Chipmaker Qualcomm has claimed that its new Snapdragon X Elite PC processor is 21% faster than Apple's latest M3 chip in multi-core performance, although questions remain about its thermal profile.
Demoing PCs with the new chipset, the San Diego manufacturer told Digital Trends that the Snapdragon X Elite records a multi-core Geekbench score of 15,300, whereas Apple's M3 obtains a score of 12,154. What Qualcomm did not mention however is the Snapdragon-powered machine's power consumption as a benchmarking vector, which is an important indicator of efficiency performance.
Qualcomm's upcoming range of 2024 Windows PCs are expected to be offered in different thermal design profiles. The performance-focused 80W profile runs faster but generates more heat and requires active cooling (fans), while the efficiency-focused 23W profile is made to be used in thinner laptops with passive cooling systems. For comparison, Apple's base M3 MacBook Pro houses a single fan, similar to the discontinued 13-inch MacBook Pro, but the M3 Pro and M3 Max use dual-fan designs to allow the additional cores to reach maximum performance under load.
The Snapdragon X Elite was announced in late October, just before Apple announced its new MacBook Pro lineup powered by M3 series chips. Despite the claims of better performance offered by the Elite chip over Apple silicon, Qualcomm conceded that "hardware... is the only thing we can control," and therefore the user experience between the rival machines is "not going to be the same," because "they're running macOS and we're running Windows."
iOS 19 will not be available on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or the iPhone XS Max, according a private account on social media site X that has accurately provided information on device compatibility in the past.
The iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max all have an A12 Bionic chip, so it looks like iOS 19 will discontinue support for that chip. All other iPhones that run iOS 18 are expected...
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Apple today released new firmware updates for all AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2 models. The new firmware is version 7E93, up from the 7B21 firmware that was installed on the AirPods Pro 2 and the 7B20 firmware available on the AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC.
It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in the new firmware, but we'll update this article should we find ...
Apple today released watchOS 11.4, the fourth major update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.4 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2.
watchOS 11.4 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software,...
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3.
Mac users can download the macOS Sequoia update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15.
With...
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent.
A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
Thermal Profile is important. Qualcomm's chip is likely missing many of the other GPU optimizations and features that Apple's M3 chip family supports, plus they are comparing it to the base M3 chip, not the M3 Pro, M3 Max, or the soon to be released M3 Ultra for performance. And what about Apple's built in GPUs, Media Encoders, Neural Engine, and other custom chip features on Apple's M3 series of chips, that may be missing on Qualcomm's chip? They are comparing Apples to Oranges!
