Qualcomm announced today that it is making an ARM-based chip for Windows PCs that will go against Apple's M-series silicon inside its Mac lineup and is set to make its market debut in 2023. Now, Qualcomm is no stranger to the PC chip game, but its efforts haven’t been as groundbreaking in terms of performance as Apple’s well-received M1 chip that first arrived with the MacBook Air and Pro refresh last year.
The M1 was followed by the M1 Max and Pro that further touched new performance benchmarks, offering raw firepower in the same range as Intel’s top-of-the-line CPUs and NVIDIA’s latest RTX 3000 graphics cards. Qualcomm has provided ARM-based chips under its Snapdragon 8cx and 7c series for both Chromebooks and Windows on ARM PCs, but they’ve failed to make any noticeable splash in the market.
But it looks like Qualcomm is getting serious about PC chips and is squarely targeting Apple’s well-received M-series silicon. At the Qualcomm Investor Day 2021 summit, the company’s Chief Technology Officer, Dr. James H. Thompson, announced that the company is making an ARM-based chip that will “set the performance benchmark for Windows PCs.” It will target progress in terms of sustained performance as well as battery life. More importantly, the slideshow shared by Thompson says Qualcomm’s ARM-based chip will arrive as an “M-series competitive solution for the PC,” which is a tall claim to make and an exciting prospect to look forward to. The chip is being designed by experts at Nuvia. A company started by engineers who worked on the Apple silicon project and was subsequently acquired by Qualcomm in March this year.
Qualcomm's Chip Will Face-Off Against Apple At 3nm
At the moment, Qualcomm’s top-of-the-line PC offering is the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 chip which arrived with upgrades such as 5G support across Sub-6 GHz and mmWave spectrums, Wi-Fi 6, updated Spectra ISP and some AI-based enhancements. Microsoft’s SQ2 chip inside the Surface Pro X is also based on the Qualcomm chip mentioned above. But despite the in-house advantage, tests prove that Windows 10’s ARM version runs faster on M1 Mac than Microsoft’s convertible with a Qualcomm chip inside. Qualcomm hasn’t confirmed details for its upcoming Apple-beating PC chip, such as the fabrication process or core architecture.
However, the company notes that its Nuvia team is “pretty far along at this point” and that the company will begin the sampling process for its OEM partners in about nine months from now. The chipmaker adds that it wants to make the “highest performing, low power CPU in the industry” that will make its way to the market inside Windows machines in 2023. By that time, Apple will reportedly bring 3nm chips for its Mac and smartphone line-up with vastly improved performance. And the pace at which Apple has been improving its silicon, it would be a tough road ahead for Qualcomm to catch up, let alone surpass it.
Source: Qualcomm