275HX vs 9955HX Gaming Laptop CPUs

Specs

Notebookcheck describes the Core Ultra 9 275HX as an Arrow Lake chip with 24 cores, 8 performance and 16 efficiency, and no hyperthreading. It puts the theoretical TDP at 55 W and says that under full load both this chip and the Ryzen 9 9955HX can briefly draw more than 150 W.

AMD lists the Ryzen 9 9955HX as a Zen 5 laptop processor: 16 cores, 32 threads, SMT, boost up to 5.4 GHz, 2.5 GHz base, 1280 KB of L1 cache, 16 MB of L2 cache, and 64 MB of L3 cache. Default TDP is 55 W, with a configurable TDP of 55-75 W. The socket is FL1. AMD also lists PCIe 5.0 with 28 native lanes, dual-channel DDR5 up to 96 GB (SO-DIMM, up to DDR5-5600), and Radeon 610M graphics with 2 cores at 2200 MHz. It is unlocked for overclocking.

Gaming with the same RTX 5090 Laptop GPU

Notebookcheck ran an Asus ROG Strix SCAR 18 G835LX (Core Ultra 9 275HX, 64 GB of memory) and an XMG Neo 16 A25 engineering sample (Ryzen 9 9955HX, 32 GB of memory). Both used a GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop GPU that can draw up to 175 W, and both used Nvidia Game Ready Driver 572.84. The laptops are not the same machine, and the memory sizes differ.

Notebookcheck reports that the Ryzen 9 9955HX is ahead and that the average advantage is 5 percent at 1080p. The 1080p performance rating is 99.7 points for the Ryzen and 95.4 for the Core Ultra 9. Call of Duty Black Ops 6 was tied at 1080p, at 147 fps, so that 5 percent is an average across the set, not a lead in every title. At 1440p, Notebookcheck reports the Ryzen ahead in every game in the set, with the difference again around 5 percent. The 1440p rating is 100 points against 94.5. At 4K, Notebookcheck says the processor matters less and the difference gets smaller, with a slight lead for the Ryzen in each listed game. The 4K rating is 100 points against 96.3.

Productivity and system tests

In Cinebench 2024 multi-core, Notebookcheck lists 2,223 points for the Core Ultra 9 275HX and 2,058 for the Ryzen 9 9955HX, marked +8 percent for the Intel chip. Cinebench 2024 single-core is 138 points for the Core Ultra 9 and 129 for the Ryzen, marked +7 percent. Geekbench 6.7 single-core goes the other way: 3,230 for the Ryzen and 3,158 for the Core Ultra 9, marked -2 percent. Geekbench 6.7 multi-core lists 21,668 for the Core Ultra 9, marked +11 percent, and 19,563 for the Ryzen.

On whole-system tests, Notebookcheck's PCMark 10 score is 9,402 for the Ryzen and 8,623 for the Core Ultra 9, marked -8 percent. CrossMark overall is 2,259 against 2,221, marked -2 percent. CrossMark Productivity is the other way, 2,025 for the Core Ultra 9 against 2,014, marked +1 percent. 3DMark Time Spy CPU is 17,285 against 13,188, marked +31 percent for the Core Ultra 9, and Fire Strike Physics is 48,219 against 42,890, marked +12 percent for the Core Ultra 9.

Lower power limits

Notebookcheck also capped both CPUs. In Cinebench 2024 multi, the Core Ultra 9 275HX is ahead at each listed limit from 55 W to 150 W. At 55 W the scores are 1,633 and 1,489. At 80 W they are 1,875 and 1,809. At 115 W they are 2,015 and 2,008. At 150 W they are 2,158 and 2,061. The first number in each pair is the Core Ultra 9.

Cinebench R23 does not follow the same pattern. At 55 W, Notebookcheck lists 27,283 for the Core Ultra 9 and 23,849 for the Ryzen. At 80 W it lists 31,880 and 31,641. At 100 W the Ryzen is ahead: 35,500 points for the Ryzen and 33,670 for the Core Ultra 9. At 150 W Notebookcheck lists 39,537 for the Ryzen and 38,108 for the Core Ultra 9.

Notebookcheck says it skipped a longer power-draw and efficiency comparison because the GeForce RTX 5090 in the XMG engineering sample stayed on an external monitor. There is no battery-life result in that test.

The Ryzen 9 9955HX3D

AMD lists the Ryzen 9 9955HX3D with the same 16 cores, 32 threads, boost of up to 5.4 GHz, and 55 W default TDP as the 9955HX, and with 128 MB of L3 cache instead of 64 MB. Notebookcheck's 275HX comparison did not have a 9955HX3D test system. Treat the 9955HX3D as a separate laptop configuration and compare the price of the whole laptop, including the GPU, before paying extra for the added cache.

How to choose a gaming laptop

Compare the GPU name and its wattage first. Then compare the price of the Intel and AMD versions of the same laptop. Use the Ryzen 9 9955HX when the rest of the laptop matches and you care about the gaming frame rates Notebookcheck measured. Use the Core Ultra 9 275HX when Cinebench 2024, including the 55 W to 80 W limits, matters more to you. Read that laptop's spec sheet for ports, memory, and cooling. Do not assume a port from the CPU name.

These are laptop HX chips. The Ryzen 9 9900X vs Core Ultra 9 comparison, and the blog on the Ryzen 9 9900X and Core Ultra 9, cover other processors. They do not compare the 275HX with the 9955HX.