Last year marked a pivotal moment in the tech landscape with the introduction of Microsoft’s Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs. My curiosity led me to purchase the most affordable option available, the Surface Pro 11, which quickly became an integral part of my daily workflow for six months. This experience prompted me to explore further, leading to the acquisition of two additional devices featuring Arm-based processors: a Surface Laptop and a Dell XPS 13, both powered by Snapdragon X Elite chips. With over a year of hands-on experience, I have gained valuable insights into their capabilities and limitations.
While Microsoft and its original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partners have effectively marketed these devices to consumers, businesses remain cautious. My own experiences suggest that this hesitance may be warranted. The evolution of Windows on Arm has been remarkable, especially for tasks centered around Office applications and web-based services, where users will find no significant productivity hurdles. Additionally, these machines maintain a pleasantly cool temperature and offer impressive battery longevity.
Many of the initial shortcomings I encountered have been addressed by third-party developers. Notably, popular applications like Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom now have Arm-native versions, while beta x86 versions of After Effects, Premiere Pro, Audition, and Acrobat have shown considerable improvement thanks to advancements in the emulation subsystem.
1. Your backup software might not work
For anyone relying on a PC for critical tasks, a robust backup strategy is essential. Windows provides basic backup tools, but serious users often turn to third-party software for comprehensive solutions. These applications can create system images that allow for a complete restoration of your PC, including Windows, applications, and settings, in the event of a failure.
Typically, I save these system images to a fast external SSD via USB Type-C. However, when I attempted to restore an image on my Arm-powered devices, I discovered a significant limitation: the external drive containing my backup was inaccessible during the recovery process. This issue persisted across various recovery media, including those created by reputable backup software like Macrium Reflect X Home and MSP360 Backup. It became clear after extensive troubleshooting that this is a known limitation of the Windows Recovery Environment on Arm platforms.
While there are workarounds—such as saving backup images to a network location or cloud service—these solutions complicate what should be a straightforward process. For Arm-based PCs, the standard recovery method involves reinstalling Windows, reconfiguring applications and settings, and restoring data files from the cloud, as local USB recovery options are not viable.
2. You probably can’t install Linux
Linux enthusiasts often tout the flexibility of running their favorite operating system on any Intel-based PC. However, this is not the case for Windows PCs equipped with Snapdragon processors. My attempt to install Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13 9345 revealed a lack of readily available installation images for the latest LTS version tailored for Arm architecture. Although Ubuntu 25.10 recently introduced an Arm version, it remains a cutting-edge option fraught with challenges, as noted by discussions within the Ubuntu Community.
For hobbyists eager for a project, this may provide an engaging challenge. However, for those simply looking to complete work tasks, an Intel-based PC remains the more practical choice.
3. Don’t expect to do any serious gaming
While I am not an avid gamer, my limited experience with PC gaming has highlighted the performance constraints of Arm-based devices. The Snapdragon processors come with integrated graphics processing units (GPUs) that do not compete with the dedicated GPUs from Nvidia and AMD found in x64 devices.
A recent survey by PC Gamer posed the question of whether Snapdragon chips are suitable for gaming, ultimately concluding that while they may improve in the future, current expectations should be tempered. They noted that these processors are capable of running games akin to those on smartphones or tablets, but high-performance gaming is not feasible.
PCMag.com’s Matthew Buzzi echoed this sentiment, suggesting that while gaming performance on Snapdragon devices is “acceptable” for low-end and mid-level games, those seeking to play demanding titles at high frame rates should prepare for disappointment.
