This year’s generation of Intel mobile processor seesn a combination of the new Intel Core Ultra processors debuting on the mobile platform as well as the final monolith CPU for Intel with their 14th-gen Intel Core HX series processors for mobile. To make the distinction simple, Intel’s 14th-generation Core HX-series processors are focused on absolute performance as denoted by the X in their naming convention.
Featuring the very mature Intel 7 node and the re-refreshed Raptor Lake, the Intel 14th-generation Core HX-series processors pushes the node to its limits with Intel squeezing every drop of performance from this architecture and in this review we’ll see just how much that translates into actual use.
And let’s just get this out of the way, between Intel’s Core Ultra and the 14th-gen Intel Core HX-series, the biggest distinction here is AI. While both gaming and mainstream laptops will get the Intel Core Ultra processors, the 14th-gen Core HX-series processors will primarily be on gaming and workstation-class design systems aimed at delivering utmost performance.
That means if that if you have AI applications on your workflow but right now, primarily do more work that don’t rely on it, the Intel 14th-gen Core HX-series processors is definitely an excellenty choice to go for a new system or new upgraders.
In this review we’ll focus on the foundational SKU of the 14th-gen Intel Core HX-series, the Core i5-14500HX paired with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060. Together, this combo serves as one of this generation’s most accessible gaming platform as well as a productivity-focused setup offering a nice balance of performance and battery life. Read on to find out more.
Intel 14th-gen HX-Series SKUs and Improvements
The 14th-gen Core HX-series from Intel continues the enthusiast line of processors for Intel until the successors of the Core Ultra line picks up. For now, Intel’s decision to go with their fastest platform to date sees 5 SKUs debuting for the 14th-gen HX-series line-up:
| Processor Number | Processor Cores (P+E) | Processor Threads | Intel® Smart Cache (LLC) | Max Turbo Frequency P-cores | Max Turbo Frequency E-cores | Base Frequency P-cores | Base Frequency E-cores | Processor Graphics | Max Memory Speed (MT/S) | Memory Capacity | Processor Base Power (W) | Max Turbo Power (W) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| i9-14900HX | 24 (8+16) | 32 | 36MB | Up to 5.8 | Up to 4.1 | Up to 2.2 | Up to 1.6 | Intel® UHD Graphics | DDR5 5600, DDR4 3200 | 192GB | 55 | 157 |
| i7-14700HX | 20 (8+12) | 28 | 33MB | Up to 5.5 | Up to 3.9 | Up to 2.1 | Up to 1.5 | Intel® UHD Graphics | DDR5 5600, DDR4 3200 | 192GB | 55 | 157 |
| i7-14650HX | 16 (8+8) | 24 | 30MB | Up to 5.2 | Up to 3.7 | Up to 2.2 | Up to 1.6 | Intel® UHD Graphics | DDR5 5600, DDR4 3200 | 192GB | 55 | 157 |
| i5-14500HX | 14 (6+8) | 20 | 24MB | Up to 4.9 | Up to 3.5 | Up to 2.6 | Up to 1.9 | Intel® UHD Graphics | DDR5 5600, DDR4 3200 | 192GB | 55 | 157 |
| i5-14450HX | 10 (6+4) | 16 | 20MB | Up to 4.8 | Up to 3.5 | Up to 2.4 | Up to 1.8 | Intel® UHD Graphics | DDR5 5600, DDR4 3200 | 192GB | 55 | 157 |
Going over the table, the most noteworthy improvement over 13th-gen are higher P-core Turbo as well as higher clocks in-general for the E-cores. This is most defined in the top-end SKU especially in its PL2 clock speeds where we see the Intel Core i9-14900HX listed with a 5.8Ghz turbo clock which is 400Mhz higher than last-gen’s Core i9-13900HX and still 200Mhz higher than the top-end i9-13980HX.
Just like its desktop counterpart, the Intel Core i7-14700HX also gets a helping of more E-cores. An extra pair of` E-cores really pushes this SKU into much, much performant tiers and has really made it the star of this generation for those looking for the best balance of performance and value. It also gets a bump in cache sizes with L3 cache now at 33MB up from last-gen’s 30MB.
Intel Core 14th-gen HX-series: Thunderbolt 5
All SKUs feature Intel HD graphics and is cross-compatible with either DDR5 or DDR4 memory. Intel partners can freely use either to meet design goals and offer more affordable systems for either consumers and industrial applications. Partners can also choose to use the new IO offering of the the platform which is a key part of the improvement on offer which sees Thunderbolt 5 and WIFI7 support. Although the technicality here sees Thunderbolt 5 running through a Barlow Ridge controller, its max bandwidth sees combined data + graphics over the wire. WIFI6E is also built-in but vendors can opt to go for WIFI7 especially if their region support the frequency.
Battery Life
We start all test off with a battery life test to see how long the battery will last under office usage. We use Procyon Microsoft Office battery test which fires up Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Excel and cycles through various tasks, idles for a bit and then repeats over and over again until the laptop cuts off. Depending on your laptop and when power saving kicks in, there may be some battery left once the test cuts off which is anywhere from 10% to 2%.
Important note, this battery tests is a general idea of the typical configurations go with their designs. For example, the Intel Core i9-14900HX uses a 99.99Whr battery which is the same as the i9-13980HX. Some of the other configurations uses smaller 90Whr to smaller batteries. Some of the flagship laptops that sport these processors have really powerful cooling affording it run at its full PL2 speeds but also causes higher power draw.
That said, this is just a reference on average power draw from various designs we’ve seen so far.
Office Productivity
Potentially the most used desktop software next to Windows OS is Microsoft Office. . This tests the responsiveness and system performance of the system when doing common office-users tasks, such as copying, pasting, cutting, adding images, resizing, saving, etc..
Lighter office work should be easy for any modern Intel CPU including the latest 14th-gen Core HX-series processors. The difference you see here are very slight variances and will ultimately boil down to responsiveness during use. A lower time means tasks finish faster meaning the system is ready to do another task but take note that some of the tests are miliseconds apart.
Photo and Video Editing
Last year, Puget Systems released their modernized benchmarking suite under the Pugetbenchmark for Creators name. This benchmark allows reviewers, creators and companies like Puget Systems to provide a performance score for a specific multimedia or creative application without too diving much into details. This makes communicating performance much easier especially when speaking with a non-technical audience. The score is now based off the geomean performance rather that from a reference system.
Here’s where Intel really shines: content creation and multimedia work. While the GPU will play a factor, these workload benchmarks factor in actual use much more than just high-load renders. That said, Photoshop is more sensitive to faster overall CPU and memory performance much like how Premiere Pro also benefits from the CPU.
Still, it has to be noted that final render will still be faster on better GPU systems ***IF*** you are using hardware acceleration, which you should absolutely use. For 90% of the video editing though, you’ll be at the mercy of your system and this is the reason why you shouldn’t favor one part over the other.
Performance – BAPCo CrossMark
CrossMark is a cross-platform benchmark aimed to provide comparative data for different platforms. It uses application models and gauges system performance and responsiveness to generate a score.
Gaming Performance Summary
For a full-hardware workout, visit https://benchmarks.ul.com for our system warm-up and stress test of choice.
For benchmarking methodology please see our game benchmark method guide.
Test results are gathered and produced on CapFrameX. This makes it easier for use to get both line graph comparison and raw averages without extra tools. Simply the easiest tool for benchmarking and its available for everyone to use, free of charge. Check it out at capframex.com.
For additional information, here’s the average FPS and Low P1 of our benchmarked games.
Conclusion
Intel’s HX-series processors have normally been associated with extreme enthusiast class of users. Users who never settle for less and want nothing but the best. Intel’s 14th-generation Core HX-series isn’t and as the bridge between monolith and dissagregate eras for Intel, this generation sees a shift in philosophy for partners. That said, the learnings from 13th-gen carry over to this generation and while both last-gen and the current 14th-gen Core HX-series processors share many things alike, it will ultimately boil down to the product you’re looking at to be the deciding factor.
By itself, anyone still holding on to their 8th-gen all or 9th-gen laptops from 5 years ago will definitely feel not just the performance jump but the platform benefit as well. With most modern Intel system designs offering not just a bump in performance but a wider array of IO connectivity plus better overall user experience thanks to design enhancements from the past-generation.
The Intel Core i5-14500HX alongside the Core i5-14450HX serves as this generation’s gateway models for new and upgrading power users. The distinction here is simple: those who have very defined use-cases e.g. gaming-only systems that see some heavy multimedia use all the way to rockstar video editors that prefer desktop-replacement laptops are the type of folks that will benefits the most from this platform.
14th-generation Intel Core HX-powered systems and laptops are available now from Intel partners. Look out for the Intel Core badge when shopping for a new laptop and be sure to ask for 14th-generation HX-series processors when shortlisting your final choice.
