Graphics performance shows an even clearer gap: Intel's Arc 140T offers noticeably better gaming performance than AMD's underwhelming Radeon 860M. That's particularly disappointing, since the older Radeon 780M from last year would still beat Intel's new iGPU.

AMD's real advantage lies in its integrated NPU for on-device AI workloads. It can deliver 50 INT8 TOPS, compared to just 13 TOPS on Intel's side. Another plus: the fans on the AMD system stay silent a little longer before spinning up, making it slightly quieter in lighter use.

Power efficiency is mixed. While AMD promised improvements, Intel actually edges ahead in idle power draw, making the Intel model a bit more frugal when sitting on battery.