I Tested 3 Snapdragon X Windows Laptops This Year - And Found 3 Big Issues

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• PCs built pinch Arm processors activity good pinch wide productivity apps.
• Backup package whitethorn beryllium incapable to reconstruct from an outer drive.
• Gamers and hobbyists who want to dual-boot Linux will tally into problems. 

Last year, erstwhile Microsoft released its first Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs, I bought nan cheapest 1 I could find. To my surprise, that Surface Pro 11 turned retired to beryllium a tin summation to my postulation of computing devices, and I utilized it arsenic my mundane activity instrumentality for astir six months.

Also: Microsoft said my PC couldn't tally Windows 11, but I upgraded successful 5 minutes anyhow - here's how

Since then, I've acquired 2 much PCs that person Arm-based processors alternatively of nan accepted Intel CPU -- a Surface Laptop and a Dell XPS 13, some equipped pinch Snapdragon X Elite chips. With much than a year's acquisition nether my belt, I've sewage a coagulated knowing of what these machines tin do and, much importantly, wherever they autumn short.

Microsoft and its OEM partners person been successful astatine pitching these caller devices to consumers, but businesses person been much leery. My acquisition says immoderate of that be aware is justified.

Windows connected Arm has matured importantly successful nan past fewer years, and if your mundane activity involves creating and editing Office documents and moving pinch web-based services, you'll brushwood nary productivity issues. As a bonus, you'll get a instrumentality that seldom (if ever) gets much than mildly warm, and artillery life will beryllium a pleasant surprise.

Several of nan shortcomings I identified past twelvemonth person been flooded acknowledgment to nan activity of third-party package developers. These days, you should person nary problem uncovering a VPN that will tally connected an Arm-based Windows PC -- I chose Proton VPN, but location are plentifulness of different options available.

Also: Windows 11 upgrade not working? Try my 4 favourite troubleshooting tricks

Third-party developers are getting into nan act, too. Adobe's astir important imaginative apps, for illustration Photoshop and Lightroom, are disposable successful Arm-native versions. There are beta x86 versions for After Effects, Premiere Pro, Audition, and Acrobat that tally conscionable fine, particularly aft caller improvements to nan emulation subsystem.

But not everything is sunshine and rainbows successful Arm-land. I've tally into 3 important compatibility issues that whitethorn beryllium a dealbreaker for you, depending connected what you expect from your PC. Here's what to watch retired for.

1. Your backup package mightiness not work

If you ain a PC and usage it for thing important, you request a backup plan. Windows has an assortment of basal backup tools, but if you're superior astir preventing information disasters, you request to move to third-party software.

Those apps tin backmost up files and folders to section drives aliases nan cloud, but nan slayer characteristic for immoderate backup app is its expertise to create a strategy image that you tin usage to re-create your PC's full contents -- Windows, apps, and settings -- aft an incident. If you suffer a disk nonaccomplishment aliases your laptop is stolen, you get a replacement PC, reconstruct nan latest backup image, and resume correct wherever you near off.

Also: How a strategy snapshot tin prevention you erstwhile your OS goes awry - create 1 today

I typically prevention those backup images to a accelerated outer SSD, connected via USB Type-C. If thing goes wrong, aliases I conscionable want to commencement fresh, I footwear from a betterment thrust created by nan backup software, past reconstruct nan image from nan outer drive.

But erstwhile I tried that regular connected my Arm-powered PCs, a unusual point happened: After I started up utilizing nan betterment media, nan outer thrust containing my strategy image wasn't accessible. That was existent pinch a generic Windows betterment thrust and was besides nan lawsuit pinch betterment drives created by Macrium Reflect X Home and MSP360 Backup. (Acronis TrueImage, different reliable third-party backup utility, is not yet disposable successful an Arm edition.)

I tried everything I could deliberation of to make that outer thrust accessible, but thing worked. It took days of moving pinch tech support for backup package developers and PC manufacturers to observe that it's a known shortcoming of nan Windows Recovery Environment connected Arm platforms.

Also: The champion unreality retention services: Expert tested

There are workarounds, including redeeming nan backup image to a web location aliases to a unreality service, and past utilizing backup media that tin link to that web location for nan reconstruct step. But that adds complexity to a process that should beryllium arsenic elemental arsenic possible.

For an Arm-based PC, nan modular betterment process is to reconstruct Windows, reinstall each apps and settings, and past reconstruct information files (usually by connecting to nan unreality work wherever they're stored). Recovering from a strategy image connected a section USB thrust isn't an option.

2. You astir apt can't instal Linux

As Linux advocates will happily punctual you, immoderate Intel-based PC that tin tally Windows tin apt tally their favourite open-source operating system. If you get tired of Windows, aliases if Microsoft abandons support for your Windows version, you tin switch it pinch Linux. You tin moreover group up a dual-boot PC to move effortlessly betwixt those 2 environments.

But don't expect to do that connected a Windows PC pinch a Snapdragon processor. As I discovered erstwhile I tried to instal Ubuntu Linux connected nan Dell XPS 13 9345, there's nary readily disposable installation image of nan latest LTS type for Arm. Ubuntu 25.10 was conscionable released successful mid-October and includes an Arm version, but that is simply a bleeding-edge option, arsenic nan comments connected nan Ubuntu Community Discourse server for this distro make clear.

Also: The champion Linux laptops: Expert tested for students, hobbyists, and pros

(If it's immoderate consolation, nan challenges of installing Linux connected Apple Silicon are apparently moreover much daunting.)

If you're a hobbyist and looking for a subject project, this will support you engaged for months. But if you conscionable want to get immoderate activity done, instrumentality pinch an Intel-based PC.

3. Don't expect to do immoderate superior gaming

Full disclosure up front: I americium not a gamer, and my only modern acquisition pinch PC gaming is an occasional convention pinch Microsoft Solitaire. But moreover successful that lowbrow world, I tin show that Arm-based PCs struggle pinch nan graphical challenges of gameplay.

The problem? Those Snapdragon PCs person a built-in graphics processing portion (GPU) that simply can't compete pinch nan dedicated GPUs from Nvidia and AMD that are disposable connected x64 devices.

The bully folks astatine PC Gamer surveyed nan scenery successful early 2025, asking nan question "Are Snapdragon chips immoderate bully for gaming?" Their reply was a disappointing "Well, possibly 1 day." They caution, "Don't spell expecting 4K aliases precocious framework rates from analyzable 3D games. ... [T]he caller procreation of Arm-based processors are perfectly tin of moving games, successful nan aforesaid measurement that your smartphone aliases tablet is."

Also: I saw nan early of Windows PCs - and it whitethorn yet beryllium clip to ditch my MacBook

PCMag.com's Matthew Buzzi ran done a much elaborate group of tests, concluding that gaming capacity is "acceptable" if you're consenting to little your expectations and your settings. "If you're nan type to play games connected your 1 general-purpose laptop and are eyeing a Snapdragon Copilot+ PC, low-end and mid-level gaming is imaginable connected these chips," he concluded. However, if you expect to play demanding games astatine 60 frames per second, hole to beryllium disappointed.

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