Intel Core Ultra 7 258V vs Intel Core Ultra 7 356H: Battery Life or Multicore Performance

The Intel Core Ultra 7 258V and Core Ultra 7 356H are designed for different types of laptops. The 258V model is aimed at thin, battery-powered devices without a discrete graphics card. The Core Ultra 7 356H features double the number of cores, higher power limits, and support for up to 128 GB of memory.

In sustained computations, the 356H is significantly faster. The Core Ultra 7 258V offers lower power consumption and more powerful integrated graphics with Arc 140V.

Key Differences

CPU Performance

The Core Ultra 7 258V features four performance cores and four low-power LP E-cores. Its eight threads are sufficient for browsing, office applications, photo processing, and short compute workloads. In rendering, compiling, and video encoding, the number of cores becomes a limiting factor.

The Core Ultra 7 356H adds eight regular E-cores, offering a total of 16 cores. The maximum turbo power is increased from 37 to 80 W, making the processor significantly faster in multicore tasks when adequately cooled.

The gap in Single-Core performance is much smaller. The maximum frequency of the P-cores is 4.8 GHz for the 258V and 4.7 GHz for the 356H, so in everyday applications, switching to the new processor doesn't always provide a noticeable speedup.

Geekbench 6 in Specific Laptops

Results marked as invalid by Geekbench are not included in this table. The operating system is listed separately, as results from Windows and Linux cannot be directly compared.

In selected Windows laptops, the Core Ultra 7 258V scores around 2580-2760 in Single-Core and 10,400-10,700 in Multi-Core. The ThinkPad T14p Gen 4 with the Core Ultra 7 356H demonstrates a lead of about 2-9% and 34-38%, respectively.

In another run, the same ThinkPad T14p Gen 4 scored 2700 and 12,776 points. The difference in the multicore test exceeds 12%, although the laptop model and processor did not change. Factors such as power mode, temperature, background processes, and BIOS version affect the result.

Fewer public tests for the Core Ultra 7 356H are available, so its performance is better assessed based on a range rather than a single favorable result.

Integrated Graphics

The Core Ultra 7 258V is equipped with Arc 140V with eight Xe-cores and a claimed performance of up to 64 TOPS Int8. The Core Ultra 7 356H uses graphics with four Xe-cores, yielding a performance of 40 TOPS Int8.

TOPS cannot be directly translated into frame rates, but the difference in configuration is noticeable. The Arc 140V is better suited for casual gaming, image processing, and other tasks without a discrete graphics card.

The graphics on the Core Ultra 7 356H are weaker, although it retains hardware ray tracing and modern media blocks. In laptops without a separate GPU, the integrated graphics remains the main limitation of the 356H.

Power Consumption

The base power of the Core Ultra 7 258V is 17 W, with a maximum of 37 W. The Core Ultra 7 356H has ratings increased to 25 and 80 W.

The 356H does not have to constantly draw 80 W: the laptop manufacturer independently sets short-term and long-term limits. However, to unleash all 16 cores, more advanced cooling is required.

The Core Ultra 7 258V is better suited for compact models where low heat, quiet operation, and battery life are essential.

Memory and Platform Capabilities

The Core Ultra 7 258V supports up to 32 GB LPDDR5X-8533. The memory is housed in the same package as the processor, making it impossible to upgrade after purchase.

The Core Ultra 7 356H supports up to 128 GB LPDDR5X-8533 or DDR5-7200. The specific laptop may use soldered memory, SO-DIMM, or LPCAMM2.

Additionally, the 356H provides 20 PCI Express lanes compared to eight for the 258V. It is better suited for systems with a discrete graphics card and multiple storage drives.

The difference between the NPUs is minimal: 47 versus 50 TOPS. There’s no point in overpaying just for an additional 3 TOPS.

Which Processor to Choose

Core Ultra 7 258V is better suited for:

• thin and lightweight laptops;
• extended battery life;
• systems without a discrete graphics card;
• casual gaming on integrated graphics;
• configurations with a memory capacity up to 32 GB.

Core Ultra 7 356H should be chosen for:

• rendering and video encoding;
• compiling large projects;
• virtual machines and intensive multitasking;
• configurations with 64-128 GB of memory;
• laptops with a discrete graphics card.

Conclusion

The Intel Core Ultra 7 356H is significantly faster in multicore tasks: in the reviewed Windows tests, its advantage is about 34-38%. The difference in Single-Core is limited to a few percentage points.

The Core Ultra 7 258V excels in energy efficiency and integrated graphics performance. It is better suited for a standalone ultrabook, whereas the 356H is designed for heavier computations, large memory capacity, and configurations with a separate graphics card.