At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Extremely thin and easy to pack High brightness with anti-glare panel make for comfortable viewing 180Hz refresh rate with Adaptive Sync Cons Uses Mini-HDMI input instead of full-sized HDMI Mediocre contrast ratio and color performance Currently a bit expensive compared to the competition Our Verdict The Arzopa Z3FC serves up a high-refresh 2560×1440 IPS-LCD in a slim, light package, though it’s a tad more expensive than it should be. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Arzopa Z3FC Retailer Price Arzopa $199.99 View Deal Check Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Most portable monitors are meant for basic productivity, but that’s not always true. The Arzopa Z3FC is a large IPS LCD portable monitor with an 180Hz refresh rate that aims to be of use both for office productivity and gaming. It’s successful, but its launch price is an obstacle. Read on to learn more, then see our roundup of the best portable monitors for comparison. Arzopa Z3FC specs and features The Arzopa Z3FC is a step up from the budget portable monitors that retail around $100 or less, and it provides some upgrades. The Z3FC has 2560×1440 resolution which, of course, is superior to the 1920×1080 resolution that most budget alternatives provide. The Z3FC also has a speedy 180Hz refresh rate, which is high for a portable monitor. Display size: 16.1-inch 16:9 aspect ratio Native resolution: 2560×1440 Panel type: IPS-LED Refresh rate: 180Hz Adaptive sync: Yes, AMD FreeSync HDR: None Ports: 2x USB Type-C with Power Delivery and DisplayPort, 1x Mini-HDMI 2.0 Audio: 2x 1-watt speakers Additional features: Built-in kickstand Dimensions: 13 x 8 x 0.39 inches Weight: 1.72 pounds Price: $229.99 MSRP, $199.99 typical retail The Arzopa Z3FC has an MSRP of $229.99, but I don’t think it was ever sold at MSRP (which is not unusual for an Amazon product listing). It’s more typically available at $199.99. Even that is towards the high end of where I expect this product to land as it ages. Its predecessor, the Arzopa Z1FC, was introduced at $259.99 but has sold as low as $96.98. I’d expect the Z3FC will gradually limbo closer to that figure. Arzopa Z3FC design The Arzopa Z3FC combines an aluminum frame and rear panel with plastic bezels to produce an attractive, durable feel. Despite its extremely thin profile—it measures less than 4/10-inch thick—the Z3FC feels solid when handled and doesn’t easily show flex. Don’t get me wrong: You could absolutely snap this thing over your knee if you wanted. But the same could be said of the iPad Pro. Big, thin devices are never bomb-proof, but the Z3FC feels nice. Matthew Smith / Foundry Its thin profile means the portable monitor is, well, portable. It weighs in at roughly 1.7 pounds, which is a tad lighter than average for a 16-inch portable monitor. Arzopa avoids using a bump-out to accommodate the ports and the kickstand retracts fully into the monitor’s case, both of which make the display easy to carry. Yet despite its small size, the kickstand supports use in both portrait and landscape orientation. A sleeve is included, as well. It looks okay but includes a flap that is secured with velcro. While the carrying case largely does its job, it doesn’t offer much padding, so I wouldn’t trust it alone to protect the monitor when packing it in checked luggage. The same can be said for most sleeves included with portable monitors, though. Arzopa Z3FC connectivity Connectivity is a mix bag with the Arzopa Z3FC. It includes two USB-C ports, each with DisplayPort and Power Delivery, and a HDMI port. So far, so good. The HDMI port is mini-HDMI, though, which is a bummer. While the Arzopa Z3FC does include a HDMI to mini-HDMI cable, mini-HDMI is much less common overall. You may have difficulty finding a cable around an office, or for sale in a store, if you leave the included cable at home. Matthew Smith / Foundry Of course, you could just rely on USB-C, which might be easier. The USB-C ports support Power Delivery to power the monitor when connected to a USB-C port that provides enough wattage. The specs don’t state what’s required, but an 18-watt power source was adequate. The USB-C ports support power pass-through. That means you can connect a USB-C source with power to one USB-C port, then use the portable monitor to charge a USB-C device connected to the other USB-C port. A USB-C power brick is not included, but will be required if you plan to deliver video to the Z3FC over HDMI, or if you use a USB-C video input that lacks power. The lack of a power brick is a minor disappointment, but most competitive portable monitors also ship without a power brick. Arzopa Z3FC menus, audio The Arzopa Z3FC’s menu system offers a wider range of options than most. It includes not only the typical brightness and contrast but also several color gamut modes, RGB calibration, and a 4:3 aspect ratio mode. As simple as these might seem, they aren’t guaranteed on a portable monitor. Some alternatives only provide brightness, contrast, and sharpness adjustment. Matthew Smith / Foundry Adjustments are easy, too, as the monitor includes two buttons and a volume rocker. The buttons are used to enter or exit menus and the rocker is used to select or adjust options. Overall, the Arzopa Z3FC’s menu can’t quite match that typically provided by Viewsonic, but beats budget portable monitors like the MSI Pro MP165 E6. A pair of 1-watt speakers can be found on each flank of the Z3FC. They’re weak, providing barely adequate volume even at maximum. The speakers are okay for a podcast but otherwise of limited use. The Arzopa Z3FC’s menu system offers a wider range of options than most. Arzopa Z3FC SDR image quality The Arzopa Z3FC isn’t expensive, but I wouldn’t say it’s a budget portable monitor—at least, not at its current typical retail price of $199.99. That means the monitor’s image quality matters. It scores well in several areas, though in others it feels pressure from OLED competition. Matthew Smith / Foundry Brightness is a positive for the Arzopa Z3FC. It comes close to 400 nits of SDR brightness, which is great for a portable monitor. This level of brightness is excessive for most situations, but portable monitors are likely to be used in areas where you have no control over the lighting, like a conference room or airport lounge. The Z3FC’s high brightness will make the monitor more comfortable to use in bright rooms and near large, sunlit windows. Matthew Smith / Foundry Contrast, on the other hand, is a miss for the Z3FC. Most portable monitors with an IPS-LCD panel struggle with contrast, and the Z3FC comes in towards the bottom of the pack. That means the image can look flat and dull. It’s not a problem in Microsoft Office, but disappointing when playing a game. Portable monitors with an OLED panel, like the Innocn 15K1F, are a much better choice for entertainment. They provide a deep, immersive image that easily stands out. Keep in mind, however, that price-comparable OLED portable monitors will have a 60Hz refresh rate. That’s a trade-off you’ll need to weigh. Matthew Smith / Foundry The Arzopa Z3FC’s color gamut is good, or mediocre, depending on your perspective. It covers 99 percent of sRGB as well as 78 percent of DCI-P3 and AdobeRGB. As the graph shows, that’s average to above-average for a portable monitor with an IPS-LCD display. The Z3FC’s color gamut is enough to provide good color volume and a vibrant image. However, the Z3FC’s color gamut is far behind the Innocn 15K1F’s OLED panel, and will significantly lag OLED alternatives in general. OLED provides an incredibly rich, hyper-saturated look that many will prefer. Matthew Smith / Foundry The Arzopa Z3FC achieved modest results in color accuracy. Its average color error isn’t bad, but the average includes noticeable errors in colors such as blue and cyan. The overall impression is that the monitor can look a bit too red or orange. That’s also represented in the monitor’s color temperature of 6300K, which is a bit warmer than the target of 6500K. Gamma, on the other hand, was solid with an on-target gamma curve of 2.2. Content generally looks as bright as it should, and while the monitor’s overall contrast isn’t great, it does a fine job of preserving detail in dark areas of a scene. Sharpness is a highlight. The 16.1-inch panel has a resolution of 2560×1440. That works out to about 182 pixels per inch. That’s a higher pixel density than a 27-inch 4K monitor (at about 163 ppi) and much better than a 27-inch 1440p monitor (at roughly 110 ppi). High-resolution video looks great and text looks sharp. So what’s the verdict? I think the Z3FC’s image quality is fine, even good. It benefits from a decent color gamut and high brightness, two traits that help it deliver an attractive image when used in a bright room. It’s less impressive in darker rooms, as the limited contrast ratio becomes more noticeable. The main decision you’ll need to make is whether you’d prefer an IPS-LCD display with high brightness and a fast refresh rate, like the Z3FC, or an OLED competitor with superior contrast and color gamut, like the Innocn 15K1F. Arzopa Z3FC HDR image quality and motion The Arzopa Z3FC includes HDR, but it’s nothing to write home about—or, if you did, you might use language your pen pal wouldn’t appreciate. While HDR is supported, the monitor’s limited contrast ratio and brightness means there’s not much, if any, benefit to using it. The image looks a bit different, but not better. I recommend sticking to SDR. This is not a problem exclusive to the Z3FC, however. All portable monitors suffer bad HDR to varying degrees. It’s a direct result of their portability and low pricing. The Viewsonic VX1655-4K-OLED is the only portable monitor I’ve tested to deliver passable HDR—but it retails at $519.99. The Z3FC’s motion clarity benefits from the IPS-LCD panel’s 180Hz refresh rate, which is high for a portable monitor with 2560×1440 resolution. A higher refresh rate translates to reduced blur in fast-moving and rapidly changing images, and the improvement is obvious, particularly when compared to a 60Hz alternative. Arzopa lists a pixel response time of 9 milliseconds on the monitor’s Amazon page. That’s not great—a desktop LCD-IPS gaming monitor will typically quote a response time of 0.5 milliseconds to 5 milliseconds. Overall motion clarity is solid for single-player titles and cooperative games, though esports fans with a critical eye and fast reactions should keep expectations in check. While the Z3FC’s motion clarity isn’t perfect, its portability and price should be kept in mind. Most portable monitors have a much lower refresh rate and, as a result, have much more noticeable motion blur. OLED alternatives will beat the Z3FC, but those with a 120Hz refresh rate start around $250 ($50 more than the Z3FC) and go up from there. The Z3FC is a price-to-value middle ground for people who want acceptable motion clarity in games but still need to be mindful of their budget. Should you buy the Arzopa Z3FC? The Arzopa Z3FC is another solid portable monitor in the company’s line-up. It provides good image quality and a fast 180Hz refresh rate for $199.99. It also benefits from slim, attractive design and an easy-to-use menu system. With that said, pricing doesn’t currently work to its favor. Arzopa’s older Z1FC, which is similar but has a slightly slower 144Hz refresh rate, can be had for $109.99—a much better deal overall. I expect the Z3FC’s price will gradually be reduced, but at the moment it’s too expensive for what it offers. Still, the Z3FC provides high brightness, decent color performance, slim design, and good motion clarity. 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On October 14th, 2025, Microsoft will officially end support for Windows 10, negating the company’s early promise that Windows 10 was going to be “the last version of Windows.” Instead, six years after it launched in 2015, Microsoft released Windows 11. disagree? get win11 pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro It’s now been four years since Windows 11’s release and Microsoft is tired of waiting for users to switch over. As of September 2025, Windows 11 and Windows 10 are still neck and neck when it comes to global market share, and Microsoft clearly wants to nudge things along. But what does it mean that Windows 10 support ends next month? Well, allow me to explain! Not only that, but I’m going to tell you why I’m sticking with Windows 10 and how I plan to do so. Time is running out for Windows 10 Once October 14th rolls around, Windows 10 PCs will no longer receive security updates or bug fixes, let alone new features. This means the longer you keep using it, the more prone to malware and hackers your PC will become (because they’ll exploit yet-undiscovered security flaws that won’t be patched on your PC). And if you run into system troubles with your PC, Microsoft won’t provide technical support. Dave Parrack / Foundry As-is, this has scared lots of users into finally taking the plunge and upgrading to Windows 11, either by initiating a Windows Update or buying a new machine with Windows 11 pre-installed. But Statcounter’s market share stats show that hundreds of millions of users are still refusing to upgrade—myself included. I knew end of support for Windows 10 has been coming for a while, yet I didn’t care enough to upgrade and I still have no intention to upgrade. I’m sticking with Windows 10. Yes, I’m aware of the risks, but I have ways to get around them. (More on that below.) My current PC isn’t good enough Microsoft is desperate for holdouts such as myself to move on from Windows 10, but the numbers suggest that way too many people are outright refusing Windows 11 for various reasons. Why am I staying on Windows 10? The biggest reason is that my PC apparently doesn’t qualify for Windows 11. I ran the Windows PC Health Check app and found that my Intel Core i3 (on my seven-year-old laptop) isn’t supported by Windows 11. To upgrade, I’d either have to buy and install a new CPU (no thanks) or buy a new PC entirely (no thanks). Why spend unnecessary money when my current PC works just fine? Dave Parrack / Foundry Why doesn’t my CPU qualify for Windows 11? Who knows. I doubt Microsoft even has a good answer. Maybe my laptop would choke on Windows 11 because it’s way more bloated, or maybe it’d work just as well as Windows 10 does. Maybe Microsoft just wants to give me a reason to abandon ship and buy a new laptop. But my laptop works well! And that’s the crux of the matter for me. It’s more than capable of doing everything I need, and I’m not a Windows power user so I don’t need anything more. This feels like planned obsolescence to me… and I hate that. It’s a waste of a perfectly good laptop and I refuse to turn it into e-waste. I’m also unimpressed by Microsoft’s potential trade-in program for Windows 10 PCs. Dave Parrack / Foundry As for Windows 11, I just don’t care for it. I’ve used it on other people’s PCs several times and it honestly doesn’t feel like much of an upgrade. Sure, there are some noticeable improvements, but none of them are big enough and revolutionary enough to justify laying down hundreds of bucks on new hardware. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the bugs and glitches that have plagued Windows 11 since 24H2! There’s no way I’d willingly subject myself to that kind of frustration. Dave Parrack / Foundry It also doesn’t help that, as I’ve written about before, I use a Chromebook for most of my everyday activities. Which means that my Windows 10 PC has been pushed to the sidelines a bit, only there for those times when I need it instead of my Chromebook. Am I just getting old? One concern that has crossed my mind is, maybe this all is just an age thing. As I approach 50, could it be I’m reaching that stage of life where I prefer to stick with familiar tech and don’t want to bother with “the next thing”? I don’t remember having these same feelings when I had to upgrade from Windows XP to Vista or from Windows 7 to 10. It very well could be (at least partly) a “me problem” here. Still, I can’t deny that Microsoft is making me feel backed into a corner and wanting to push back, carrying on with the hardware I’ve been using for several years. I’m resentful that this multibillion-dollar company is basically forcing me to buy a new computer and switch to an inferior operating system instead of working Windows 11 into a product so good and desirable that it makes me want to switch. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think there’s anything bad about Windows 11. It just hasn’t given me a compelling reason to upgrade. If I could freely upgrade without needing a new PC, sure, maybe I would do it. But with it coming with a real cost, I’m choosing to stick with Windows 10. How to stick with Windows 10 (for now) If you’re in a similar position as me and want to keep using Windows 10 even after the end of support date passes, you have a few different options on going about it safely and securely. Whatever you do, don’t just keep using it in its unsupported state. Without a continued source of security updates, you’d just be asking for trouble. Instead, you’ll want to sign up for Microsoft’s Extended Security Updates (ESU) program. By enrolling your PC in the ESU program, you’ll get one extra year of Windows 10 security updates. Microsoft There are actually three ways to join the Windows 10 ESU program. A valid Microsoft account is needed for all three options: Option #1: Pay $30. This is a flat one-time fee that unlocks the extra year of Windows 10 security updates with no other strings attached (apart from needing a Microsoft account). Price may vary if you’re outside the US. Option #2: Enable Windows Backup. Windows Backup is a free feature that backs up selected files, folders, and settings to OneDrive so you don’t lose them even if your PC dies, gets lost, or stolen. After activating Windows Backup, your Windows 10 PC gets extended updates. Option #3: Spend 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points. Instead of paying $30, you can instead sign up for Microsoft Rewards and start earning points by doing things like searching on Bing, playing select games on Xbox One, buying stuff on the Microsoft Store, etc. Points can then be redeemed for extended security updates. If any of these options sound good, you should be able to enroll your PC in the Windows 10 ESU program via a banner at the top-right corner of your Windows Update settings page. There’s also another unofficial option If none of Microsoft’s official ESU options seem good to you—maybe you don’t want to create a Microsoft account at all—then there’s one more thing you can try, but this path has caveats. There’s a free third-party tool called UpDownTool that allegedly provides several more years of support for Windows 10. How does it work? By converting your PC to Windows 10 LTSC (“Long-Term Servicing Channel”), which is a special cut-down version of Windows 10 that isn’t meant for general-use PCs. Windows 10 LTSC has regular support until January 12th, 2027 as well as extended support until January 13th, 2032. UpDownTool UpDownTool is actually aimed at Windows 11 users who regret upgrading and want to revert back to Windows 10. However, it can still be used by people on Windows 10 (or any other version of Windows) to switch over to Windows 10 LTSC. By switching to Windows 10 LTSC, you’ll end up with a PC that basically runs on Windows 10 except without any of the usual bloatware or any of the nagging pop-ups about upgrading to Windows 11. The caveat is that Windows 10 LTSC doesn’t get feature updates, doesn’t support the Microsoft Store, and doesn’t support apps that are regularly maintained via the Microsoft Store, such as Microsoft Edge. Again, UpDownTool is a third-party tool that isn’t officially supported by Microsoft, so use it as your own risk if you choose this path. It’s still Windows 10 for me I’m most likely going to enroll my PC in the Windows 10 ESU program by activating Windows Backup before the October 14th deadline, which will keep my PC secure and protected until at least October 13th, 2026. Beyond that, I’m undecided on how I’ll move forward. I may finally bite the bullet on a new PC that comes with Windows 11, but I’m also tempted to abandon Windows altogether in favor of ChromeOS—and if I end up doing that, Microsoft will only have itself to blame. Further reading: The best Chromebooks that are actually great Read...

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Windows 10 is officially unsupported starting next month… sort of. Perhaps seeing the writing on the wall (which it wrote itself), Microsoft has given Windows 10 holdouts an extra year of security updates, but you’ll need to pay for it or do some busywork to qualify—unless you live in some European countries, which have called baloney on that. The Euroconsumers group alerted Microsoft (PDF) that its requirement for users to either turn on Windows Backup with an associated Microsoft account, spend a bunch of Microsoft Rewards points, or pay $30 to access those extra security updates was probably in violation of the Digital Markets Act of 2022. This law forbids “gatekeeper” companies from limiting access to products or services based on conditions to other products from the same company. In response, Microsoft says that it is “making updates to the enrollment process” for residents of the European Economic Area (most of western Europe, notably omitting the UK). Windows 10 users in the EEA won’t need to turn on Windows Backup, pay the fee, or redeem Rewards points to get security updates through October 14th, 2026. Microsoft confirmed a general change in policy to comply with local laws to Windows Central. The rest of us will have to start stretching, because those hoops won’t jump through themselves. But Microsoft has already backtracked on its October 2025 ultimatum multiple times, perhaps wary of those half of all Windows users who haven’t upgraded to 11 yet. The market is at a very different place from where it was when Windows 8 lost support, with plenty of people relying fully on smartphones for their digital lives (and plenty others not looking for an expensive new laptop). I wonder if Microsoft will get cold feet again a year from now. Read...

On Wednesday, Qualcomm announced three new Snapdragon X2 Elite and X2 Elite Extreme processors for PCs, pushing into what it calls ‘ultra-premium PCs’ with a 5GHz CPU and an NPU delivering an industry-leading 80 TOPS. Qualcomm made a name for itself with all-day battery life, but its new “multi-day” battery life received little mention in the context of the X2 Elite chips for Windows on Arm PCs. Now, it’s all about speed: the X2 Elite platform delivers 31 percent more performance than the X1 Elite at the same power, or the same performance at 43 percent less power. That’s helped by a move to 3nm versus the 4nm platform of the first Snapdragon X Elite. There are also some notable differences in Qualcomm’s updated CPU architecture. The Snapdragon X2 Elite incorporates third-generation Oryon CPU cores, and more of them: up to 18 in total, subdivided between a new “prime core” and a new “performance core,” which the first-gen X Elite ignored. Qualcomm even took a page from Intel and integrated memory on package, up to a whopping 48GB inside the X2 Elite Extreme. Finally, Qualcomm integrated its X75 5G modem, an unexpectedly significant addition. Qualcomm launched the two chip families at its Qualcomm Snapdragon Summit in Maui, where company executives said that the first PCs designed around the Snapdragon X2 Elite will ship in the first half of 2026. This aligns with the typical launch schedules of rivals AMD and Intel, who work with their own notebook customers to release products based on their chips. Demo laptops used to show off Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite. Mark Hachman / Foundry What are the features of the Snapdragon X2 Elite and Elite Extreme? Qualcomm is shipping three new members of its Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Elite platforms: the X2E-96-100, the X2E-88-100, and the X2E-80-100. Instead of using these impenetrable product names, think of them this way: Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme: 18 total cores, 12 prime cores (4.4GHz all cores sustained/5.0GHz boost), and six performance cores (3.6GHz sustained, no boost) Snapdragon X2 Elite: 18 total cores, 12 prime cores (4.0GHz sustained/4.7GHz boost), and six performance cores (3.4GHz sustained) Snapdragon X2 Elite: 12 total cores, six prime cores (4.0GHz sustained/4.4-4.7GHz boost), and six performance cores (3.4GHz sustained) The Qualcomm Oryon cores inside the first-generation Snapdragon X Elite were all based on the Arm architecture, though the company’s license allows it to design a “clean sheet” microprocessor as long as it remains compatible with Arm instructions. Unlike Arm, which now uses four different CPU cores in its Lumex processor, the first-generation X Elite chose one type: all 12 cores were performance cores running at full speed, even on battery. The base clock speed of the was 3.8GHz, with a turbo speed of 4.3 GHz. A summary of Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon X2 Elite and X2 Elite Extreme chips.Qualcomm Now, things have changed. The Snapdragon X2 Elite and the Elite Extreme include both what Qualcomm calls Oryon Prime cores as well as Oryon Performance cores. The company isn’t emphasizing this, but the X2 Elite chips also include integrated memory — a whopping 48GB inside the X2 Elite Extreme. The Prime cores are key to the 5GHz clock speed, while the Performance cores are “tuned to provide premium responsiveness and user experiences in everyday workloads with extreme power efficiency.” Presumably, these function similarly to the “performance” and “efficiency” cores in Intel’s Core Ultra Meteor Lake and Lunar Lake chips. A combination of various factors — the GPU and CPU clock speeds and core count, as well as the memory speeds — are what differentiate Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite from the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme. What makes the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme different than the X2 Elite? According to a Qualcomm representative, it’s a combination of factors, including CPU and GPU clock speeds, memory, and core count. It appears the difference is memory speeds: 228GB/s for the X2 Elite Extreme via a 192-bit memory bus, and 152GB/s via a 128-bit bus for the Elite. All three chips connect to LPDDR5x memory. Integrating memory on the package is an interesting choice. Intel pursued that strategy with its Core Ultra Series 1 chip, Meteor Lake, then gave it up because embedding a fixed amount of memory didn’t allow its customers to differentiate their products. Intel’s chief executive at the time, Pat Gelsinger, called “Meteor Lake” a “one off” and a niche product, one that was forced into the spotlight because of AI. Right now, we don’t know why Qualcomm chose this course as well. But there’s a twist: only the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme has a fixed 48GB of integrated memory. The other two chips will embed ‘device-specific’ amounts of RAM, Qualcomm says, almost implying that the company will be designing custom processors. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme, showing the embedded memory.Mark Hachman / Foundry Qualcomm hasn’t clarified if the RAM will be usable as GPU VRAM, which matters because more VRAM generally supports more complex AI models. Cristiano Amon delivered a “vision” speech Tuesday night discussing the ubiquity of AI across various devices. Eventually, Qualcomm will probably follow with derivatives for cheaper, less powerful PCs. In April and September 2024, Qualcomm added the eight core and 10-core Snapdragon X Plus variants, with only the smaller chip graced with turbo capability. Those chips topped out at 3.4GHz, with turbo speeds up to 4GHz. In January 2025, Qualcomm tacked on the Snapdragon X, its lowest-cost offering for laptops under $600, with eight cores and speeds up to 3.0 GHz. So far, however, Qualcomm hasn’t said anything about those, nor how they would be architected. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite and Elite Extreme specifications, in greater detail.Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme is tops in TOPS Kedar Kondap, the senior vice president of compute and gaming, has said that he doesn’t particularly like the term “NPU,” since it focuses attention on a number rather than the AI experiences that accompany it. Within Qualcomm’s smartphone business, AI applications have been around for a decade, Kondap said; they include bokeh, various types of filters, and portrait mode. Within the PC space, selling the need for local AI has been a tougher battle. Qualcomm hasn’t made it easy on itself, either. Since the new Snapdragon X Elite chips have a whopping 80 TOPS — about twice the TOPS requirement of Copilot+ PCs — Qualcomm will have to, well, redouble its efforts to convince PC makers that such a powerful NPU is needed. First-generation Snapdragon X Elites would combine AI experiences, including Windows Studio Effects and others, and without even fully saturating the NPU. Basically, Qualcomm has yet to find the killer app for local AI — and Microsoft’s nominee, Microsoft Recall, has struggled to the point of near irrelevance. Behind the scenes, however, are local AI applications consumers don’t see, including updates to Phi Silica, Microsoft’s small language model for Copilot PCs. Adobe Premiere Pro and Blender can leverage the NPU for specific functions, in addition to the software’s work with the CPU and the GPU. But the applications still have to be specifically coded for NPUs, because of the absence of Microsoft’s Windows ML. One of the few experiences I saw at the Qualcomm Snapdragon Technology Summit (at press time) included this demo where users could play an instrument, then mix it in the laptop.Mark Hachman / Foundry “It’s not like you’re going to get this one app that needs those 80 TOPS, right, but if you’ve got 10 things running and each take 5 [TOPS], all of a sudden you’re at 50,” said Bob O’Donnell, president of TECHnalysis Reseach. “That could be discrete apps, but it might be individual agents working on your behalf.” Windows ML does the hard work of assigning the AI workload to the proper piece of silicon, which should help. “Windows ML is the built-in AI inferencing runtime optimized for on-device model inference and streamlined model dependency management across CPUs, GPUs and NPUs,” Microsoft says. The good news? After first being announced in 2018, Windows ML is now available, Microsoft said Tuesday. The Elite X2’s integrated modem may be its hidden treasure Qualcomm isn’t saying much about the Adreno graphics core inside of the Snapdragon X2 Elite family. The company says it offers a “2.3X increase in performance per watt and power efficiency over the previous generation,” and that’s about it. The X2 Elite Extreme chip will feature the X2-90 core running at 1.85GHz; the top X2 Elite chip will also feature the X2-90, but at 1.70GHz. The slowest X2 Elite, the X2E-80-100, will include a slower X2-85 at 1.70GHz. The Adreno core supports AV1, HEVC, and AVC decoding at dual 8K at 60 fps for all three chips. But Qualcomm’s GPU still doesn’t allow for an external GPU connection, meaning that the gaming market is largely out of reach (again). Is it a Snapdragon desktop PC? Probaby not, but this frisbee-shaped reference design is still pretty neat.Mark Hachman / Foundry It’s not clear how this will translate into the real world. In our extensive Snapdragon X Elite review, we didn’t really focus on gaming. However, when testing Intel’s Core Ultra Lunar Lake chip, I tested the original X Elite on a pair of games and they weren’t really playable. To Jim McGregor, the founder of Tirias Research, the integration of Qualcomm’s X75 modem into the X2 Elite platform might be the most unexpectedly significant addition Qualcomm made. Even though the company’s mobile platforms for handsets include CPU, graphics, and modem technology, the Snapdragon X Elite platform never included it. The X2 Elite does. “When they first came out with the embedded modem, I loved that device,” McGregor said, adding that he hoped Qualcomm would lean more into its connectivity advantage. “The fact that carriers wouldn’t support it was a pain in the butt.” “They make the best modems in the world, literally,” O’Donnell said. “So why not make that part of the platform?” Qualcomm calls the X75 “the world’s first Modem-RF System ready for 5G Advanced,” but the real news is simply that it’s there. Phones seamlessly roam from Wi-Fi to cellular; why shouldn’t PCs? Integrating a modem allows that to happen. Qualcomm also showed off an “all-in-one” reference design that slots into the base of a display.Mark Hachman / Foundry Internally, Qualcomm says that NVMe storage is supported via dual PCI Express 5.0. Notebooks incorporating the chip will be able to support a maximum display resolution of 4K at 144Hz, or three external 4K displays at 144Hz. Since the chip only supports 40Gbps USB4 for peripherals, that probably assumes software compression of some sort. PC makers will have 12 lanes of PCIe 5.0 to play with, except for the eight lanes usable by the slowest X2 Elite chip. Four PCIe Gen4 lanes will be available, presumably for storage. Qualcomm has added one component to help placate corporate IT managers: Guardian, a new X2 Elite out-of-band management feature to help track and manage X2 Elite systems. Market obstacles: More of the same for Windows on Arm Unfortunately for Qualcomm, it’s never just about the silicon. “It’s really hard to overcome a market that’s already got mass adoption, with industry leaders” McGregor said. “Those industry leaders, especially Intel, kind of stumbled. So there was an opportunity there, right? But it’s really hard when you go in with a different architecture, different product, and you’re taking it head on.” For all of its efforts, though, Qualcomm has yet to make a significant dent in the market. Mercury Research, which tracks CPU market share on a quarterly basis, still put AMD at about 20 percent of the notebook client PC market during the second quarter of 2025, with Intel receiving the other 80 percent. Dean McCarron, the principal analyst at Mercury, declined to specify Qualcomm’s actual market share because he was unsure of the exact sales numbers. Qualcomm’s fundamental problem, however, is that audiences haven’t responded as well as the company might have expected. For that, one can point to any number of factors: lingering concerns about app compatibility–a problem Qualcomm aggressively tried to address; issues with Microsoft’s rollout of its Copilot+ program, including apps like Microsoft Recall; and successful launches of rival mobile chips. McGregor ticked off more: a lack of support for STEM applications and a management solution for enterprise. In PCWorld tests, Qualcomm came out on top in terms of battery life, but AMD’s CPU performance exceeded the competition. Intel’s Core Ultra Series 2 (Lunar Lake) was arguably the overall winner, combining good CPU performance, very good GPU performance, and competitive battery life versus the other two chips. Consumers also tend to equate “AI” with ChatGPT rather than Copilot. In 2024, shipments of all Copilot+ PCs were abysmal: less than one percent of the market in 2024 and less than two percent during the first quarter of 2025. Though Microsoft launched the Copilot+ platform as a whole, it was largely oriented around Qualcomm and its first-generation Snapdragon X Elite.YouTube / Microsoft “I think what one of the biggest problems is that Qualcomm was strictly tied to and associated with Copilot, and it was honestly more of a Copilot issue than necessarily a Qualcomm issue,” O’Donnell said. “So I think that one of the challenges was that there was that very strong association that [Microsoft and Qualcomm] both thought was going to propel them to a higher place. Unfortunately, Recall is a real problem, and now we’re at the point where I don’t think anybody cares about Recall.” PC makers also welcomed the competition Qualcomm’s first X Elite chip introduced… then used it as leverage in negotiations with Intel and AMD (according to one source). In the United States, just nine shipping products currently include a first-generation Snapdragon X Elite chip, a source said. By contrast, 224 Intel systems and 106 mobile PCs use AMD’s chips, and Qualcomm’s market share is still quite small. Kedar Kondap, Qualcomm’s general manager of compute and gaming, doesn’t see it that way. In an interview before the launch, he pointed out that Qualcomm’s sales in its first year exceeded AMD and Intel in their own. At Qualcomm’s analyst day, Qualcomm chief executive Cristiano Amon put forward a target: $4 billion in sales by 2029, Kondap said. That’s years away, evidence that Qualcomm is playing the long game with its Snapdragon processors. “You have to give them credit because I lose track of this myself — they’ve only been in the market for 15 months,” O’Donnell said. “For 15 months, it’s not too shabby.” Disclosure: Qualcomm paid for my room, board, and travel expenses, but did not ask for or exert any editorial control over this story or other PCWorld content. Read...