The cheapest Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite PC is its mini desktop Dev Kit, and its available for preorder now

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Since the others are more expensive laptops, some even being slower Snapdragon X Plus parts

Official render of the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite Dev Kit for Windows
Official render of the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite Dev Kit for Windows (Image credit: Qualcomm via Arrow.com)

In an interesting turn of events, the first device boasting the highest-end version of Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite chipset isn't even a laptop. It's a Mini PC in the form of an official Dev Kit, which undercuts (or at least matches) the price of even the lower-end Snapdragon X Plus laptops, and it's set for a full launch on August 23rd, though it's also already available for pre-order on Arrow.com for just $899 USD.

We just reviewed a Snapdragon X Elite laptop— the Dell XPS 13 9345—  and that unit retails for $1299, which is about $400 pricier for the laptop form factor.

Qualcomm Snapdragon Dev Kit for Windows Specifications

  • SoC: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X-1E-00-1DE, specs divided between CPU, GPU, and NPU below
  • CPU: Qualcomm Oryon CPU with 12 cores rated at up to 3.8 GHz, or 4.3 with Dual Core Boost; 42 MB cache
  • GPU: Qualcomm Adreno GPU rated for 4.6 Teraflops
  • NPU: Qualcomm Hexagon NPU rated for 45 TOPS
  • RAM: 32GB LPDDR5X RAM
  • Storage: 512 GB "Fast" NVMe SSD
  • OS: Windows 11
  • Size: 199 mm x 175 mm x 35 mm, or 8 x 7 x 1.3 inches
  • Weight: 970 grams, or ~2.1 lbs
  • I/O: 3 USB4 Type-C ports (1 Front), 2 USB 3.2 Type-A ports; 1 Ethernet port; 1 HDMI port; 1 3.5mm audio port

So, who is this Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite Mini PC really for? As advertised, it's targeted at developers, which makes sense— if you're hoping to target ARM-native software for the X Elite chips hitting the laptop or want to properly test and tweak your x86-native software for use with those devices, this seems like the way to go. But if the enhanced AI features (Copilot+) of the Snapdragon X Elite happen to hold particularly high appeal to you and your workflows, that's another reason this piece of kit could be compelling.

For gaming purposes, we definitely wouldn't recommend the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite platform at this time. While it's true that some games work and even the new image scaling options added just for Windows ARM and these devices are compelling, the overall gaming performance and compatibility of Snapdragon X Elite just isn't competitive with x86 gaming laptops at this time. Other iGPUs— even Intel iGPUs— provide a much better experience.

But it's not all doom and gloom in the world of Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite laptops — or Mini PCs in this case — as long as you have the requisite monitor and peripherals to get it up and running. You generally have a pretty usable version of Windows 11 here, and a number of productivity and creative applications that will work perfectly fine. If your needs are more professional or are particularly focused on development efforts— perhaps even efforts to improve the state of games listed on Works on Windows on Arm— this may just be the Mini PC for you.

Christopher Harper
Christopher Harper
Contributing Writer

Christopher Harper has been a successful freelance tech writer specializing in PC hardware and gaming since 2015, and ghostwrote for various B2B clients in High School before that. Outside of work, Christopher is best known to friends and rivals as an active competitive player in various eSports (particularly fighting games and arena shooters) and a purveyor of music ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Killer Mike to the Sonic Adventure 2 soundtrack.

10 Comments Comment from the forums
  • usertests
    Fire sale it down to $250 and I'm game. But nah I'd probably use that $250 for something else.
    Reply
  • bit_user
    usertests said:
    Fire sale it down to $250 and I'm game. But nah I'd probably use that $250 for something else.
    I could see paying more than that for a used one off ebay, but Linux support for it would have to be solid.
    Reply
  • usertests
    bit_user said:
    I could see paying more than that for a used one off ebay, but Linux support for it would have to be solid.
    It sounded like Qualcomm was committed to Linux support, but it wasn't remotely ready by launch:

    https://www.phoronix.com/news/ASUS-Vivbook-S-15-Elite-X-Linux
    Reply
  • Notton
    I don't get it, do they want devs to buy it or not?
    You can buy a Minisforum UM890 Pro (R9 8945HS, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD) for $650.
    Reply
  • user7007
    Notton said:
    I don't get it, do they want devs to buy it or not?
    You can buy a Minisforum UM890 Pro (R9 8945HS, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD) for $650.
    That's what I was thinking too. It's more than I'd spend on one. You might as well just get a laptop.
    Reply
  • Quirkz
    Notton said:
    I don't get it, do they want devs to buy it or not?
    You can buy a Minisforum UM890 Pro (R9 8945HS, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD) for $650.
    When they say 'dev machine', they don't mean 'a machine for developers', they mean 'a machine to target development.'

    You don't buy this as your primary machine, you buy this because you want to develop windows ARM apps.
    In which case, it's the cheapest way to get the highest spec version with plenty of RAM to run your development and testing on.
    Reply
  • Quirkz
    bit_user said:
    I could see paying more than that for a used one off ebay, but Linux support for it would have to be solid.
    my thought too. With solid linux support, it becomes an amazing little machine to throw in a cupboard, hardly using any power or generating heat, acting as quite a powerful home server.

    But only if that linux support was solid.
    As it stands, I'd just get one of those excellent AMD minis or a mac mini for the role.
    Reply
  • bit_user
    Notton said:
    I don't get it, do they want devs to buy it or not?
    Development kits often cost far more than this. People who really need them will easily pay this price.

    I think their goal is to make it affordable, but not to try and make it a high-volume product. Given that it's not intended as a mass market product, they aren't pricing it quite like one, as they don't want to take a loss on it.

    user7007 said:
    That's what I was thinking too. It's more than I'd spend on one. You might as well just get a laptop.
    The same argument could be made not to buy a Mac Mini, yet that's still a thing.

    In each case, the non-laptop version can afford to have a bigger thermal solution and therefore offer better performance than a laptop.
    Reply
  • user7007
    Quirkz said:
    When they say 'dev machine', they don't mean 'a machine for developers', they mean 'a machine to target development.'

    You don't buy this as your primary machine, you buy this because you want to develop windows ARM apps.
    In which case, it's the cheapest way to get the highest spec version with plenty of RAM to run your development and testing on.
    my issue is for indy or small devs it's just an added expense.
    Reply
  • Quirkz
    user7007 said:
    my issue is for indy or small devs it's just an added expense.
    It's not an added expense... it's a business expense.
    Just like if you want to develop apps for an ipad, you buy an ipad.

    If this seems like it's an added expense to you, then you're not the target market. If you were, you'd be quite happy paying for the cheapest development environment with solid performance/ram for ARM for windows.
    Reply