Testing — Last-gen ultralight laptops are nearly as fast as new modelsand much cheaper Would you pay 42 percent more for a 7.8 percent productivity boost?
Scharon Harding – Apr 10, 2023 11:30 am UTC EnlargeGetty reader comments 99 with Share this story Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit
If youre looking for a new thin-and-light Windows PC this year, the latest and greatest processors may not be all that necessary. Unlike with previous mobile chip releases, the 2023 options for ultralights from Intel and AMD are mostly similar to their predecessors. In the case of premium ultralights and 2-in-1s relying on integrated graphics, the gains are small enough that budget shoppers should consider a last-gen model, assuming all other things are equal, and save hundreds with a negligible loss in performance.
When Intel announced its 13th Gen mobile lineup in January, we called the chip mildly improved. The new chips are pretty boring compared to the 12th Gen release, when Intel brought its hybrid Alder Lake architectures to laptops and introduced the P-series. 13th Gen brings such minimal changes, as our testing will illustrate, that ultralights featuring 12th Gen systems are still worth serious consideration comparatively. And a specs comparison suggests a similar story with AMD Ryzen 6000 versus 7000.
As Ars’ Andrew Cunningham wrote upon Intel’s announcement of 13th Gen mobile, the lineup is “mostly identical to the 12th Generation CPUs they’re replacing.” 13th Gen brings notable updates to HX chips, including more E-cores than before and, with some of the chips, support for speedier RAM. But when it comes to the chips you’ll likely find employed in thin-and-light laptopsthe P and U seriesthere’s far less of that “new and shiny” feel.
With the new U- and P-series chips (as well as the more powerful H-series), Intel limited gen-over-gen improvements to support faster RAM (up to DDR5-4800/LPDDR5-5200 versus DDR5-5200/LPDDR5-6400) and small clock speed increases. Just how small? Here’s a quick overview of how the 13th Gen U and P series compare to 12th Gen. CPU Performance cores Efficient cores Threads L3 Cache Processor graphics Max graphics frequency Processor base power Max turbo power i7-1280P 6x @ 1.8-4.8 GHz 8x @ 1.3-3.6 GHz 20 24MB 96EU 1.45 GHz 28 W 64 W i7-1370P 6x @ 1.9-5.2 8x @ 1.4-3.9 20 24MB 96EU 1.5 GHz 28 W 64 W i7-1270P 4x @ 2.2-4.8 GHz 8x @ 1.6-3.5 GHz 16 18MB 96EU 1.4 GHz 28 W 64 W i7-1360P 4x @ 2.2-5 GHz 8x @ 1.6-3.7 GHz 16 18MB 96EU 1.5 GHz 28 W 64 W i7-1260P 4x @ 2.1-4.7 GHz 8x @ 1.5-3.4 GHz 16 18MB 96EU 1.4 GHz 28 W 64 W i5-1350P 4x @ 1.9-4.7 GHz 8x @ 1.4-3.5 GHz 16 12MB 80EU 1.5 GHz 28 W 64 W i5-1250P 4x @ 1.7-4.4 GHz 8x @ 1.2-3.3 GHz 16 12MB 80EU 1.4 GHz 28 W 64 W i5-1340P 4x @ 1.9-4.6 GHz 8x @ 1.4-3.4 GHz 16 12MB 80EU 1.45 GHz 28 W 64 W i5-1240P 4x @ 1.7-4.4 GHz 8x @ 1.2-3.3 GHz 16 12MB 80EU 1.3 GHz 28 W 64 W i3-1220P 2x @ 1.5-4.4 GHz 8x @ 1.1-3.3 GHz 12 12MB 64EU 1.1 GHz 28 W 64 W
The U series is supposed to be slightly less powerful and more efficient than the P-series, and it shows similarly minimal differences between the 12th and 13th Gens (We’ve used Intel’s charts, as the series has more processors). When U series graduated from 11th to 12th Gen, it replaced two big cores with four to eight small cores, but there are no such changes with 13th Gen. Advertisement Intel Intel Intel
As we wrote in January, “these refreshes mostly tread water, and you shouldn’t hold out for a 13th Gen laptop if you can find an otherwise identical 12th Gen laptop for cheaper.” In a moment, I’ll show some benchmarks supporting that thesis.
While this article focuses mainly on Intel testing, there’s a similar story with AMD’s latest laptop processors. Beyond the new Ryzen 7040 series, a new Zen 4 and RDNA 3-based chip, the thin-and-lights likely to adopt Ryzen 7000 chips will probably stick to the Ryzen 7035 series, which we dubbed “Ryzen 6000 with a new name.” As of this writing, there are no ultralights with a Ryzen 7035-series processor readily available online in the US, but you can look at the table below for a specs comparison between this generation and the series’ predecessor. AMD’s Ryzen 7000 chips targeting ultralight PCs. AMD AMD’s Ryzen 6000 mobile lineup. AMD
To test the idea that 13th Gen isn’t worth holding out for if you can find what you need with a last-gen processor for cheaper, I tested a current-gen Lenovo Yoga 9i (Gen 8). A high-priced option from Lenovos 2-in-1 Yoga line, Gen 8 is virtually the same as the Yoga 9i Gen 7 I looked at last year. From the chassis to the 28801800 90 Hz OLED screen option, 75 Wh battery, and RAM speed, its essentially the same machine. The real difference is the processor, and as you can see, the 13th Gen chip brings a small bump in productivity and graphical performance. Page: 1 2 3 Next → reader comments 99 with Share this story Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit Scharon Harding Scharon is Ars Technicas Senior Product Reviewer and writes news, reviews, and features on consumer technology, including laptops, PC peripherals, and lifestyle gadgets. Shes based in Brooklyn. Email scharon.harding@arstechnica.com Advertisement Channel Ars Technica ← Previous story Next story → Related Stories Today on Ars
Steve Witkoff, the US special envoy to the Middle East, has claimed the UK played a “vital role” in helping negotiate the Gaza peace deal, smoothing over a potential diplomatic row between London and Washington.
Witkoff took to X on Monday, ahead of meeting President Donald Trump in Israel, to praise the UK.
“I would like to acknowledge the vital role of the United Kingdom in assisting and coordinating efforts that have led us to this historic day in Israel,” Witkoff wrote.
“In particular, I want to recognise the incredible input and tireless efforts of National Security Advisor Jonathan Powell.”
His comments came 24 hours after education secretary Bridget Phillipson was branded “delusional” by Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, for claiming that Sir Keir Starmer’s presence at a signing ceremony for today’s ceasefire deal in Egypt “demonstrates the key role that we [Britain] have played”.
Phillipson added: “We have played a key role behind the scenes in shaping this.
“It’s right that we do so because it’s in all of our interest, including our own national interest, that we move to a lasting peace in the region.
“These are complex matters of diplomacy that we are involved in. But we do welcome and recognise the critical role that the American government played in moving us to this point.”
Her comments prompted Mr Huckabee to repost the Sky News clip on social media, claiming: “I assure you she’s delusional.”
He added: “She can thank Donald Trump anytime just to set the record straight.”
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Mr Huckabee was part of the negotiating team for the peace deal, with Mr Trump calling the former Arkansas governor “AMAZING” as he said he “worked so hard, and did so much, to bring about peace in the Middle East”.
In August, Mr Huckabee said the UK and other European nations that said they would declare a Palestinian state were “having the counterproductive effect that they probably think that they want”.
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Israel’s deputy foreign affairs minister, Sharren Haskell backed Huckabee, telling Sky News the UK played “the opposite” of a key role in the peace deal after recognising the Palestinian state.
“The message that the UK government has sent Hamas was the message that: the longer they continue this war, they will be rewarded.
“I mean, you must understand that when a terrorist organisation is thanking you. You are on the wrong side of history.”
It is understood the prime minister has underlined Mr Trump’s key role in securing this deal throughout the process. Publicly, he praised Mr Trump twice in his press conference in India on Thursday.
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2:59
Final preparations for hostages in Israeli hospital
Ms Phillipson stood by the September decision to declare a Palestinian state, saying it was “the right thing to do”.
Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, told Sky News it was a “moment of leadership” for the UK to declare a Palestinian state, and a “responsibility to begin to correct a century of the gravest historic injustices committed against our people”.
He added: “That moment three weeks ago, when the UK did recognise, is a moment when we can say that the wheels of history are turning in a different direction.”
No plans for British troops on the ground
The education secretary also told Sky News the government has “no plans” to put British troops into Israel or Gaza as part of a stabilisation force after the ceasefire.
The US military will help establish a multinational force in Israel, known as a civil-military coordination centre, which is likely to include troops from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the UAE.
Image: Tens of thousands of Palestinians have walked back to Khan Younis in southern Gaza. Pic: AP
On Friday, US officials said up to 200 US troops already based in the Middle East will be moved to Israel to help monitor the ceasefire in Gaza.
The day before, President Trump announced Israel and Hamas had “signed off on the first phase” of a peace plan he unveiled last week.
Image: Pic: Reuters
Aid trucks have been gathering in Egypt to cross into Gaza after months of warnings by aid groups of famine in parts of the territory.
In Israel, the remaining hostages are due to be returned from Gaza by Hamas on Monday under the first phase of the peace plan. Twenty are believed to still be alive, 26 have been declared dead, while the fate of two is unknown.
The ceasefire agreement has been made two years after Hamas stormed Israel on 7 October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, which the UN deems reliable.
Two men have been charged with the murder of paedophile Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins, who was killed in prison.
Watkins, 48, was pronounced dead after being seriously assaulted at HMP Wakefield on Saturday morning.
Rashid Gedel, 25, and Samuel Dodsworth, 43, are due to appear at Leeds Magistrates’ Court later today, West Yorkshire Police said.
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Sir Keir Starmer will join world leaders at a historic summit in Egypt today – to witness the signing of the Gaza peace plan to end two years of conflict, bloodshed and suffering that has cost tens of thousands of lives and turned Gaza into a wasteland.
Travelling over to Egypt, flanked by his national security adviser Jonathan Powell, the prime minister told me it was a “massive moment” and one that is genuinely historic.
In the flurry of the following 48 hours, Sir Keir and another 20 or so leaders were invited to Egypt to bear witness to the signing of this deal, with many of them deserving some credit for the effort they made to bring this deal around – not least the leaders of Qatar, Egypt and Turkey, who pressed Hamas to sign up to this deal.
Today, the remaining 20 living hostages are finally set to be released, along with the bodies of another 28 who were either killed or died in captivity, and aid is due to flow back into a starving Gaza.
Some 1,200 Israelis were killed on 7 October 2023, with another 250 taken hostage. In the subsequent war, most of Gaza’s two million population has been displaced. More than 67,000 Gazans have been killed, according to Palestinian health officials.
Then, the signing ceremony is due to take place this afternoon in Sharm el Sheikh. It will be a momentous moment after a long and bloody war.
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But it is only just the beginning of a long process to rebuild Gaza and try to secure a lasting peace in the region.
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0:25
Humanitarian aid rolls into Gaza
The immediate focus for the UK and other nations will be to get aid into Gaza, with the UK committing £20m for water, sanitation and hygiene services for Gazans.
But the focus for the UK and other European allies is what happens after the hostages are released and Israel withdraws its troops.
What happens next is a much bigger and more complicated task: rebuilding Gaza; turning it into a terrorist-free zone; governing Gaza – the current plan is for a temporary apolitical committee; creating an international stabilisation force and all the tensions that could bring about – which troops each side would allow in; a commitment for Israel not to occupy or annex Gaza, even as Netanyahu makes plain his opposition to that plan.
The scale of the challenge is matched by the scale of devastation caused by this brutal war.
The prime minister will set out his ambition for the UK to play a leading role in the next phase of the peace plan.
Image: Starmer arrives in Sharm el-Sheikh. Pic: PA
Back home, the UK is hosting a three-day conference on Gaza’s recovery and reconstruction.
Last week, France hosted European diplomats and key figures from Middle Eastern countries, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar – and later this week, the German chancellor is hoping to organise a conference on the reconstruction of Gaza with the Egyptians.
But in reality, European leaders know the key to phase two remains the key to phase one, and that’s Donald Trump.
As one UK figure put it to me over the weekend: “There is lots of praise, rightly, for the US president, who got this over the line, but the big challenge for us post-war is implementing the plan. Clearly, Arab partners are concerned the US will lose focus.”
Image: Bridget Phillipson and Mike Huckabee. Pics: Sky/AP
The prime minister knows this and has made a point, at every point, to praise Mr Trump.
His cabinet minister Bridget Phillipson learned that diplomatic lesson the hard way yesterday when she was publicly lambasted by the US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee for suggesting to my colleague Trevor Phillips that the UK “had played a key role behind the scenes” and failed to mention Mr Trump by name.
“I assure you she is delusional,” tweeted Governor Huckabee. “She can thank @realDonaldTrump anytime just to set the record straight”.
Today, leaders will rightly be praising Mr Trump for securing the breakthrough to stop the fighting and get the remaining hostages home.
Image: People hug next in Hostages Square. Pic: Reuters
But this is only the beginning of a very long journey ahead to push through the rest of the 19-point plan and stop the region from falling back into conflict.
Britain has, I am told, been playing a role behind the scenes. The PM’s national security adviser Mr Powell was in Egypt last week and has been in daily touch with his US counterpart Steve Witkoff, according to government sources. Next week the King of Jordan will come to the UK.
Part of the UK’s task will be to get more involved, with the government and European partners keen to get further European representation on Trump’s temporary governance committee for Gaza, which Tony Blair (who was not recommended or endorsed by the UK) is on and Mr Trump will chair.
The committee will include other heads of states and members, including qualified Palestinians and international experts.
As for the former prime minister’s involvement, there hasn’t been an overt ringing endorsement from the UK government.
It’s helpful to have Mr Blair at the table because he can communicate back to the current government, but equally, as one diplomatic source put it to me: “While a lot of people in the Middle East acknowledge his experience, expertise and contact book, they don’t like him and we need – sooner rather than later – other names included that Gulf partners can get behind.”
Today it will be the US, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey that sign off on the peace plan they directly negotiated, as other Middle Eastern and European leaders, who have flown into Sharm el Sheikh to bear witness, look on.
But in the coming days and weeks, there will need to be a big international effort, led by Mr Trump, not just to secure the peace, but to keep it.