Qualcomm's desktop CPUs might not be far away, as it is now rumored that the chipmaker is working towards competing in the PC market.
Qualcomm's Desktop SoCs Might Be Called The "Snapdragon X Elite 2" Chips, Will Compete Against x86 Mainstream Alternatives
Well, it won't be wrong to say that the San Diego chipmaker had a great time with its "Snapdragon X Elite" SoCs in the laptop segment, given that within its first year, the firm saw massive adoption from manufacturers, especially considering the fact that the ARM architecture was previously exclusive to just Apple's MacBook. However, now, it looks like Qualcomm is coming for its share of the pie in the PC markets, as it is now rumored that the company's "Project Glymur" is likely a lineup that will target desktop PCs, competing head-to-head with Intel and AMD.
I think Qualcomm is coming for the desktop with Snapdragon "X Elite 2". They're testing "Project Glymur" SC8480XP with an AIO liquid cooler feat 120mm fan(s?), just like what you'd use in a (gaming) desktop
— Roland Quandt (@rquandt.bsky.social) 2024-12-10T01:26:13.953Z
Roland Quandt, a prominent analyst, says that Qualcomm's Project Glymur might actually be a desktop SoC lineup, given that previous claims said that the project is likely to be the next-gen laptop chips. Quandt claims that Qualcomm has been testing out the "SC8480XP" SKU with a dedicated liquid cooler, suggesting that the chipmaker is likely to test out desktop-focused CPUs. It is said that the desktop CPU lineup might be labeled as the "Snapdragon X Elite 2" series, but take this information with a grain of salt for now.
Qualcomm's entry into the desktop CPU market is inevitable, especially since the work around "Windows on ARM" has seen a steady rise, which is why it becomes a great option for the chipmaker to introduce desktop SoCs, given their compatibility is now much more seamless. The firm's mobile CPUs have done a considerable job in terms of market adoption, especially in the area of AI engines or "NPUs", which has promoted edge AI massively, bringing in several AI-oriented features.
The bigger question here is whether Qualcomm can nail its desktop CPU release, given that it is a lot more complicated than the laptop segment. Not only would the firm be faced with "x86 competition" from the likes of Intel and AMD, but it would require massive investments in R&D and manufacturing processes. Here's why Qualcomm acquiring elements of Intel's business makes sense, but that looks way too off for now.
It will be interesting to see how the ARM markets evolve moving into the future, specifically in terms of adoption rates, given the deep-rooted presence of x86 architectures in mainstream devices. In a recent post, we discussed how Intel commented on Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite devices "return rates", which shows that not everything is going great with the San Diego chipmaker, and nailing an ARM desktop release will require much more effort.
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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