Are Intel Core Ultra 7 laptops efficient?

In the race to develop personal computer (PC) chips, Intel has launched two generations of chips for AI laptops that support many artificial intelligence features. In particular, how powerful is the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V version?

After more than a year of using a laptop with a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip, I returned to using an Intel chip laptop with the Asus Zenbook S14 series with an Intel Core Ultra 7 258V, 32GB RAM and a 512GB SSD.

Introduced as not only a powerful chip but also an advanced platform, the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V is one of the pioneering processors in the Core Ultra Series 2 product line, also known by the codename Lunar Lake.

This chip line possesses many technologies that focus on improving battery saving capabilities and the ability to handle artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Specifically, with a base power (PBP) of only 17W and a maximum turbo power (MTP) of 37W, this chip is designed to increase performance in terms of battery life and low heat dissipation.

Asus Zenbook S14 model

PHOTO: PHAT TIEN

Overall performance

Although the Asus Zenbook S14 model was not benchmarked to evaluate the power of the computer, because in essence this is only for reference in terms of numbers. Instead, the machine is evaluated based on many months of actual use with daily tasks.

In terms of normal working process, due to the nature of the work, the device often opens many browser tabs at the same time. Most of the time, when working, 40 - 50 browser tabs are opened. The open browser content is quite diverse, from newspaper pages, information to pages running online applications.

Even though the browser used is Chrome, which is considered to "eat RAM" more than many other browsers, but after several months of use, the device still runs smoothly. Even when opening multiple browser tabs with Microsoft Office applications, sometimes using Photoshop and Canva at the same time, there is no lag.

The machine regularly opens 40-50 browser tabs

SCREENSHOT

Previously, when using the Dell XPS 9345 running Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip, the device sometimes froze even when the number of browser tabs did not exceed 40 and Photoshop or Canva was not used.

Of course, one point that needs to be clarified is that the Dell XPS 9345 has 16GB of RAM, which is half the 32GB of the Asus Zenbook S14. This may be a factor to consider because it directly affects the performance of the machine. However, most of the laptops running the X Elite chip currently have 16GB of RAM, while the versions with 32GB of RAM are not popular and the price is very high.

Perfect AI assistance for work

Introduced as bringing the next generation of AI laptops, Core Ultra generally integrates NPU (Neural Processing Unit) to help speed up the processing of AI and machine learning tasks. In fact, most of the AI ​​tasks that most users are using today are in the form of online applications, not running internally on the device.

Thanks to the NPU, when performing AI tasks (e.g., background removal, subject selection, etc.) on Photoshop or some photo editing tasks on Lightroom, it becomes faster. The laptop with integrated Core Ultra 7 258V clearly demonstrated this advantage during use.

The device runs stably when opening many browsers and applications.

SCREEN CAPTURE

Battery life

Many tests or reviews give different figures on battery life of AI laptops with integrated Intel Core Ultra or Qualcomm Snapdragon chips… with quite impressive numbers such as up to 15 or 20 hours. But it should also be noted that all such tests are often accompanied by many different conditions.

For myself, doing the basic tasks as above and regularly keeping the screen brightness from 55 - 70% (depending on the time), the actual battery life of the Asus Zenbook S14 is about 6 - 6.5 hours. This number with the Dell XPS 9345 is about 7 hours. The difference is not too different.

Besides, the advantage is that charging laptop batteries today is quite fast. In addition, I personally use a compact GaN standard Anker charger, carrying a fairly light charger so that I can be ready to charge anytime, anywhere like charging my phone.

With the above practical experiences, the Asus Zenbook S14 with integrated Intel Core Ultra 7 258V chip basically meets the working needs of an office worker or businessman, and can effectively use popular AI applications today to serve daily work.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/laptop-chay-intel-core-ultra-7-co-hoat-dong-hieu-qua-185250926222348057.htm