News Intel Alder Lake HX: 16-Core Desktop CPUs in Notebook Clothing

[Admin]

Intel introduced its notebook workstation-class Alder Lake HX mobile processors that feature up to 16 cores, 5.0 GHz peak clock rates, and 157W of peak power draw.

Intel Alder Lake HX: 16-Core Desktop CPUs in Notebook Clothing : Read more

 

[jacob249358]

I just don't understand how you dissipate 157 watts in a laptop. I cant imagine the noise.

 

[edzieba]

These are more for desktop-replacement/mobile workstation devices than your typical consumer laptop. More like an all-in-one desktop plus monitor plus UPS that just happens to look like a laptop, than a device intended to ever crush one's lap under its prodigious might. These are common in industrial and scientific applications where it may not be viable to roll a PC cart around between wall sockets, or for travel where you really need local compute and can't rely on a network connection (either due to lack of connectivity or suspicion of the available network) for remote offloading.

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

I just don't understand how you dissipate 157 watts in a laptop. I cant imagine the noise.

157w + Overclocking + laptop chassis= Hot, Hot, HOT! You're right. There will be some interesting cooling going on. The fans will be on 100% on any kind of middling load.

 

[salgado18]

This only shows how hot Intel's CPUs are, so much that they needed to go big+little cores to hold on to power consumption. And all that to keep up with AMD, which, even if slower, consumes a lot less power. Say what you want about the performance of Intel CPUs, they are definitely bad for mobile devices.

Oh, and speaking of 157W, you could put a 16-core Ryzen 5950X straight from a desktop in there and still be cooler.

 

[btmedic04]

Why is this even a thing? Outside of health concerns, if you need that much power in a semi-mobile device, just build a SFF system already

 

[ThisIsMe]

The number of truly portable PC’s (ie notebooks) sporting these will likely be limited. They are meant for specific use cases. These processors could end up being more useful in all-in-one desktop computers and very small desktop computers like NUCs.

 

[Why_Me]

Why is this even a thing? Outside of health concerns, if you need that much power in a semi-mobile device, just build a SFF system already

Can you fit a SFF system including monitor into a rucksack when you travel?

 

[KyaraM]

Why is this even a thing? Outside of health concerns, if you need that much power in a semi-mobile device, just build a SFF system already

Because sometimes you need powerful performance on the go. We got Xeon-based notebooks at my workplace for similar reasons. Sometimes you need higher core count and mobility at the same time. It's also nice if you alternate between office and working from home. Just because you don't does not mean nobody else does.

 

[btmedic04]

Can you fit a SFF system including monitor into a rucksack when you travel?

Quite easily with proper case selection and a portable monitor. The velka 5 and 7 cases are sub 5L and 6L externally for instance.

 

[btmedic04]

Because sometimes you need powerful performance on the go. We got Xeon-based notebooks at my workplace for similar reasons. Sometimes you need higher core count and mobility at the same time. It's also nice if you alternate between office and working from home. Just because you don't does not mean nobody else does.

That case makes sense, but HX series are not xeons and therefore lack the capabilities afforded by the xeon series

 

[martinch]

I just don't understand how you dissipate 157 watts in a laptop. I cant imagine the noise.

As long as you don't want something super-slim, it shouldn't be that difficult to come up with a decent thermal solution - have a look at the Dell Precision series. My work laptop went from a Latitude E74xx (i7-4600U) to a Precision 77xx (i7-11850H + RTX A3000) - not only is the Precision more than 5 times faster, but it's also a lot quieter (I rarely hear it - at full load, it seems quieter than one of Fractal Design's 140mm fans at full speed), and cooler (generally running in the 40-75C range, instead of 60-90C range for the Latitude).

Why is this even a thing? Outside of health concerns, if you need that much power in a semi-mobile device, just build a SFF system already

Moving a SFF system around isn't overly convenient in a work environment - laptops with docks are far easier (think hybrid home/office working, or with an employer having multiple sites that people have to visit, etc). They do provide very acceptable performance for heavy workloads (software development).

 

[KyaraM]

That case makes sense, but HX series are not xeons and therefore lack the capabilities afforded by the xeon series

As others stated, alternating to work from home and in the office is also a use case ehere such a machine makes sense. Or having to travel a lot and needing a powerful computer on the go.