CD to floppy disk: Super slim AI PC concepts on Snapdragon X2 Elite chip

Hear the word “PC” and it’s almost never associated with anything “cool” or “interesting.” I mean when was the last time you truly gasped at an innovative laptop or desktop PC? I don’t think I have in a long time. But that certainly changed after seeing what Qualcomm’s cooking up inside their secretive product design and engineering labs. What I saw didn’t as much make me gasp in astonishment as it made me sit up and take notice after a long day spent in technical deep dive of the Snapdragon X2 Elite platform.

Of course, watching Qualcomm executives wax eloquence about the Snapdragon X2 Elite is one thing, declaring it the greatest thing since sliced bread (I’m exaggerating, believe me) is something, but watching that same chip in action in PC form factors thinner and lighter than anything you’ve ever seen before is quite another.

This is where the rubber hits the road, the proof in the proverbial pudding, as they say. And the glimpse of the possibilities revealed by Qualcomm – with Snapdragon X2 Elite beating at its heart – is something that will definitely reinvigorate and revive interest in the plain and boring PC platform, if it ever leaves the lab and makes it to market.

Also read: Snapdragon X2 Elite chip: Qualcomm is serious about AI PC domination!

Here’s what Qualcomm revealed in reference designs based on Snapdragon X2 Elite chips, a collection of products out of which two are especially interesting – because, as of now, I believe they’re products that only Qualcomm can deliver, thanks to their SD X2 Elite platform’s demonstrated performance-per-watt ratio.

CD-cover shaped AI PC: Longcheer Mini PC

The first reference design that I found quite interesting from Qualcomm is what it calls the Longcheer Mini PC. I call it the CD-cover shaped PC. 

This circular disc shaped AI PC runs a 18-core Snapdragon X2 Elite chip, has 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. The whole thing couldn’t have been thicker than 1 centimetre or 10 mm, it was that thin – I kid you not. Imagine 4-5 tortillas stacked on top of each other, I genuinely mistook it for an old CD case that some Qualcomm engineer had left at their workstation – not realising it was the workstation itself!

It was running Windows 11 smoothly, connected to a HP 7 Pro 4K display, and even handled a Topaz Labs AI upscale task for a small 10-second video clip – all without breaking a sweat or heating up externally on the touch.

I hope this Qualcomm reference design PC becomes reality soon, because it will give ‘mobile PC’ a whole new meaning. 

Floppy disk shaped AI PC: Longcheer All-in-one Mini PC

The second most interesting reference design I saw inside Qualcomm’s engineering labs is the All-in-one PC version of the Longcheer Mini PC. It resembled a 3.5-inch floppy disk, something I grew up using with desktop PCs in the 1990s and early 2000s.

This floppy disk-shaped AI PC was also running on an 18-core Snapdragon X2 Elite chip, supported by 32GB RAM and 1TB storage. Uniquely enough, this floppy disk-shaped plugged into a compatible 32-inch 4K display, thus becoming a combo all-in-one PC. It was certified Windows Copilot+ PC I also noticed.

Also read: Inside Snapdragon X2 Elite’s Oryon: The CPU challenging Intel, AMD and Apple

The display stand also had a dock into which the extremely thin PC connected, and a single power cable connected at the back of the monitor stand. All peripherals were connected wirelessly. Probably the most minimal cables I’ve ever seen in a Windows PC that was fully contained in a display – apart from an Apple iMac, of course. Again, I’d love to see this come to market soon – fingers crossed.

13-inch 2-in-1 laptop: Quanta PC with removable screen

Lastly, Qualcomm also showed off a Windows 11 laptop with a detachable screen that turned into a fully functional touchscreen Windows tablet.

The reference design which Qualcomm is calling ‘Quanta’ had an 18-core Snapdragon X2 Elite chip, 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. The 13.4-inch screen was lightweight and responsive, just like a MacBook Air for instance. This 2-in-1 AI PC was certified Windows Copilot+ PC as well.

Of course, on top of these three innovative reference AI PC concepts, Qualcomm showed variants of the Snapdragon X2 Elite and Elite Extreme inside traditional clamshell laptops. 

Why do I think only Qualcomm can flex and show off AI PCs that can do Topaz AI editing workloads on a 4K display with full Windows 11 runtime support without heating up or breaking into a sweat? It’s all down to Snapdragon X2 Elite’s power efficiency capability, hinged on the legacy of Qualcomm’s mobile SoC prowess, while also delivering raw performance where it matters. 

Which one of these AI PC concepts would you want to purchase, if you had the option? I know which one (or two) I’m picking, for sure.

Also read: Snapdragon X2 Elite benchmarks: Windows 11 gaming on Adreno X2 GPU