In June this year, Qualcomm officially launched the Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus processors, claiming to have the “world’s fastest laptop NPU” and the ability to “power Copilot PCs with robust AI capabilities.”
Alex Katouzian, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Mobile, Compute and XR at Qualcomm Technologies, had high hopes for the X series chips. He stated that this marks a new era of AI for personal computers, and their collaboration with Microsoft combines the power of the Snapdragon X series with Copilot+ to deliver breakthrough AI capabilities that redefine personal computing experiences.
Pavan Davuluri, Corporate Vice President of Windows+ Devices at Microsoft, considered this “a turning point for the Windows PC ecosystem, driven by our deep collaboration with Qualcomm.”
Davuluri also expressed excitement about “launching innovative Copilot+ PC experiences and devices, including Surface, featuring leading performance and energy efficiency.”
Despite the high expectations for Snapdragon X series processors, sales have fallen short of expectations.
Q3 2024 marked the first full quarter since the launch of the Snapdragon X series processors. Data shows that while laptop shipments with these processors increased 180% quarter-over-quarter, their market share remains limited, with total sales not reaching 720,000 units.
This shipment volume represents less than 1.5% of the Windows market and even falls below 0.8% of global PC shipments in Q3. In other words, less than one in every 125 devices uses a Snapdragon X series chip.
Market research and analysis firm Canalys points out that products featuring Snapdragon X series platforms remain “very niche,” with Microsoft being the largest supplier, having shifted most of its Surface lineup to this platform, followed by Dell, HP, Lenovo, Acer, and ASUS.
Canalys also notes that “Dell has shown quite high acceptance of the new platform in terms of SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) numbers.”
Even in the “AI PC” sector that Qualcomm heavily promotes and takes pride in, Snapdragon laptops haven’t gained an advantage.
In Q3, AI-enabled PC shipments reached 13.3 million units, growing 49% quarter-over-quarter and accounting for 20% of all PC shipments that quarter, with Snapdragon laptops representing only 5% of this segment.
Notably, according to Canalys data, Windows AI-enabled PC devices led the “AI PC” market for the first time this quarter, capturing 53% market share with shipments growing 93% quarter-over-quarter, representing 12% of total Windows PC shipments.
The main reason for Snapdragon laptops’ sluggish sales might be their software optimization issues.
Like Apple’s M-series chips, Snapdragon X series chips use ARM architecture rather than the traditional complex instruction set x86 architecture. However, Microsoft has delayed releasing an official Windows 11 ISO for ARM devices, and Linux support for Snapdragon X series is not as robust as existing x86 alternatives.
Additionally, poor “price-to-performance ratio” is another factor contributing to weak sales.
Compared to the high-end X Elite processor, the X Plus targets the mainstream market with fewer cores and lower GPU performance and AI processing capabilities, naturally at a lower price point. However, even the “entry-level” Snapdragon X Plus laptops are priced around $700, with Chinese market prices reaching 6,000 yuan.
According to a review lab, a 7,199 yuan Snapdragon X Plus laptop has only about half the integrated graphics performance of the X Elite, can’t smoothly play 4K videos, and “fails to meet multimedia entertainment needs.” The reviewer described this device as “humorous.”
However, Qualcomm has revealed plans to develop and launch a cheaper Snapdragon X chip next year, targeting entry-level Windows PCs with prices around $600, aiming to boost sales.
Despite current strong demand in the AI PC market, artificial intelligence computers still have a long way to go.
Canalys data shows that consumers and channel partners remain hesitant and cautious about adopting these products. For example, Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC requires at least 40 NPU TOPS and other high-performance specifications but hasn’t fully convinced buyers of its value.
In November this year, a survey of channel partners revealed that 31% don’t plan to sell Copilot+ PCs in 2025, while 34% expect these devices to account for less than 10% of their sales.
To break this status quo and make their products “stand out,” manufacturers are wracking their brains: HP is partnering with independent software vendors to enhance AI experiences; Lenovo is investing in built-in AI tools like “Creator Zone” and “Lenovo AI Now”; Apple is focusing on integrating its AI ecosystem.
The AI PC track is highly competitive, and if Qualcomm’s “price reduction strategy” doesn’t work, they’ll really need to think of something else.