Intel's New Chip Matches Apple Silicon in Efficiency—Dell's XPS 13 Proves It
Can Intel finally beat ARM on performance per Watt?
In a surprising turn, Intel's Core 5 320 chip in Dell's XPS 13 has matched Apple's M-series in energy efficiency, according to benchmarks by Jeff Geerling. The Dell scored 6.21 Gflops/W on Linpack, beating the MacBook Neo's 5.38, and even outperformed M4 and M3 Mac Studios. This challenges the notion that ARM's architecture is inherently more power-efficient, suggesting that chip design matters more than instruction set. The XPS also matches the MacBook in idle and browsing efficiency, marking a significant milestone for x86.
Some people have been saying for a few years now that ARM’s observed advantages in power consumption have more to do with the chips themselves than the instruction architecture, and it looks like the Core 5 320 chip in this Dell proves them right when it comes to x86.