The News: Qualcomm recently released a report that shows that notebooks that use the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 SoC use less energy. See Qualcomm’s news for more information.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3: Helping Users Reduce Their Carbon Footprints

Analyst Take: Qualcomm’s recent research showing that notebooks using Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 SoC use less energy is encouraging. Organizations of all types are seeking ways of reducing their carbon footprint across their operations which include the data center, general campus infrastructure, supply chains and more.

According to the research study by Px3 commissioned by Qualcomm, approximately 15 percent of the total carbon footprint of personal computers is generated during the use phase due to electricity consumption. Although the study found that most of a personal computer’s carbon footprint arises during its manufacture and disposal, the study points out that how much a personal computer uses over its lifetime also makes a significant difference.

To prove the theory that a computer processor makes a key difference in energy use, cost, and emissions, Px3 compared the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 system-on-chip versus Intel’s Core i5 processor and AMD Ryzen 5 on three Lenovo ThinkPad X13 notebooks running Windows 11 with identical test conditions (e.g., content streaming, video conferencing, etc.). The test revealed that the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 SoC did in fact use less energy than rival processors and outperformed rivals in the area of power consumption, energy costs along with carbon emissions.

To add more color, the study also revealed on the productivity task front, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 used 58 percent less energy than Intel and 33 percent less energy than AMD. From a content streaming perspective, the study also showed that the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 used 62 percent less energy than Intel and 54 percent less energy than AMD. On the video streaming side, the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 also used 45 percent less energy than Intel and 57 percent less energy than AMD.

The study from Px3 also showed from a cost savings perspective, in the life span of five years (roughly the span of a PC lifecycle), an organization using one thousand Snapdragon-powered laptops can save 60,900 kWH versus identical models using an Intel (or 22,750 kWh compared to AMD). Fundamentally, if a procurement organization leveraged the International Energy Agency’s median cost of commercial electricity, this would add to $7,321 in cost savings per 1,000 deployed devices.

From my viewpoint, organizations are continuing to ask partners to look for technology solutions that help them optimize and improve their operations, protect themselves from cybersecurity incidents, seek ways of mitigating supply chain risks, and do what they can on the sustainability front and efforts to reduce their carbon footprints. Thus, for organizations seeking ways of reducing their costs and carbon footprint at desk-based areas (e.g., PCs, printers, monitors, etc.), the study from Px3 and Qualcomm points to the benefits of using notebooks outfitted with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 system-on-chip.

Wrapping it up, the benefits of using notebooks outfitted with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 system-on-chip versus rival processors are clear. It makes sense that organizations will continue to seek technology solutions that help reduce their carbon footprint and save costs in the future. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 SoC is an excellent solution for environments such as education, non-profits, and organizations that are also seeking budget-conscious solutions that also help them achieve more optimal carbon footprints in the future.

Disclosure: The Futurum Group is a research and advisory firm that engages or has engaged in research, analysis, and advisory services with many technology companies, including those mentioned in this article. The author does not hold any equity positions with any company mentioned in this article.

Analysis and opinions expressed herein are specific to the analyst individually and data and other information that might have been provided for validation, not those of The Futurum Group as a whole.