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Intel Xeon W-10885M

Intel Xeon W-10885M: Power and Compromises in a Mobile Format

April 2025

Architecture and Process: The Legacy of 14 nm

The Intel Xeon W-10885M processor, built on the Comet Lake architecture, exemplifies how Intel continued to extract maximum performance from its proven 14 nm process even in the late 2020s. Despite the fact that by 2025 most competitors have transitioned to 5 nm and 3 nm standards, this chip remains relevant due to optimization and high clock speeds.

Key Features:

- 8 cores, 16 threads with Hyper-Threading support.

- Base Frequency: 2.4 GHz, Max Turbo Boost Frequency: 5.3 GHz (for a single core).

- Integrated Graphics: Intel UHD Graphics for the 10th generation (24 EU, frequency up to 1.2 GHz).

Architecture Features:

Comet Lake is oriented towards multithreaded performance, but the iGPU here is a weak point. The integrated graphics are suitable only for basic tasks: office applications, 4K video playback, but not for gaming or 3D modeling. For professional tasks, a discrete graphics card (such as NVIDIA RTX A5000 or AMD Radeon Pro W6600M) is required.

TDP 45 W: Balancing Power and Heat

With a declared TDP of 45 W, the processor is designed for mobile workstations and gaming laptops. However, under load, power consumption can reach 90–100 W in turbo mode, necessitating an advanced cooling system.

Practical Nuances:

- In thin laptops (case thickness < 20 mm), the Xeon W-10885M will throttle due to overheating.

- In devices with massive coolers (e.g., MSI WS66 or Dell Precision 7560), the chip reaches its potential, but fan noise becomes noticeable.

Performance: Numbers and Reality

Geekbench 6:

- Single-Core: 1542 (comparable to Apple M2).

- Multi-Core: 6953 (close to AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX).

Real-World Scenario Tests:

- Office Tasks (Excel, browser with 50+ tabs): The processor operates at base frequencies, with temperatures remaining between 50–60°C.

- Blender Rendering: All cores loaded at 100%, frequency drops to 3.8–4.1 GHz after 10 minutes due to overheating.

- Gaming (Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, 1080p): Paired with NVIDIA RTX 3080 Mobile, average FPS is 65–70, but during extended sessions, drops to 50 FPS due to throttling.

Turbo Boost: The maximum frequency (5.3 GHz) is available only for short load durations (up to 30 seconds), such as during application launches or photo processing in Lightroom.

Use Cases: Who is This Processor For?

1. Professionals: Engineers, architects, video editors. The chip supports ECC memory (up to 128 GB DDR4-2933), which is critical for workstations.

2. Gamers: But only in conjunction with a powerful graphics card and effective cooling.

3. Developers: Code compilation, virtualization (8 cores allow for running multiple VMs simultaneously).

Examples of Software Where Xeon W-10885M Excels:

- AutoCAD, SolidWorks (utilize multithreading).

- DaVinci Resolve (4K rendering).

- MATLAB (complex computations).

Battery Life: The Price of Performance

With a TDP of 45 W, battery life in laptops with this processor rarely exceeds 4–5 hours (web surfing, office tasks). In maximum performance mode — up to 1.5 hours.

Energy-Saving Technologies:

- Intel Speed Shift: Dynamically changes frequency based on load.

- C-states: Disables unused cores.

Recommendation: Choose laptops with a battery of at least 90 Wh (for example, Lenovo ThinkPad P15) — this will extend battery life to 6–7 hours in light scenarios.

Comparison with Competitors

1. AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS (6 nm, Zen 3+):

- Pros: Better energy efficiency, higher performance in multithreaded tasks (Geekbench 6 Multi-Core ~7500).

- Cons: No ECC memory support.

- Laptop Price: From $2200 (Asus ROG Zephyrus G15).

2. Apple M2 Pro (5 nm):

- Pros: Battery life up to 18 hours, cool operation.

- Cons: Limited compatibility with Windows software, no RAM/SSD upgrades.

- Price: From $2500 (MacBook Pro 16").

3. Intel Core i9-11980HK (10 nm, Tiger Lake):

- Pros: Higher IPC, support for PCIe 4.0.

- Cons: Only 8 cores, more expensive (laptops from $2800).

Conclusion: The Xeon W-10885M is suitable for those for whom ECC memory and stability in professional tasks are critical.

Pros and Cons

Strengths:

- Support for ECC memory and vPro for corporate security.

- High single-core performance.

- Compatibility with Windows/Linux.

Weaknesses:

- Outdated 14 nm process → high power consumption.

- Requires expensive cooling systems.

- iGPU is weak for modern tasks.

Laptop Selection Recommendations

1. Type of Device:

- Workstation: Dell Precision 7560, HP ZBook Fury 17 G8.

- Gaming Laptop: MSI WS66, Acer ConceptD 7.

2. What to Look For:

- Cooling: At least two fans + copper heat pipes.

- Battery: At least 90 Wh.

- Memory: 32 GB DDR4 + upgrade slots.

Average Price in 2025: $2400–$3500.

Final Conclusion

The Intel Xeon W-10885M is suitable for:

- Engineers and designers who need stability and ECC memory.

- Gamers who are willing to tolerate fan noise for high frame rates.

- Corporate users who value vPro technology.

Main Benefits: Desktop-level power in a mobile format, but with compromises in battery life and heat. If you do not need ECC memory, consider the AMD Ryzen 9 or Apple M2 Pro — they are more efficient in 2025.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Mobile

Launch Date

April 2020

Model Name

The Intel processor number is just one of several factors - along with processor brand, system configurations, and system-level benchmarks - to be considered when choosing the right processor for your computing needs.

W-10885M

Code Name

Comet Lake

CPU Specifications

Total Cores

Cores is a hardware term that describes the number of independent central processing units in a single computing component (die or chip).

Total Threads

Where applicable, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.

Basic Frequency

2.40 GHz

Max Turbo Frequency

Max Turbo Frequency is the maximum single-core frequency at which the processor is capable of operating using Intel® Turbo Boost Technology and, if present, Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 and Intel® Thermal Velocity Boost. Frequency is typically measured in gigahertz (GHz), or billion cycles per second.

5.30 GHz

Intel Hyper-Threading Technology

Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology (Intel® HT Technology) delivers two processing threads per physical core. Highly threaded applications can get more work done in parallel, completing tasks sooner.

Yes

Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 Frequency

Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 identifies the best performing core(s) on a processor and provides increased performance on those cores through increasing frequency as needed by taking advantage of power and thermal headroom. Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 frequency is the clock frequency of the CPU when running in this mode.

5.10 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0

Yes

CPU Socket

The socket is the component that provides the mechanical and electrical connections between the processor and motherboard.

FCBGA1440

Technology

Lithography refers to the semiconductor technology used to manufacture an integrated circuit, and is reported in nanometer (nm), indicative of the size of features built on the semiconductor.

14 nm

TDP

45 W

Max. Operating Temperature

Junction Temperature is the maximum temperature allowed at the processor die.

100°C

PCI Express Version

PCI Express Revision is the supported version of the PCI Express standard. Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (or PCIe) is a high-speed serial computer expansion bus standard for attaching hardware devices to a computer. The different PCI Express versions support different data rates.

3.0

Number of PCI Express Lanes

A PCI Express (PCIe) lane consists of two differential signaling pairs, one for receiving data, one for transmitting data, and is the basic unit of the PCIe bus. Max # of PCI Express Lanes is the total number of supported lanes.

Intel 64

Intel® 64 architecture delivers 64-bit computing on server, workstation, desktop and mobile platforms when combined with supporting software.¹ Intel 64 architecture improves performance by allowing systems to address more than 4 GB of both virtual and physical memory.

Yes

Instruction Set

The instruction set is a hard program stored inside the CPU that guides and optimizes CPU operations. With these instruction sets, the CPU can run more efficiently. There are many manufacturers that design CPUs, which results in different instruction sets, such as the 8086 instruction set for the Intel camp and the RISC instruction set for the ARM camp. x86, ARM v8, and MIPS are all codes for instruction sets. Instruction sets can be extended; for example, x86 added 64-bit support to create x86-64. Manufacturers developing CPUs that are compatible with a certain instruction set need authorization from the instruction set patent holder. A typical example is Intel authorizing AMD, enabling the latter to develop CPUs compatible with the x86 instruction set.

64-bit

PCI Express Configurations

PCI Express (PCIe) Configurations describe the available PCIe lane configurations that can be used to link to PCIe devices.

Up to 1x16 | 2x8 | 1x8+2x4

Memory Specifications

Memory Type

Intel® processors come in four different types: Single Channel, Dual Channel, Triple Channel, and Flex Mode. Maximum supported memory speed may be lower when populating multiple DIMMs per channel on products that support multiple memory channels.

DDR4-2933

Max Memory Size

Max memory size refers to the maximum memory capacity supported by the processor.

128 GB

Memory Channels

The number of memory channels refers to the bandwidth operation for real world application.

Bus Speed

8 GT/s

Max Memory Bandwidth

Max Memory bandwidth is the maximum rate at which data can be read from or stored into a semiconductor memory by the processor (in GB/s).

45.8 GB/s

ECC Memory Supported

ECC Memory Supported indicates processor support for Error-Correcting Code memory. ECC memory is a type of system memory that can detect and correct common kinds of internal data corruption. Note that ECC memory support requires both processor and chipset support.

Yes

GPU Specifications

Integrated Graphics Model

An integrated GPU refers to the graphics core that is integrated into the CPU processor. Leveraging the processor's powerful computational capabilities and intelligent power efficiency management, it delivers outstanding graphics performance and a smooth application experience at a lower power consumption.

Intel® UHD Graphics for 10th Gen Intel® Processors

Graphics Base Frequency

Graphics Base frequency refers to the rated/guaranteed graphics render clock frequency in MHz.

350 MHz

Graphics Frequency

Graphics max dynamic frequency refers to the maximum opportunistic graphics render clock frequency (in MHz) that can be supported using Intel® HD Graphics with Dynamic Frequency feature.

1.25 GHz

4K Support

Yes | at 60Hz

DirectX Support

DirectX* Support indicates support for a specific version of Microsoft’s collection of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) for handling multimedia compute tasks.

Max Resolution (HDMI)

Max Resolution (HDMI) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor via the HDMI interface (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your system.

4096x2304@30Hz

Max Resolution (DP)

Max Resolution (DP) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor via the DP interface (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your system.

4096x2304@60Hz

Max Resolution (eDP - Integrated Flat Panel)

Max Resolution (Integrated Flat Panel) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor for a device with an integrated flat panel (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your device.

4096x2304@60Hz

Number of Displays Supported

Graphics Output

Graphics Output defines the interfaces available to communicate with display devices.

eDP/DP/HDMI/DVI

Miscellaneous

Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x)

Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x) allows one hardware platform to function as multiple “virtual” platforms. It offers improved manageability by limiting downtime and maintaining productivity by isolating computing activities into separate partitions.

Yes

Intel Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)

Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) continues from the existing support for IA-32 (VT-x) and Itanium® processor (VT-i) virtualization adding new support for I/O-device virtualization. Intel VT-d can help end users improve security and reliability of the systems and also improve performance of I/O devices in virtualized environments.

Yes

Intel Standard Manageability (ISM)

Intel® Standard Manageability is the manageability solution for Intel vPro® Essentials platforms and is a subset of Intel® AMT with out-of-band management over Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but no KVM or new life cycle management features.

Intel® SSE4.1 | Intel® SSE4.2 | Intel® AVX2

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology is an advanced means of enabling high performance while meeting the power-conservation needs of mobile systems. Conventional Intel SpeedStep® Technology switches both voltage and frequency in tandem between high and low levels in response to processor load. Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology builds upon that architecture using design strategies such as Separation between Voltage and Frequency Changes, and Clock Partitioning and Recovery.

Yes

Execute Disable Bit

Execute Disable Bit is a hardware-based security feature that can reduce exposure to viruses and malicious-code attacks and prevent harmful software from executing and propagating on the server or network.

Yes

Cache

CPU Cache is an area of fast memory located on the processor. Intel® Smart Cache refers to the architecture that allows all cores to dynamically share access to the last level cache.

16 MB Intel® Smart Cache

Intel AES New Instructions

Intel® AES New Instructions (Intel® AES-NI) are a set of instructions that enable fast and secure data encryption and decryption. AES-NI are valuable for a wide range of cryptographic applications, for example: applications that perform bulk encryption/decryption, authentication, random number generation, and authenticated encryption.

Yes

Intel Boot Guard

Intel® Device Protection Technology with Boot Guard helps protect the system’s pre-OS environment from viruses and malicious software attacks.

Yes

Intel VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)

Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT), also known as Second Level Address Translation (SLAT), provides acceleration for memory intensive virtualized applications. Extended Page Tables in Intel® Virtualization Technology platforms reduces the memory and power overhead costs and increases battery life through hardware optimization of page table management.

Yes

Intel Flex Memory Access

Yes

Intel OS Guard

Yes

OpenGL Support

OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is a cross-language, multi-platform API (Application Programming Interface) for rendering 2D and 3D vector graphics.

4.5

Intel Quick Sync Video

Intel® Quick Sync Video delivers fast conversion of video for portable media players, online sharing, and video editing and authoring.

Yes

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6

Single Core Score

1542

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

6953

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

1162

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

5802

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

2774

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

15674

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Core i5-11500T

1653 +7.2%

Xeon Platinum 8351N

1598 +3.6%

Xeon W-10885M

1542

Core i7-8665U

1484 -3.8%

Ryzen 7 4800HS

1432 -7.1%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

EPYC 7452

7821 +12.5%

Ryzen 7 7736U

7389 +6.3%

Xeon W-10885M

6953

Xeon E-2186G

6522 -6.2%

Ryzen 7 5825U

6178 -11.1%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Core i7-10700F

1231 +5.9%

EPYC 9554

1192 +2.6%

Xeon W-10885M

1162

Core i9-9980HK

1129 -2.8%

Xeon Silver 4309Y

1113 -4.2%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Ryzen 5 6600H

6350 +9.4%

Core i9-9880H

6017 +3.7%

Xeon W-10885M

5802

Xeon E5-4610 v4

5510 -5%

Core i5-9600

5211 -10.2%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Core i5-10600K

2928 +5.6%

Xeon E-2286G

2848 +2.7%

Xeon W-10885M

2774

Ryzen 3 PRO 5450U

2740 -1.2%

Ryzen 5 PRO 4655G

2696 -2.8%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Xeon W-3223

17204 +9.8%

Ryzen 7 1800X

16402 +4.6%

Xeon W-10885M

15674

Xeon Silver 4215

15140 -3.4%

Xeon W-1250

14440 -7.9%