Apple M3 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)

Last updated: 2024-04-25

Note: The information shown below is based on a pre-sample. Technical details or benchmark results may be different in the final version of this processor.

CPU comparison with benchmarks


Apple M3		Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
CPU comparison Apple M3 or Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) - which processor is faster? In this comparison we look at the differences and analyze which of these two CPUs is better. We compare the technical data and benchmark results. The Apple M3 has 8 cores with 8 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 4.06 GHz. Up to 24 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Apple M3 was released in Q4/2023. The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) has 12 cores with 12 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 4.20 GHz. The CPU supports up to 64 GB of memory in 8 memory channels. The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) was released in Q2/2024.

Apple M series (25)	Family	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (3)
Apple M3 (6)	CPU group	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (3)
3	Generation	1
M3	Architecture	Oryon
Mobile	Segment	Mobile
Apple M2	Predecessor	--
Apple M4	Successor	--

CPU Cores and Base Frequency The Apple M3 has 8 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Apple M3 is 0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz) while the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) has 12 CPU cores and 12 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) is at 1.00 GHz (4.20 GHz).
Apple M3	Characteristic	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
8	Cores	12
8	Threads	12
hybrid (big.LITTLE)	Core architecture	normal
No	Hyperthreading	No
No	Overclocking ?	No
0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz) 4x P-Core	A-Core	1.00 GHz (4.20 GHz) 12x Oryon
0.74 GHz (2.75 GHz) 4x E-Core	B-Core	--
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
Apple Neural Engine	AI hardware	Qualcomm AI engine
16 Neural cores @ 35 TOPS	AI specifications	Qualcomm Hexagon NPU @ 45 TOPS

Internal Graphics The Apple M3 or Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short. The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.
Apple M3 (10 Core)	GPU	Qualcomm Adreno X Elite/Plus
0.39 GHz	GPU frequency	1.20 GHz
1.40 GHz	GPU (Turbo)	--
3	GPU Generation	--
3 nm	Technology	4 nm
2	Max. displays	4
160	Compute units	--
1280	Shader	--
Yes	Hardware Raytracing	No
No	Frame Generation	No
24 GB	Max. GPU Memory	--
--	DirectX Version	12.2

Hardware codec support A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.
Apple M3 (10 Core)	GPU	Qualcomm Adreno X Elite/Plus
Decode / Encode	Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit)	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit)	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec h264	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec VP9	Decode
Decode	Codec VP8	Decode
Decode	Codec AV1	Decode / Encode
Decode	Codec AVC	Decode / Encode
Decode	Codec VC-1	Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode	Codec JPEG	Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe The Apple M3 can use up to 24 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 102.4 GB/s. The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) supports up to 64 GB of memory in 8 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 135.2 GB/s.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
LPDDR5-6400	Memory	LPDDR5X-8533
24 GB	Max. Memory	64 GB
2 (Dual Channel)	Memory channels	8 (Octa Channel)
102.4 GB/s	Max. Bandwidth	135.2 GB/s
No	ECC	No
20.00 MB	L2 Cache	42.00 MB
--	L3 Cache	--
4.0	PCIe version	4.0
--	PCIe lanes	--
--	PCIe Bandwidth	--
Thermal Management The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Apple M3 is 22 W, while the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) has a TDP of 23 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
22 W	TDP (PL1 / PBP)	23 W
--	TDP (PL2)	--
--	TDP up	80 W
15 W	TDP down	12 W
100 °C	Tjunction max.	--
Technical details The Apple M3 is manufactured in 3 nm and has 20.00 MB cache. The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) is manufactured in 4 nm and has a 42.00 MB cache.
Apple M3	Characteristic	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
3 nm	Technology	4 nm
Chiplet	Chip design	Chiplet
Armv8-A (64 bit)	Instruction set (ISA)	Armv8-A (64 bit)
Rosetta 2 x86-Emulation	ISA extensions	--
--	Socket	--
Apple Virtualization Framework	Virtualization	None
Yes	AES-NI	Yes
macOS, iPadOS	Operating systems	Windows 10/11 (ARM), Linux
Q4/2023	Release date	Q2/2024
--	Release price	--

show more data		show more data

Apple M3 8C 8T @ 0.70 GHz (4.06 GHz) buy now on Amazon and save! Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 1.00 GHz (4.20 GHz) buy now on Amazon and save!

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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks

Apple M3 (99%)

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) (98%)

⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks

Apple M3 (66%)

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) (100%)

Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)

The Cinebench 2024 benchmark is based on the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxon's 3D program Cinema 4D. The benchmark runs are each 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	137 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 4.20 GHzNot verified	132 (96%)

Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)

The Multi-Core test of the Cinebench 2024 benchmark uses all cpu cores to render using the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxons Cinema 4D. The benchmark run is 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	659 (54%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 4.20 GHzNot verified	1220 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	3125 (97%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 4.20 GHzNot verified	3218 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	11863 (78%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 3.80 GHzNot verified	15211 (100%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.


	Apple M3 Apple M3 (10 Core) @ 1.40 GHz	3550 (77%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) Qualcomm Adreno X Elite/Plus @ 1.20 GHzNot verified	4600 (100%)

Performance for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. The performance is given in the number (trillions) of arithmetic operations per second (TOPS).


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 0.70 GHz	35 (78%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 1.00 GHzNot verified	45 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	1965 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 4.20 GHzNot verified	0 (0%)

Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	10437 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 3.80 GHzNot verified	0 (0%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	2150 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 4.20 GHzNot verified	0 (0%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	10450 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 3.80 GHzNot verified	0 (0%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.


	Apple M3 8C 8T @ 4.06 GHz	18951 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 12C 12T @ 3.80 GHzNot verified	0 (0%)

CPU performance per watt (efficiency)

Efficiency of the processor under full load in the Cinebench R23 (multi-core) benchmark. The benchmark result is divided by the average energy required (CPU package power in watts). The higher the value, the more efficient the CPU is under full load.


	Apple M3 10,437 CB R23 MC @ 22 W	474 (100%)
	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100) 1.00 GHz Not verified	0 (0%)

Devices using this processor
Apple M3	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite (X1E-84-100)
Apple iMac 24 (2023)	Unknown

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