Trade shows are some of the most fun times of the year, and IFA 2024 was no different. This time around, Berlin was home to some huge announcements, including brand-new processors from Intel and Qualcomm, which set a lot of things in motion. And of course, we had some of our favorites. So, without further ado, let's dive right into the best of IFA 2024.

Intel Core Ultra Series 2

A big shot at redemption

Intel has been struggling to compete with its major rivals, after Apple transitioned to its in-house silicon and Qualcomm recently introduced its Snapdragon X series chips that deliver battery life unlike anything currently on offer from Intel. The Lunar Lake processors, officially called Intel Core Ultra Series 2, are the company's attempt at getting back in the spotlight, and they're looking like a very good attempt.

Intel has changed a lot about these chips. They have just eight cores now, down from the 16 you could get in the previous generation, yet Intel is promising improvements in every way. In fact, the company is confident that it's not only faster than Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite chips, but also more efficient, which is incredibly impressive considering x86 chips have never been able to compete with Arm on efficiency. Whether these processors will live up to Intel's claims remains to be seen, but things are looking very promising.

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus 8-core

Bringing Copilot+ to lower prices

Qualcomm already hit it out of the park with the launch of the Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus 10-core back in June, but those chips were still mostly aimed at premium laptops. But these Copilot+ capabilities and the power efficiency of Arm deserves to come to more users, and Qualcomm is delivering on that with the Snapdragon X 8-core version.

Qualcomm compares this new chip to the Intel Core Ultra 7 155U, and in that comparison, the Snapdragon X Plus 8-core delivers 61% more performance while Intel's processor uses 179% more power. That makes this a pretty high-end part, despite being in PCs starting at a lower price than laptops with an intel Core Ultra 7. It definitely feels like Qualcomm is shaking up the market in a big way, and we couldn't be more excited to see it.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 Aura edition

New features powered by Intel Lunar Lake

With Intel's Lunar Lake processors on the scene, Lenovo is one of the first companies to jump to use them, and of course, it starts with the ThinkPad X1 Carbon. But this time, things are a bit different. On top of the new processors that already promise a lot more performance across CPU, GPU, and NPU, Intel and Lenovo collaborated on something called Aura, a set of features exclusive to this new laptop.

Aura features include "smart modes", such as attention mode, which blocks certain websites during specific times of the day, or wellness features to make sure you're keeping a good posture. But one of the coolest features is the ability to tap your phone on the side of the laptop to share photos from it. This feature is powered by Intel Unison, but it's still pretty cool, and a level of integration you don't usually see on Windows laptops.

HP OmniBook Flip Ultra

The Spectre x360 gets a true successor

Since HP's rebranding of its entire laptop lineup back in May, we hadn't seen a proper form of the Spectre x360, but with Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processors becoming available, it's finally becoming a reality. The HP OmniBook Ultra Flip 14 is the new name for the Spectre x360, and it has everything you love about the previous model, including a 9MP webcam, a convertible design, and a 2.8K 120Hz OLED display.

Of course, it's also enhanced by the new Intel processors that should give it some of the best performance and efficiency we've ever seen in a Spectre. What's more, the laptop also moves on from USB Type-A, as it now only has USB-C ports. The future is here.

Dell XPS 13

Lunar Lake enhances yet another laptop

Dell's XPS 13 has always been one of the best laptops around, and with the introduction of the latest model, thats more true than ever. Powered by the Intel Lunar Lake processors, the Dell XPS 13 is packing big performance upgrades, including up to three times faster GPU performance and, of course, Copilot+ support later this year. Plus, it's much more efficient than before.

Otherwise, it's the Dell XPS 13 we know and love, with an extremely modern design thanks to the zero-lattice edge-to-edge keyboard, invisible touchpad, and capacitive touch function row. It's a great laptop made even better.

Honor MagicBook Art 14

This laptop barely feels like one, and that's a good thing

Honor isn't the first name you think of when it comes to laptops, but the MagicBook Art has some legitimate selling points going for it. Most notably, the build, which is unlike anything we've ever seen before. The Sunrise White model we got to go hands-on with at the show feels absolutely surreal, with a super-soft, almost rubbery finish and an ultra thin and light design.

There's more to it, too. The 14.6-inch display has a 97% screen-to-body ratio, and the webcam is stored inside the base of the laptop, so you can attach it magnetically to the top of the screen whenever you need it. What's even cooler is that you can even attach the webcam backwards, so it's pretty versatile.

The laptop comes in both Intel and Snapdragon variants, each with pros and cons. The Snapdragon model will have much better performance, but the Intel version has a much cooler design with that Sunrise White model.

Lenovo Auto Twist

A laptop that... follows you?

Lenovo makes some of the coolest concepts out there, and the company did it yet again at this year's IFA. The Lenovo Auto Twist is a concept laptop that uses video and voice to follow the user around and more more useful. By using the webcam to track the user, the laptop can rotate its display to always be facing them, so it's easier to read information for a presentation, for example.

What's more, the laptop also responds to voice commands. If you say "Hi Twist, open lid", the laptop will open its lid and start following you around. It's like if the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Twist Gen 4 imbued with the tracking of a camera like the Obsbot Tiny 2. Will it ever be a real product? Well, Lenovo has turned some crazy products into things you can buy before, so who knows?

Acer Nitro Blaze 7

Acer finally enters the gaming handheld space

PC gaming handhelds have been coming at us left and right from different manufacturers, and at iFA 2024, Acer finally entered the scene with the Nitro Blaze 7. This new handheld features a 7-inch 144Hz display and it's powered by AMD's Ryzen 8040 series processors, delivering pretty strong performance for gaming on the go while also being fairly efficient.

We got to play with the Nitro Blaze 7 at the show floor, and it feels very well designed, with a very comfortable grip around the controllers, smooth analog sticks, and hall effect analog triggers for extra precision. Gaming handhelds are more relevant than ever, and Acer's first attempt looks very promising.

MSI Claw 8 AI+

The first Intel Lunar Lake gaming handheld

On the topic of gaming handhelds, MSI was also here with what might just be the best gaming handheld on the market, if Intel's performance claims hold true. Indeed, the MSI Clay 8 AI+ is the world's first gaming handheld powered by Intel's Lunar Lake processors, and that's a huge deal.

If you remember, the Intel Core Ultra Series 1 processors already doubled the GPU performance (which is why the original MSI Claw used them), but now, the Series 2 models promise three times the GPU performance of that, on top of being much more efficient. With that kind of performance upgrade, it seems like a given that the MSI Claw 8 AI+ will be the most pwoerful gaming handheld on the market right now, and that's definitely exciting for PC gamers.

IFA 2024 was exceptionally good for computing

Computers are often not a big focus for IFA, but with Intel pushing the Lunar Lake launch forward to tis time frame, we got a lot of good stuff from all major brands. Between the processors themselves, laptops, and some wild concepts, IFA 2024 was a very fun show to follow and attend. But the future is even more exciting, and CES 2025 will be here before you know it, so we're looking forward to that.