AMD and Intel are locked in an ongoing battle that ends solely when one firm shutters. Fortunately for us within the stands, neither has any intention of ceding a lot floor to the opposite. The result’s a unending succession of top-notch, inexpensive CPUs. The launch of AMD’s Ryzen 6000 cellular processors continues this saga, with the Ryzen 9 6900HS firing a shot straight throughout Intel’s bow.
You’ll discover this chip in skinny, light-weight laptops, with far much less sacrifice in efficiency than you would possibly anticipate when in comparison with Intel’s beefier flagship cellular CPU. Our comprehensive review of the 6900HS provides the entire lowdown, however when you don’t have time for each final element, listed here are 5 key takeaways.
1. Lots of energy in a small package deal
At first look, the benchmarks for the Ryzen 9 6900HS might seem to indicate Intel trouncing AMD’s greatest. Despite surpassing its predecessors in almost each check, the 6900HS continues to be eclipsed by the Intel Core i9-12900HK. The 12900HK hangs onto the highest spot throughout rendering, encoding, productiveness, and artistic duties. However, the comparability between it and the 6900HS isn’t a real apples-to-apples comparability.
What you’re truly is a comparability of Intel’s flagship cellular chip towards one of the best of AMD’s obtainable silicon. Intel centered on its hardest-hitting chips for the launch of its 12th-generation Alder Lake cellular processors. The form of laptops during which you’ll discover it and different Intel H-class CPUs are beastly and sometimes weighing in at 5 or 6 kilos (or extra).
This Cinebench R23 benchmark is a pattern of the development you’ll see in our full suite of benchmarks, although particular person outcomes differ. For this chart, longer bars signifies higher efficiency.
IDG
This Blender 3.0 benchmark is a pattern of the development you’ll see in our full suite of benchmarks, although particular person outcomes differ. For this chart, shorter bars point out higher efficiency.
IDG
For the discharge of Ryzen 6000, AMD needs our consideration on a chip designed for thinner, lighter laptops (often round three to 4 kilos). The 6900HS isn’t the highest of the stack—that distinction goes to the Ryzen 9 6980HX, which continues to be to return. That processor runs quicker and consumes extra energy, much like the Core i9-12900HK. Instead, the 6900HS is a number of rungs down, with a bit shaved off its clock velocity and a extra environment friendly 35 watt TDP. (You can learn extra in regards to the full stack of processors in our deep dive on Ryzen 6000.)
AMD
The undeniable fact that the 6900HS is posting numbers inside 10 p.c of the 12900HK (and typically even nearer) is rattling spectacular. You’re seeing a premium 3.6-pound gaming laptop computer carry out not far off from a 6.4-pound competitor that has the luxurious of extra room. That measurement distinction is vital, as a result of the much less house you’ve in a laptop computer, the extra efficiency have to be balanced with warmth issues. It’s notable that AMD’s chip comes this near its greatest rival regardless of being confined to a laptop computer virtually half the load.
The in need of it’s that for anybody who travels gentle, you’re not making a giant efficiency sacrifice to shuck kilos out of your bag.
2. Speed upgrades throughout the board (howdy eventually, PCIe 4.0)
The 6900HS might have all the eye proper now, however platform upgrades have arrived alongside it. When you take into account a laptop computer with a Ryzen 6000 collection chip versus one from a earlier gen, you’re not simply weighing a lift in CPU efficiency, but in addition help for PCIe 4.0, USB 4, DDR5 reminiscence, Wi-Fi 6e, and Bluetooth Low Energy 5.2. This tech will velocity up your laptop computer expertise throughout the board.
PCIe 4.0 arguably has probably the most influence on day-to-day efficiency. AMD retains help at eight lanes, or the identical quantity as for PCIe 3 with earlier gens. That transfer doubles the bandwidth for the GPU connection. Another 12 lanes have been added for storage and different normal makes use of, too. Paired with DDR5 reminiscence as much as 4,800 megatransfers per second (or low-power LPDDR5 reminiscence as much as 6,400 MT/s), Ryzen 6000 methods ought to really feel fairly zippy.
AMD
USB 4 ports will shut the hole between AMD and Intel, with the latter having had the benefit of Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4 for exterior information transfers. USB 4 incorporates and builds upon Thunderbolt 3, with as much as 40Gbps switch velocity, and in addition helps DisplayPort 2 and charging.
Rounding out the line-up is Wi-Fi 6e, with its cutting-edge wi-fi speeds—useful when you dwell in an space that’s rolling out ultra-fast fiber connections.
But that’s not all. Beyond the platform upgrades that AMD rightfully boasts about, the Ryzen 9 6900HS and different Ryzen 6000 chips will help Pluton, Microsoft’s new safety chip, in addition to characteristic enhancements to AMD’s SmartShift know-how. SmartShift dynamically adjusts the quantity of energy fed to the CPU and GPU relying on the wants of every. For Ryzen 6000, SmartShift Max will assist to coax increased uncooked efficiency, whereas SmartShift Eco will work to make sure higher battery life. Separately, Smart Access Graphics performs comparable administration between use of built-in graphics and a discrete GPU in related laptops. You can learn extra about SmartShift and Smart Access Graphics in our preliminary overview of Ryzen 6000, however principally, they need to present nuanced however tangible boosts to general laptop computer efficiency.
3. Creatives and spreadsheet warriors might desire a totally different chip
The Ryzen 9 6900HS makes a rattling nice case for selecting AMD over Intel, particularly given how highly effective the chip is. For most individuals, it supercharges what you may anticipate from a skinny, light-weight gaming laptop computer.
But as talked about above, the Intel Core i9-12900HK does maintain a lead over it in benchmark outcomes. Individuals who can’t compromise on efficiency—sometimes professionals with intense computing calls for—will need to scrutinize the check outcomes, particularly when you lean on one or two particular Adobe Creative Cloud functions. In applications like Premiere Pro and even Lightroom, the 12900HK has sufficient of an edge to avoid wasting you tangible time. In Photoshop, the distinction is slimmer.
The 6900HS provides up a variety of floor to the 12900HK in some Adobe Creative Cloud functions, as you’ll see in our full suite of benchmarks. For this chart, longer bars signifies higher efficiency.
IDG
The 6900HS additionally provides up floor to the 12900HK in some Microsoft Office 365 functions, as you’ll see in our full suite of benchmarks. For this chart, longer bars signifies higher efficiency.
IDG
But even those that push Office functions to their limits ought to listen. Do you typically sling slides in PowerPoint? The 6900HS’s wonky outcomes would possibly provide you with pause. The identical applies to anybody who crunches main numbers in Excel.
Again, most individuals don’t fall into these camps. But when you do, Intel 12th-gen H-class chips could also be higher for you within the right here and now. You may also anticipate Intel’s equivalents to AMD Ryzen HS processors to hit cabinets—or conversely, AMD’s beefier Ryzen 9 6980HX and 6900HX, which launch subsequent month. With time, you’ll clearly see which chips hit the toughest within the type issue you like.
4. Ryzen 6000’s built-in graphics are killer
One clear win for AMD is the RDNA 2-based built-in graphics inside Ryzen 6000 cellular processors. It’s the identical know-how in AMD’s present line-up of Radeon RX 6000 collection graphics playing cards, and you may clearly see its supercharging impact. When pitted towards the IGP within the Core i9 12900HK, the 6900HS got here in a whopping 33 p.c quicker.
An extended bar signifies higher efficiency. Right mouse click on and choose “open in new tab” to see authentic picture.
IDG
That won’t imply a lot to somebody shopping for a 6900HS, as this high-end chip will virtually at all times be paired with discrete graphics. But for somebody finances laptops, this stage of efficiency is large. A pocket book with no discrete graphics would nonetheless be able to operating video games at 720p at increased graphics settings, or 1080p at low settings, relying on the title. You might purchase a productiveness laptop computer and play video games straight on it—you’re not purely reliant on cloud gaming companies like GeForce Now or Xbox Cloud Gaming.
5. No surprises with battery life—for now
Comparing battery life throughout totally different laptops is difficult, even once they have the identical processor. Factors past simply the 2 apparent energy guzzlers (the CPU and GPU) affect how lengthy you may go on a single cost. For instance, the scale of your battery and your show’s energy consumption have direct influence as properly.
That stated, battery benchmarks nonetheless are vital—they reveal chips which have a notable impact on runtime. You can weed out ones which may bleed quicker than is tolerable.
AMD
Fortunately, we discovered no points with the 6900HS. In our video rundown check, its battery saved tempo with its three Intel rivals and its Ryzen predecessors. The numbers aren’t mind-blowing, with our Asus evaluate unit stopping on the six-hour mark, nevertheless it’s a decent quantity given the laptop computer’s discrete graphics.
Prior to launch AMD did make claims about higher energy effectivity, nevertheless. Team Red claimed as much as 24 hours of video playback, or a three-hour enchancment over Ryzen 5000 cellular chips. (You can learn extra about these claims in our initial overview of Ryzen 6000 following its announcement at CES.) Our video check is simply skimming the floor—we nonetheless have extra testing to do to place AMD’s chip to the check. But for now know that you simply’re no less than getting real-world efficiency that’s nonetheless on the prime of the sport.