Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme Can Consume Upwards Of 100W When ‘Unconstrained,’ Thinner Notebook Designs Can Reach A Sustained 40W

The successor to the Snapdragon X Elite was unveiled in late September, with Qualcomm revealing more details regarding the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme right now, particularly its power limits when running in various notebook designs, and of course, when operating completely unrestricted. Based on the upcoming figures, Qualcomm’s flagship SoC for notebooks can reach upwards of 100W, but it will be up to the company’s partners to decide what power limits this silicon can operate on.

Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme-powered notebooks will have the option to be paired` with a dedicated GPU, though the chipset’s power limit will range from 60-100W

Currently, Qualcomm has not specified the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme’s TDP because it is entirely dependent on the OEM to incorporate these limits. For a notebook maker, there will be various factors that need to be considered, which have been highlighted below:

• Dimensions
• Weight
• Cost targets
• Surface
• Exhaust air temperatures
• Noise Levels

All of these factors determine the ‘Platform Sustained SoC Power Dissipation Capability.’ Naturally, if the Snapdragon X2 Elite and Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme are expected to run at higher sustained clock speeds, a beefier cooling solution will be mandatory. Unfortunately, a larger heatsink will be heavier, produce higher noise levels, and will be more expensive to incorporate, so Qualcomm’s partners will have to make adjustments accordingly. However, this investment may be justified given that Qualcomm's chipsets are the preferred choice for consumers, with brand loyalty likely to carry over from smartphones to these high-performance notebooks.

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For smaller and more portable notebooks with a 14-inch display, the Snapdragon X2 Elite with a 22W sustained power limit will be considered, though the limit can hover between 20-40W. Qualcomm was also kind enough to showcase practical examples of the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme’s power consumption when running unconstrained in a notebook.

• Memory Test - 107.94W
• Handbrake - 84.78W
• Cinebench 2024 multi-core - 70.31W
• Integer Spinloop - 30.19W
• Geekbench 6 multi-core - 8.41W

Notebook manufacturers will also have the option to incorporate dedicated GPUs into their products, with a power consumption range of 60-100W. As mentioned above, Qualcomm’s partners are at full liberty to decide the specifications of their machines, so making them slower or faster will entirely be up to them. From what we have seen from the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme, it is slower than Apple’s M4 Max in Cinebench 2024’s single-core and multi-core tests, meaning that it will pretty much lose to the M5 Max when the latter launches in Q1 2026.

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