Microsoft wanted to test a new Surface PC with an Arm chip

Arm chips and the Windows operating system have so far not gone well together. Optimization issues, half-bar performance, Surface Pro X and their SQ1 then SQ2 processors (Snapdragon 8cx Gen 1 and 2 from Qualcomm renamed by Microsoft) have actually not been able to convince so far. However, the use of Arm chips could have brought some interesting elements. We are thinking in particular of very low energy consumption and excellent autonomy. Furthermore, the sensational arrival of Apple’s M1 chips, also based on the Arm architecture, has proven that it is possible to combine performance, low consumption, autonomy and silent operation for the Macs equipped with them.

As a reminder, with its Snapdragon 8cx, Qualcomm relied above all on energy efficiency, but the manufacturer now clearly wants to improve the performance of its chips. For this, it intends to offer with 8cx Gen 3 a new design in 5 nm, with a doubling of the chip’s high-performance cores – which would bring the total number to eight – always accompanied by four low-power cores.

Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 surfaces

It is precisely this Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3, which was discovered in a benchmark on the Geekbench 5 software, embedded in a computer named OEMVL OEMVL. This type of code name has already been used by Microsoft on their Surface Pro, Surface Laptop or Surface Book PCs, and it is reasonable to believe that it is a computer from the series that has just been tested. The Surface Pro X is the only model that integrates Arm processors, and it is therefore expected to be renewed this year.

The score is in any case much better than on the Surface Pro X equipped with 8cx Gen 2, which is displayed around 800 in single-core and 3250 in multi-core. A commendable performance gain that could allow this 8cx Gen 3 to compete with 11th generation Intel processors such as the Core i5-1135G7 or even the Core i7-1165G7 on certain PCs, or the Ryzen 5 5500U from AMD. Be careful though, Geekbench is optimized for Arm, which is not yet the case for all Windows applications, and in practice, the 8cx Gen 3 may be below a Core i5. A very advanced use with photo or video processing software would not be possible in any case, but office automation would be quite comfortable with this level of performance.

The competition is getting fierce

However, Qualcomm may face harsh criticism. The score is far from those achieved by Apple’s M1 chips or 12th generation Intel processors, and the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 is therefore already lagging behind. If this new surface does not hit the market before the fall, as rumors suggest, the gap will be even wider with M2 chips, no doubt already announced at the time AMD Ryzen 6000 processors are widespread and the 13th generation of Intel on the way .

Snapdragons could possibly do well if the energy efficiency is excellent and the PCs’ autonomy significantly improved, but here the M1s have already taken a long lead. Optimization will also be a key element to see, but it will be necessary to wait several months before testing and comparing all of this if Microsoft is actually unveiling this Surface Pro X, which has nothing official at the moment.