Refresh rate
The frame rate supported by the laptop screen. In fact, in this case we are talking about the maximum frequency; the actual frame rate may be lower than this value, depending on the content being displayed — but not higher.
Theoretically, the higher the frame rate, the smoother the movement on the screen will look, the less moving objects will be blurred. In fact, the situation is such that even in relatively modest modern laptops,
60 Hz matrices are installed — in general, this is quite enough for the human eye, since a further increase in speed (
90 Hz and higher) does not significantly improve the visible “picture”. However, in high-end gaming and multimedia models designed for demanding users, higher values —
120 Hz,
144 Hz,
165 Hz and even
higher, namely
240 Hz and
300 Hz.
Brightness
The maximum brightness that a laptop screen can provide.
The brighter the ambient light, the brighter the laptop screen should be, otherwise the image on it may be difficult to read. And vice versa: in dim ambient light, high brightness is unnecessary — it greatly burdens the eyes (however, in this case, modern laptops provide brightness control). Thus, the higher this indicator, the more versatile the screen is, the wider the range of conditions in which it can be effectively used. The downside of these benefits is an increase in price and energy consumption.
As for specific values, many modern laptops have a brightness of
250 – 300 nt and even
lower. This is quite enough for working under artificial lighting of medium intensity, but in bright natural light, visibility may already be a problem. For use in sunny weather (especially outdoors), it is desirable to have a brightness margin of at least
300 – 350 nt. And in the most advanced models, this parameter can be
350 – 400 nt and even
more.
AMD compatibility
The laptop supports
AMD FreeSync technology and its more advanced varieties (FreeSync Premium, FreeSync Premium Pro). Here are more details about them:
– AMD FreeSync. This function is found only in models equipped with discrete AMD graphics cards. It serves to match the frame rate of the screen and the frame rate of the incoming signal so that the frequencies match. This allows you to avoid flickering, jerking and other image defects that occur due to signal desynchronization. This function is especially useful for games where the frame rate of the video signal can “float” depending on the load on the graphics core; in fact, most laptops with FreeSync are specifically gaming laptops.
– AMD FreeSync Premium. An intermediate option between the core AMD FreeSync technology and the advanced FreeSync Premium Pro implementation. The Premium version does not have HDR support (unlike Pro), but it works at the same frame rate (at least 120 fps at a resolution of 1920x1080) and uses LFC low frame rate compensation technology.
– FreeSync Premium Pro. The most advanced version of FreeSync technology, formerly known as AMD FreeSync 2 HDR. As the original name suggests, one of the highlights of this edition is HDR support. FreeSync Premium Pro claims a frame rate of at least 120 fps at Full HD resolution, as well as a low frame rate compensation (LFC) function. According to the creators, FreeSync Premium Pro works espec
...ially well in games; and many modern games are initially created to work with this technology.
NVIDIA video cards use a similar technology called G-Sync.Series
Each series combines chips that are similar in general level, purpose, and often also in individual specific features. Moreover, most series include processors of several generations at once, which can differ significantly in actual characteristics. It is worth noting that until recently laptops were equipped almost exclusively with processors from
AMD or
Intel - until in 2020
Apple introduced its own
Apple M1 chip (with updated versions of
Apple M1 Pro and
Apple M1 Max),
Apple M2(2022) with productive chips
M2 Pro,
M2 Max and
Apple M3,
M3 Pro,
M3 Max(2023). Then Qualcomm entered the arena with its
Snapdragon processors.
At the moment, the following series are mainly relevant in laptops:
-AMD Ryzen 3. The most inexpensive series of AMD chips in the Ryzen family (Ryzen 3,
Ryzen 5,
Ryzen 7 and
Ryzen 9) using the Zen microarchitecture. In terms of the general design, Ryzen 3 is similar to
...its older brothers, but half of the computing cores are deactivated. However, it is quite advanced and is found even in ultrabooks.
— Ryzen 5. The second series based on Zen architecture is a more affordable alternative to Ryzen 7 chips. Ryzen 5 chips have somewhat more limited performance characteristics (in particular, a lower clock speed and, in some models, L3 cache size). Otherwise, they are completely similar to the “sevens” and are also positioned as high-performance chips for gaming and workstations. See "Ryzen 7" below for more details.
— Ryzen 7. The first series of processors from AMD built on the Zen microarchitecture. It was introduced in March 2017. In general, Ryzen chips (of all series) are promoted as high-end solutions for gamers, developers, graphic designers and video editors. One of the main differences between Zen and previous microarchitectures was the use of simultaneous multithreading, due to which the number of operations per clock was significantly increased at the same clock frequency. In addition, each core received its own floating-point calculation unit, the speed of the first level cache increased, and the L3 cache capacity in Ryzen 7 chips is 16 MB as standard.
- Atom. Processors specifically designed by Intel for mobile devices (including smartphones). They are mainly used in ultra-compact laptops.
— Core M. Processors designed for portable equipment (in particular, ultra-compact laptops) and characterized by extremely low heat generation, allowing the use of passive cooling systems. They were presented in 2014 as the first production chips based on the 14 nm process technology.
— Celeron. The most budget series in the modern line of desktop processors from Intel. However, the latest generations come with integrated graphics.
- Pentium. Budget desktop processors from Intel, slightly superior in performance to Celeron, but not up to the Core i3. Also carry integrated graphics.
- Processor. The entry-level processor line that precedes the Core i3 family in the modern Intel hierarchy. Such chipsets are found in entry-level laptops designed for everyday household or office use, as well as undemanding games.
- Intel Core i3 / Core 3. A series of entry-level and mid-level processors, the most budget-friendly in the Core family. However, in terms of characteristics and computing power, the processors in the line are superior to the Pentium and Celeron series (see above).
- Intel Core i5 / Core 5. A line of mid-class processors - both in general and by the standards of the Core family in particular. Most often, the series processors contain from 4 to 10 cores, and in terms of performance they are between the relatively inexpensive i3 (Core 3) and the powerful i7 (Core 7).
- Intel Core i7 / Core 7. A series of high-performance processors from Intel. Before the advent of the i9, it was the most advanced in the Core family, but then it lost the palm to the “nine”. Core 7 chips have at least 4 cores and integrated graphics.
- Core i9. Top-level processors released in 2017; the most powerful line of consumer-grade laptop processors at the time of its introduction, displacing Core i7 chips from this position. They have 6 cores and a large 3-level cache.
- Core Ultra 5. Transformation of the popular series of mobile processors of the strong mid-range Intel Core i5, which received the Ultra prefix from the end of 2023 - when the Meteor Lake generation of chipsets debuted. The main feature of Core Ultra 5 processors is a separate NPU, which provides advantages when working with AI models.
- Core Ultra 7. A pre-top series of high-performance mobile processors from Intel, which replaced the Core i7 family at the end of 2023 (with the advent of a new generation of Meteor Lake chipsets). A neural coprocessor responsible for accelerating the operation of artificial intelligence algorithms has become a mandatory attribute of Ultra models.
- Core Ultra 9. A line of the most powerful laptop processors from Intel, released to replace the Core i9 family at the end of 2023. The premiere of models labeled Ultra took place in the generation of Meteor Lake chipsets. A distinctive feature of Intel Core Ultra 9 is the presence of a separate NPU to improve the efficiency of using artificial intelligence models.
— Apple. A series of processors from Apple, which debuted in November 2020 along with the release of the next generations of MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. In the initial configurations, they are equipped with 8 cores - 4 productive and 4 economical; the latter, according to the creators, consume 10 times less energy than the former. This, combined with the 5 nm process technology, has made it possible to achieve very high energy efficiency and at the same time performance. It is also worth noting that the processors of this series are made according to the system-on-chip scheme: a single module combines a CPU, a graphics adapter, RAM (in the first models - 8 or 16 GB), an NVMe solid-state drive and some other components (in in particular, Thunderbolt 4 controllers).
— Snapdragon. At their core, Snapdragon processors are mobile solutions - traditionally they are installed in smartphones and tablets. Separate lines of Snapdragon chips have been released specifically for laptops (for example, X Elite on ARM architecture). Many laptops based on such processors are equipped with built-in LTE or even 5G modules. Their advantage is also high energy efficiency.Model
The specific model of the processor installed in the laptop, or rather, the processor index within its series (see above). Knowing the full name of the processor (series and model), you can find detailed information on it (up to practical reviews) and clarify its capabilities.
Code name
The code name for CPU installed in the laptop.
This parameter characterizes, first of all, the generation to which the processor belongs, and the microarchitecture used in it. At the same time, chips with different code names can belong to the same microarchitecture/generation; in such cases, they differ in other parameters - general positioning, belonging to certain series (see above), the presence / absence of certain specific functions, etc.
Nowadays, the following code names are relevant in Intel processors:
Coffee Lake,
Comet Lake,
Ice Lake,
Tiger Lake,
Jasper Lake,
Alder Lake,
Raptor Lake (13th Gen),
Alder Lake-N,
Raptor Lake (14th Gen),
Meteor Lake (Series 1),
Raptor Lake (Series 1).
For AMD, the list looks like this:
Zen 2 Renoir,
Zen 2 Lucienne,
Zen 3 Cezanne,
Zen 3 Barcelo,
Zen 3+ Rembrandt,
Zen 3+ Rembrandt R,
Zen 2 Mendocino,
Zen 3 Barcelo R,
Zen 4 Dragon Range,
Zen 4 Phoenix
Zen 4 Hawk Point.
Detailed data on different code names can be found in special sources.
CPU speed
The clock speed of the processor installed in the laptop (for multi-core processors, the frequency of each individual core).
Theoretically, a higher clock speed has a positive effect on performance, as it allows the processor to perform more operations per unit of time. However, in fact, the capabilities of the CPU depend on a number of other characteristics — primarily on the series to which it belongs (see above). It even happens that of the two chips, the more performant in the overall result is the slower one. With this in mind, it makes sense to compare by clock frequency only processors of the same series, and ideally, also of the same generation; and the laptop as a whole should be judged by the complex characteristics of the system, as well as by the results of tests (see below).
TurboBoost / TurboCore frequency
Processor clock speed achieved in TurboBoost or TurboCore "overclocking" mode.
Turbo Boost and Turbo Core technologies are used by different manufacturers (Intel and AMD, respectively), but they have the same principle of operation: load distribution from more loaded processor cores to less loaded ones to improve performance. The "overclocking" mode is characterized by an increased clock frequency, and it is indicated in this case.
For more information about clock speed in general, see the relevant paragraph above.
3DMark06
The result shown by the laptop processor in 3DMark06.
This test is primarily focused on testing performance in games — in particular, the ability of the processor to process advanced graphics and artificial intelligence elements. Test scores are reported as scores; the higher this number, the higher the performance of the tested chip. Good 3DMark06 results are especially important for
gaming laptops.