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The leaks of Snapdragon X2 CPUs have finally been realized, as Qualcomm has revealed its next set of CPUs to power the latest PCs — Snapdragon X2 Elite and a whole new set of Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme chips are here.
During the Snapdragon Summit 2025, Qualcomm finally announced its next Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme and Snapdragon X2 Elite CPUs, its next-gen silicon to boost performance and efficiency in lightweight Windows laptops, and beyond (mini PCs included).
Not only can we expect up to 75% faster CPU performance in its third-gen 3nm Oryon CPU, but the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme also delivers a 2.3x uplift in graphics power and efficiency in its upgraded Adreno GPU, while also featuring up to 80 TOPS (Trillions of Operations Per Second) in its Hexagon NPU to bring the "world’s fastest NPU for laptops."
Qualcomm was the first to bring AI performance to Windows Copilot+ PCs, and it aims to boost performance, power efficiency and AI power with its next-gen chips — this time with an Extreme CPU contender.
Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme: Specs
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | CPU cores | Max MultiCore Frequency | Max Boost Frequency | Cache | Qualcomm Adreno GPU | Qualcomm Hexagon NPU (TOPS) | Memory |
Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme (X2E-96-100) | 18 (12 Prime Cores, 6 Performance Cores) | 4.4 GHz | 5.0 GHz single-core / 5.0 GHz dual-core | 53MB | X2-90 | 80 | 228 GB/s LPDDR5x |
Snapdragon X2 Elite (X2E-88-100) | 18 (12 Prime Cores, 6 Performance Cores) | 4.0 GHz | 4.7 GHz single-core / 4.7 GHz dual-core | 53MB | X2-90 | 80 | 152 GB/s LPDDR5x |
Snapdragon X2 Elite (X2E-80-100) | 12 (6 Prime Cores, 6 Performance Cores) | 4.0 GHz | 4.7 GHz single-core / 4.4 GHz dual-core | 34MB | X2-85 | 80 | 152 GB/s LPDDR5x |
Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme: What we know
Just from their specs, the Snapdragon X2 Elite CPUs already show a major boost over the last Snapdragon X Elite chips. This includes up to 18 CPU cores (12 prime cores, 6 performance cores), which is up from the Snapdragon X Elite's 12 cores, 1.85 GHz max frequency in its next-gen Adreno GPU and 80 TOPS for improved AI performance — nearly double the amount of the original X Elite's 45 TOPS.
So far, three CPUs have been announced, including the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme and two other X2 Elite chips. Compared to its previous-gen processors, Qualcomm claims its latest chipset delivers 31% faster performance at ISO power and only needs 43% less power, translating to greater battery life.
What really brings the heat is the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme, set for "ultra-premium PCs." This chip will take full advantage of agentic AI, and aims to offer high-end performance for photo and video editing, data analytics and, of course, gaming in thin-and-light Windows PCs.
As for the upgraded Adreno GPU, the Snapdragon X2 Elite series claims to boost graphics quality and frame rates (including ray tracing), all while making the most of power efficiency to improve battery life.
The Snapdragon X2 Elite-series chips also offer Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, while support for Snapdragon X75 5G Modem also means the latest in 5G connectivity.
While the boost in performance is sure to impress, Qualcomm also points out that we'll see multi-day battery life. Snapdragon chips are known for delivering the best battery life in laptops, with the Dell XPS 13 boasting nearly 20 hours of battery. With Snapdragon X2 Elite chips, we expect to see huge improvements.
Can it game?
As we've seen when gaming on a Snapdragon X Elite laptop, Qualcomm's chips are capable of playing the latest PC games while saving battery. However, X2 Elite looks to deliver even more.
In fact, PCs with Snapdragon X2 Elite chips will offer up to 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution with 144Hz refresh rates on their displays. That's on par with some of the best gaming laptops, all without a discrete GPU to deliver ultra-thin PCs. Of course, we'll have to see how these CPUs perform once we get hands-on time with them (more on that soon).
“Snapdragon X2 Elite strengthens our leadership in the PC industry, providing legendary leaps in performance, AI processing and battery life to enable the experiences that consumers deserve,” says Qualcomm's SVP and GM of compute and gaming, Kedar Kondap.
Kondap continues: “We continue to push the boundaries of technological innovation, introduce breakthrough products that set new industry standards and redefine what’s possible for PCs.”
That's not all that was announced during Qualcomm's annual Snapdragon Summit, as CEO Cristiano Amon announced that 6G connectivity will arrive in devices as early as 2028.
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