Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) vs Intel Atom x5-Z8550

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Intel Atom x5-Z8550

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) and the Intel Atom x5-Z8550 and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) 4 core processor released in Q4/2023 with the Intel Atom x5-Z8550 which has 4 CPU cores and was introduced in Q1/2016.
AMD Ryzen 5 (85) Family Intel Atom (108)
AMD Sephiroth (Steam Deck Refresh 2023) (1) CPU group Intel Atom x3/x5/x7 (9)
4 Generation 5
Sephiroth (Zen 2) Architecture Cherry Trail
Mobile Segment Mobile
Valve Steam Deck (AMD Custom APU 0405) Predecessor --
-- Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) is a 4 core processor with a clock frequency of 2.40 GHz (3.50 GHz). The processor can compute 8 threads at the same time. The Intel Atom x5-Z8550 clocks with 1.44 GHz (2.40 GHz), has 4 CPU cores and can calculate 4 threads in parallel.

Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Characteristic Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4 Cores 4
8 Threads 4
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
2.40 GHz Frequency 1.44 GHz
3.50 GHz Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 2.40 GHz
2.80 GHz Turbo Frequency (All Cores) 2.40 GHz

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.

Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Characteristic Intel Atom x5-Z8550
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback.

AMD Custom Radeon Graphics (Steam Deck) GPU Intel HD Graphics 400
1.00 GHz GPU frequency 0.20 GHz
1.60 GHz GPU (Turbo) 0.60 GHz
-- GPU Generation 8
7 nm Technology 14 nm
2 Max. displays 3
8 Compute units 12
512 Shader 96
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
8 GB Max. GPU Memory 8 GB
12 DirectX Version 12

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.

AMD Custom Radeon Graphics (Steam Deck) GPU Intel HD Graphics 400
Decode / Encode Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h264 Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode Codec VP9 No
Decode / Encode Codec VP8 Decode
No Codec AV1 No
Decode / Encode Codec AVC Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG Decode

Memory & PCIe

Up to 16 GB of memory in a maximum of 4 memory channels is supported by the Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh), while the Intel Atom x5-Z8550 supports a maximum of 8 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 25.6 GB/s enabled.

Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Characteristic Intel Atom x5-Z8550
LPDDR5-6400 Memory DDR3L-1600
16 GB Max. Memory 8 GB
4 (Quad Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
102.4 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 25.6 GB/s
No ECC No
2.00 MB L2 Cache --
4.00 MB L3 Cache 2.00 MB
3.0 PCIe version 2.0
8 PCIe lanes 2
7.9 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth 1.0 GB/s

Thermal Management

The Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) has a TDP of 15 W. The TDP of the Intel Atom x5-Z8550 is 2 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Characteristic Intel Atom x5-Z8550
15 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 2 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
4 W TDP down --
100 °C Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) has 6.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 6 nm. The cache of Intel Atom x5-Z8550 is at 2.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 14 nm.

Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Characteristic Intel Atom x5-Z8550
6 nm Technology 14 nm
Monolithic Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4a, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, FMA3 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2
FF3 Socket BGA 138
AMD-V, SVM Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT
Yes AES-NI Yes
SteamOS (Arch Linux) Operating systems
Q4/2023 Release date Q1/2016
-- Release price 23 $
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.2 stars (6 ratings). Rate now:
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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 1 CPU benchmarks
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 (16%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 1 CPU benchmarks
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 (13%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 3.50 GHz
1296 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
202 (16%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 2.80 GHz
4510 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
568 (13%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
AMD Custom Radeon Graphics (Steam Deck) @ 1.60 GHz
1638 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
Intel HD Graphics 400 @ 0.60 GHz
126 (8%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 3.50 GHz
57 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
0 (0%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 3.50 GHz
275 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
0 (0%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 3.50 GHz
975 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 2.80 GHz
4359 (100%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 3.50 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
231 (100%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 2.80 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
827 (100%)

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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 2.80 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
1179 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 3.50 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
40 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 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.
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh)
4C 8T @ 2.80 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Atom x5-Z8550 Intel Atom x5-Z8550
4C 4T @ 2.40 GHz
145 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Intel Atom x5-Z8550
Valve Steam Deck (2023 Refresh) Unknown

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