern AMD and Intel processors, the Snapdragon chip is compatible with USB 4 and thus with Thunderbolt 4 but it remains to be seen if it is is compatible with GeForce or Radeon discrete graphics cards.

The Qualcomm SoC is said to have 12 PCIe 4 and 4 PCIe 3 lanes for connecting various kinds of devices. NVMe SSDs are supported with a throughput of up to 7.9 GB/s; furthermore, most laptops built around the chip are expected to have 16 GB of LPDDR5X-8448 RAM. There is also a 45 TOPS NPU for accelerating AI workloads.

Performance

Its multi-thread performance is very close to that of the Intel Core i7-13700H and the 9-core Apple M4, meaning this is a pretty fast CPU that's good for most tasks one could possibly throw at it in 2024.

Like any other Windows on ARM platform, the Snapdragon X chip works best with applications and games compiled specifically for ARM processors. If making use of the built-in x86 to ARM emulation mode, a performance penalty of about 20% is to be expected.

Graphics

The 3.8 TFLOPS Adreno X1-85 iGPU is DirectX 12-enabled but not DirectX 12 Ultimate-enabled, despite featuring VRS and ray tracing support. The 3.8 TFLOPS of performance that it supposedly delivers pale in comparison to the slowest current-generation professional Nvidia Ada graphics card for laptops, the RTX 500 Ada, that delivers up to 9.2 TFLOPS.

Its gaming performance is rather underwhelming; while slightly faster than the aging Iris Xe (96 EUs), the Adreno is not fast enough to outpace the Radeon 780M meaning there is little point in comparing it with full-fat discrete graphics cards. Baldur's Gate 3, a triple-A title released in 2023, is pretty much unplayable at 1080p / Low. GTA V, a game that saw the light of day in 2015, is playable at 1080p / High.

The Qualcomm iGPU will let you use up to 3 UHD 2160p monitors simultaneously. 2160p120 integrated displays are supported, as are the popular AV1, HEVC and AVC video codecs (both decoding and encoding). The hardware does not support the VVC codec; that feature remains a Lunar Lake exclusive for now.

Power consumption

The X1P-64-100 is most likely going to be less power-hungry than its more powerful X Elite brothers. Expect to see anything between 10 W and 35 W under long-term workloads because that's what Ryzen U chips normally consume.

The SoC is built with a 4 nm TSMC process for decent, as of H1 2024, energy efficiency.

Apple M4 (10 cores)

The 10-core Apple M4 is an impressively fast ARM architecture processor (SoC) sporting 4 performance and 6 efficient CPU cores along with a 16-core neural engine and a 10-core GPU with hardware RT support and other modern features. On-package 7500 MT/s LPDDR5x RAM, USB 4 support and Thunderbolt 4 support are onboard as well, as are Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3.

The M4 debuted in May 2024 as part of an iPad launch event; its 4 performance cores run at up to 4.4 GHz, representing a healthy improvement over the M3 (10-core GPU) and its 4.06 GHz top clock speed. Besides, this new chip also has 6 efficient cores at its disposal that run at up to 2.9 GHz. The M3 had to make do with 4 performance cores and 4 efficient cores, for reference.

Architecture and Features

The new CPU cores run at faster clock speeds than what the M3 was capable of while also featuring some minor architectural improvements. A heavily customized version of ARM's v9.4-A microarchitecture is reportedly employed here. The M4 comes with on-package LPDDR5x-7500 RAM (120 GB/s) whereas the M3 was limited to 6400 MT/s. The updated NPU delivers up to 38 TOPS of performance for AI workloads.

Performance

In 2024 iPad Pros, the 3 nm chip is 10% to 20% faster than the M3 (10 GPU cores) in both multi-thread and single-thread short-term workloads. It also delivers about 10% higher multi-thread performance than the 9-core M4. This puts the 10-core part on an equal footing with the Ryzen 7 7745HX, Core i7-13705H and other higher-end x86 processors released in 2023 and 2024.

iPad Pros come with no active cooling solution however Mac minis and MacBook Pros do have one and the latest iMacs probably do as well. As our Fall 2024 Mac mini review shows, the M4's short-term performance doesn't benefit much from the presence of a fan, however its sustained performance benefits tremendously.

Graphics

The M4 GPU (10 cores) has hardware support for ray tracing as well as mesh shading and other modern technologies. It supports external displays with resolutions as high as 8K.

The graphics adapter runs at higher clock speeds than what the (otherwise identical) 10-core GPU built into the 9-core M4 can muster. As our Mac mini 2024 review confirmed, its performance is good enough to run many 2023 and 2024 games at 1080p on low or medium quality settings.

• Сyberpunk 2077 2.1 Phantom Liberty (1080p, Med): 28 fps

Much like it is with CPU performance, M4-powered iPad Pros will be much slower in long-term GPU-intensive workloads than iMacs, Mac minis and MacBook Pros due to the lack of proper cooling.

Power consumption

This specific M4 chip is found in 2024 iPad Pros, 2024 iMacs, 2024 Mac minis and 2024 MacBook Pros. Within the thin metal cases of the iPads - no active cooling - the chip's sustained power consumption hovers in the 4 W - 5 W area, with short-term peaks of up to 14 W possible. However, Mac minis and MacBook Pros do have an active cooling solution (and the new iMacs probably do, too) meaning the power consumption figures are several times higher. In our Fall 2024 Mac mini review, the SoC consumed 30 W to 40 W when under high loads.

The M4 is built with a "second generation" 3 nm TSMC process which is still cutting-edge as of late 2024.