What kind of chemical reaction will occur when the price butcher meets the former CPU warlord? Well, the Shenzhou X5A9 seems to have made it a reality: for 2999 yuan, you can own a thin and light laptop with the 12900H processor. Yes, you heard it right, the 12th generation flagship processor for just 2999 yuan! However, Uncle Niu always feels there's something mysterious about this. Is this elegant "price butcher" with the codename X5A9 from Shenzhou reliable? Let's discuss it slowly.
Shenzhou Elegant X5A9
12900H + 16GB + 512GB SSD + 15.6" 1080p 45% NTSC FHD
Yes, this model is now priced at 2991 yuan on a certain e-commerce platform. For those interested in budget-friendly ultrabooks, Uncle Niu believes most are just curious observers. For those genuinely considering a purchase, it's better to carefully review the buying analysis before making a decision, rather than just relying on data. After all, as long as it's a notebook, Uncle Niu will leverage his professional expertise to analyze whether it's worth buying. However, in rare cases like this one, where a former gaming king is being sold for less than 3000 yuan, causing the 13500H to shiver, Uncle Niu is quite helpless. Nevertheless, "only magic can defeat magic," so Uncle Niu presents the Mechrevo Code 14+ priced above 3000 yuan!
First, let's set aside the differences in processors! Let's temporarily consider these two models as having the same configuration. Why does a model that costs 300 yuan more have the qualifications to be compared with a 2999 yuan model? Where is the value of this 300 yuan price difference really spent? That's right, it's actually in the screen specifications. The Mechrevo Zero 14+ may be a 14-inch model, but a 2.8K screen is at least the mainstream standard for ultrabooks this year. The Hasee X5A9, on the other hand, is different. Despite being 15.6 inches, the screen may appear larger, but unfortunately, the 1080p resolution has already pinned this model to the pillar of shame for ultrabooks in 2024. Moreover, this device only offers a low 45% NTSC color gamut! The conclusion is that in terms of screen configuration in the current market, it doesn't pass muster.
Next, let's take a look at the power consumption of the 12900H processor. Testing shows that this processor's stable power output is around 45W. In comparison, the 7840HS with its unrestricted 14+ single-core power consumption is about 54W. This means the "magic comparison" will be quite interesting because even though the 12900H outperforms the 7840HS by 10% in overall performance, the situation may be different given the 20% lower power consumption compared to its competitor. Also, it's important to note that the 13500H has a standard power consumption of 45W in thin and light laptops.
Let's take a look at the theoretical performance differences of processors. The Core i9-12900H, placed in the current trend of the 13th and 14th generations, particularly the Ultra series, actually boasts "battle-worthy" theoretical performance. The CineBench R23 benchmark score for the Shenzhou Elegant X5A9 is 1839 points for single-core and 13880 points for multi-core. The 13500H scores 1876 points for single-core and 13470 points for multi-core. In comparison, the model equipped with the 7840HS in the Unbounded 14+ series achieves 1802 points for single-core and 16058 points for multi-core in R23. The conclusion is that the CPU theoretical performance of the 12900H is on par with the 13500H, but overall falls short of the higher power-consuming 7840HS.
The integrated graphics performance of the 12900H is quite decent. In the 3DMark Time Spy benchmark, the integrated graphics score of the Shenzhou X5A9 is 1769 points. In comparison, the 7840HS scores 2963 in Time Spy, outperforming the 12900H. However, the theoretical performance of the 12900H's integrated graphics is stronger than the mainstream 13500H Core i5 (13500H's TS graphics score is around 1400), roughly equivalent to the integrated graphics performance of the 13700H in thin and light laptops.
In the most practical PCMark 10 Modern Office test for ultrabooks, the 12900H scored 5945. Unfortunately, Uncle Niu did not find the PCM10 score for the Infinite 14+, but at a similar power consumption level, the 7840HS scored around 7000. The Chuwi X5A9 with the 12900H is also weaker than the 7840HS model. However, its office performance is on par with the 13500H, in the range of 5900 to 6000.
After comparing the magic (pure theoretical performance comparison), clever friends may have already noticed the key point. Although it can't beat the stronger Infinite 14+, Uncle Niu always uses the 13500H as a reference. The performance of the Shenzhou X5A9 with the 12900H is better than or equal to the 13500H, indicating that this model has a high cost-performance ratio among the Core series. In fact, Uncle Niu wants to say, maybe you're thinking too much. After looking at the teardown diagram, you will understand why Uncle Niu said that.
From the teardown diagram (see above), this model adopts the classic "save money trio" for budget ultrabooks: onboard memory, low-spec ports, and reduced cooling. The truth is, the heat dissipation configuration of the Mechrevo X5A9 is too low! The 12900H can slightly outperform the 13500H, but only under the premise of theoretical performance tests conducted in short bursts. In reality, the cooling module used in the Mechrevo X5 is a generic one designed for entry-level processors like the N100. On one hand, it fails to fully leverage the performance advantages of high-power processors, resulting in performance comparable to the 13500H ultrabook; on the other hand, despite the 12900H having 2 additional high-performance cores compared to the 13500H and a stronger Xe integrated GPU, when paired with this cooling module, it actually becomes a disadvantage. Especially when running games or 3D rendering tasks that cannot limit the load, inadequate cooling may lead to the processor urgently throttling down.
Uncle Niu's comment: The configuration is lackluster, no need to fantasize.
The Mechrevo X5A9 is a typical "spec sheet machine," featuring a 15.6-inch screen and the 12900H processor seemingly thrown in for free, with theoretical performance that can "outperform" the mainstream 13500H. Even at a price of less than 3000 yuan, you get a large 62.7Wh battery. However, unfortunately, this is a model that is only suitable for gathering dust. Apart from the 12900H processor and the large screen and battery, all other configurations are lackluster - low screen quality, poor cooling, limited ports, non-expandable onboard memory, and inadequate weight (compared to similar ultrabooks). If this had been released two years ago before the widespread adoption of 2.5K screens, this high-performance configuration might have been noteworthy. But in 2024, it is simply an underwhelming ultrabook with average performance that falls short of recommendation. It's more practical to just buy an ultrabook with the 13500H processor rather than indulging in the unrealistic fantasy of gaming on the Mechrevo X5A9 with the 12900H.
Source: Gouji Bangni Ping
