Qualcomm Snapdragon C Targets $300 AI Windows Laptops

Qualcomm is expanding its Snapdragon lineup with the introduction of Snapdragon C designed to give laptop makers a more affordable hardware platform to build around in the Windows ecosystem. According to Qualcomm, Snapdragon C delivers "incredible all-day battery life" for entry-level laptops while keeping the price low, with systems purportedly starting at $300.

That is around half the price as Apple's MacBook Neo (not including Apple's $100 education discount), though we'll have to wait and see where the majority of OEMs ultimately land. Regardless, the mantra from Qualcomm is affordability, and Snapdragon C arrives at a time with components costs are skyrocketing. Rising memory and storage prices have affected nearly every sector of computing, laptops and handhelds like the Steam Deck OLED (which just received a massive price increase) included.

"As costs rise and customer expectations evolve, Snapdragon C brings together value oriented computing, all-day battery life, AI capabilities, and responsive performance in cool-quiet devices for expanded platform choice," said Kedar Kondap, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Compute and Gaming, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

Acer Aspire Go 15 is one of the first laptops to feature a Snapdragon C chip.

"We’re delivering modern computing experiences that help our ecosystem reach new audiences and expanding access to reliable, efficient technology for students, families, customer-facing small businesses, and beyond," Kondap added.

Qualcomm is short on details about Snapdragon C, as it has not revealed clock speeds, core counts, or even what types of cores are being employed in its entry-level laptop chip. However, it did reveal that Snapdragon C includes a dedicated NPU, which effectively means that a bit of AI muscle is headed to cheaper laptops. Exactly how much muscle is not yet know, as Qualcomm didn't share a TOPS metric.

One thing we're told is to expect breakthrough power efficiency. Beyond that, Qualcomm says laptops based on Snapdragon C will begin to appear from major OEMs, including Acer, HP, and Lenovo. Out of those three, Acer has already announced a Snapdragon C laptop, the Aspire Go 15.