Intel Core Ultra Series 3 X9 388H benchmarks are making the rounds, and they paint a rosy picture for Team Blue’s latest laptop processor. We’ve conducted our own testing and can confirm what others are saying — Panther Lake is the real deal. AMD and other competitors are officially on notice.
As we said in our Asus Zenbook Duo (2026) review, the Core Ultra X9 388H is like having the power of a Dodge Charger with the efficiency of a Toyota Prius. The CPU side of things is strong, especially with multi-threaded tasks, while the integrated GPU with its 12 Xe3 cores delivers strong gaming performance. We also saw over 14 hours of battery life, which puts this chip’s efficiency on par with Apple’s M-series silicon.
We still need to test more laptops with the Core Ultra X9 388H to get a fuller picture of what the chip can do. Regardless, early benchmark results make it clear that Intel isn’t messing around. Here’s how the Core Ultra X9 388H stacks up to the competition.
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Geekbench 6 CPU benchmark results
(Image credit: Future)
For this comparison, I’m pitting the Core Ultra X9 388H against the AMD Ryzen Max AI+ and the previous-gen Intel Core Ultra 9 288V. Just keep in mind that these results are based on benchmarks performed on different machines, so don’t take them as gospel.
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Processor
Intel Core Ultra 9 388H
AMD Ryzen Max AI+
Intel Core Ultra 9 288V
Single-core
3031
2966
2853
Multi-core
17283
17574
11125
As you can see, the Core Ultra 9 388H either matches or outperforms its rivals. The numbers against the AMD Ryzen Max AI+ are particularly interesting since we tested that processor inside a Framework Desktop, which has a higher TDP than the Asus Zenbook Duo. Meanwhile, the last-gen Core Ultra 9 288V (the flagship Lunar Lake chip) is completely outclassed here.
Gaming benchmarks
(Image credit: Future)
Now for the fun part: gaming performance. We don’t usually benchmark graphically demanding games on non-gaming laptops. But given Intel’s claims about Panther Lake’s gaming prowess, we ran our usual slate of titles on the Zenbook Duo.
For this section, I also tossed in our benchmark results for the Acer Nitro V 15 featuring an RTX 4050 mobile GPU to see how Panther Lake stacks up against a budget-friendly gaming laptop. Here are the results at 1080p.
Swipe to scroll horizontallyGaming benchmarks @ 1080p
Processor
Intel Core Ultra 9 388H
AMD Ryzen Max AI+
Nvidia RTX 4050
Cyberpunk 2077
16 fps
22 fps
21 fps
Shadow of the Tomb Raider
48 fps
87 fps
70 fps
Total War: Warhammer III
55 fps
102
60 fps
The tests above were performed using each title’s in-game benchmarking tools with the graphics set to Ultra. While the Asus Zenbook Duo trailed its rivals, it wasn’t completely outclassed.
Keep in mind that you’ll get much better results at 1080p on High settings with XeSS or frame generation enabled. Still, these are impressive results given the intensity of our benchmarks.
Efficiency
(Image credit: Future)
Intel claimed Panther Lake has the performance of Arrow Lake and the efficiency of Lunar Lake. As my colleague Jason England noted in his Zenbook Duo review, Intel might have actually undersold the efficiency, as battery life makes a major leap forward.
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Laptop
Time (hours:mins)
Asus Zenbook Duo (Core Ultra 9 388H)
14:23
Asus Zenbook Duo (Core Ultra 9 285H)
8:39
Asus ROG Flow Z13 (Ryzen Max AI 385+)
10:16
In our battery life test, which involves continuous web surfing over Wi-Fi with the display set to 150 nits, the Zenbook Duo lasted for 14 hours and 23 minutes. That’s nearly six hours longer than the previous Zenbook Duo with Lunar Lake (8:39) and significantly longer than the Asus ROG Flow Z13 with the AMD Ryzen Max AI 385+ (10:16).
Note: The battery life results for both Zenbook Duos are from single-screen mode. While the 11 hours and 13 minutes we recorded in dual-screen mode is obviously lower, it’s still a strong showing for Panther Lake.
Outlook
This is just a preliminary look at the Intel Core Ultra 9 388H, and we’ll be conducting more benchmarks as more Panther Lake laptops arrive at the Tom’s Guide lab. Right now, Intel is clearly moving in the right direction. Team Blue isn’t out of the fight yet, and I’m stoked to see how its rivals react. Stay tuned for more!
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