2024 is a big year for Microsoft and Windows 11. In the coming months, Microsoft and its partners will launch the first wave of the next-generation Windows on ARM PCs. The company will lead the way with its Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6, which are expected at a special Surface event next month.
Even though Windows on ARM is far from being new (in fact,
Microsoft announced the initiative almost eight years ago), Microsoft is pretty confident that things will be right this time.
The Verge
reports, citing unnamed sources within Microsoft, that the company is sure its ARM-powered PCs will be able to beat
Apple's M3-based MacBook Air, one of the most popular laptops on the market. To showcase the power of the new Windows on ARM PCs, Microsoft plans to host a series of CPU horsepower demos and comparisons with the regular M3 chip.
Microsoft's internal documentation reportedly claims that Windows AI PCs with ARM processors can emulate apps faster than Apple's Rosetta 2 emulation layer (the software thing that makes it possible to run x86 apps on ARM), the area Windows on ARM has been struggling with for many years.
Interestingly, rumors say that Microsoft will not offer the consumer versions of the Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 with Intel processors. Those SKUs will remain business-only, leaving ARM variants for regular users (learn more about the Surface Pro 10 for Business
here and the Surface Laptop 6 for Business
here).
www.neowin.net
