Benchmark Creator Comments on Scarcity of Qualcomm Copilot+ PCs Tested in the Wild – Only 56 Windows-on-Arm Devices Tested in the Last 30 Days

PassMark Software doesn’t seem impressed by the amount of Copilot+ PC testing it’s seen in action since the new platform launched. In a post on Twitter/X, the well-known benchmarking company said that over the past 30 days, 22,000 x86 Windows machines have run through its CPU test suite, but only 56 Windows-on-Arm machines have been tested. That means only 0.3% of the machines it recently tested were powered by Snapdragon X processors.

According to data collected by PassMark, “Copilot+ PC and Qualcomm still have a long way to go” due to the underrepresentation of these Arm-based computers in end-user testing. The Australian software company highlighted the disparity between the observed user base of 0.3% and the Qualcomm CEO’s boldly announced goal of capturing 50% of the Windows PC market within five years.

In the last 30 days, we’ve seen 22,000 x86 Windows benchmark submissions compared to just 56 ARM Qualcomm Elite submissions (that’s 0.3% of all Windows benchmark submissions). Given Qualcomm’s CEO’s claim that ARM could take 50% of the Windows PC market within 5 years, we still have a long way to go. pic.twitter.com/eyBRRODQqnJuly 15, 2024

PassMark’s contrast between the scant 30-day benchmarks of Snapdragon Elite X-based laptops and Qualcomm’s target market share after five years is a statistical minefield. Its pie chart shows “Windows benchmarks submitted in the last 30 days,” but first we need to emphasize that people aren’t just testing computers out of the box. Enthusiasts often test, reconfigure, and so on to measure the impact of the numerous software and hardware changes that most systems go through. PassMark also provides online CPU charts and rankings for desktops, laptops, servers, and mobile devices—and we don’t know if the most important numbers include only laptops.

While it’s interesting to see PassMark highlighting its observations, it’s probably not fair to highlight any of Qualcomm’s “failures” to deliver on its promises just yet. Hopefully, the benchmarking company will continue this trend of tracking, as we’d all like to see Windows-on-Arm progress in the coming months, as Qualcomm Snapdragon X-based PCs become more widely available and the pricey marketing blitz continues to raise public awareness.

Qualcomm’s battery life advantage may be short-lived

One of the most appealing aspects of Qualcomm Snapdragon X-based PCs has been the touted significantly improved battery life. While some hardware partners haven’t seemed to fully exploit this potential, we reviewed the HP OmniBook X last month and were pleased with its impressive 16-hour battery life.

However, Qualcomm’s time in the spotlight for its excellent battery life may soon be coming to an end. Today, it launched the new HP OmniBook Ultra 14 with AMD Ryzen AI 300 processor options and advertised battery life of 13 to 21 hours. Intel Lunar Lake portable laptops are also expected later this quarter, and they also feature a number of optimizations to improve performance with longer battery life.