The Wildcat Lake chips are proving themselves to be worthy for ultra low-power and lightweight laptops.
Wildcat Lake 5-Core Chip Goes Head to Head With 6-Core Apple A18 Chip In PassMark
Apple MacBook Neo might be one of the most special releases from the company, powered by an entry-level chip that does everyday productivity tasks efficiently. The CPU bridges the gap between iPhone-tier mobile silicon and traditional Mac laptops, offering an affordable and "fanless" computing experience.
Intel Wildcat Lake, on the other hand, brings a similar objective, offering powerful 5 and 6-core entry-level chips that bring the Cougar Cove and Darkmont cores from the Panther Lake family to carry out operations faster without consuming much power. MacBook Neo doesn't have a competitor as solid as the Wildcat Lake laptops that cost nearly the same, but offer more RAM and storage out of the box, and it's not surprising to see some 6-core Wildcat Lake chips trading blows with the Apple A18 Pro.
However, the Core 3 304 remains the weakest processor in the lineup, having been losing to the Apple A18 Pro till today on one of the most popular CPU benchmarking platforms, PassMark. The latest entry changes that, and we now have the 1+4-core chip going head-to-head against the Apple A18 Pro in both single and multi-threaded operations, which is surprising, at least in the single-threaded workloads.
Apple A18 Pro is fast, delivering an average of 3,982 points in single-threaded tests across 111 tested samples. Meanwhile, we just have the third sample tested for the Core 3 304, which drastically improves the scores in both single and multi-threaded tests. Previously, the chip could do 3632 points as the best single-core score, but with the third entry, it's now equal to the Apple A18 Pro with 3,982 points (the same score). Of course, with more entries, the final score will vary, but right now the Core 3 304 sits at 3,676 points, which is just 8% slower than the A18 Pro.
In a multi-threaded test, the Core 3 304 is on par with the Apple chip, which we have been witnessing since the appearance of the processor on the platform. This is despite having one less core than the A18 Pro, making it a solid option for everyday productivity tasks.
News Sources: CPU Benchmark, @x86deadandback
About the author: Sarfraz Khan is a hardware reporter with a focus on PC components and the builder community. With years of experience writing about PC hardware and laptops, his work has been featured on several reputable technology publications. Sarfraz's hands-on experience is demonstrated through his first-person accounts of using and comparing different hardware configurations, providing practical and relatable insights for everyday users. His technical analysis is respected by peers in the enthusiast community and has been cited by specialized hardware sites such as Germany's Igor's Lab.
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