The new Surface Pro, Surface Laptop, and other devices with Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon X processors are about to hit store shelves later this month. The initial number of devices is a bit limited, but do not fret—more ARM-powered Windows PCs are coming later this Summer.
WinFuture reports that Microsoft, Qualcomm, and PC manufacturers are already preparing to launch a second wave of Copilot+ PCs somewhere in August or early September of the current year.
The main focus of the next wave of Copilot+ PCs will be the business segment. For now, all Snapdragon X-powered computers cater to “regular customers,” with Microsoft offering business editions of its Surface devices with “traditional” Intel chips. Later this Summer, we should see the first Copilot+ PCs for commercial customers.
Some of those business-oriented PCs could arrive in new device form factors. At Computex 2024, Qualcomm showed a teaser of what is to come, which included not just tablets and laptops but also mini-PCs and all-in-ones.
While the appeal of Copilot+ PC is clear to your average Joe, Microsoft will have to try harder to convince businesses that Windows on ARM is now a real thing that is worth investing in. These computers promise fantastic battery life, advanced AI features (some are a bit controversial), and solid performance. However, app compatibility is still a big question even despite Microsoft’s big promises in its reworked app emulation.
Still, popular developers are joining or have already joined the initiative with their ARM-optimized applications, so the app gap is slowly disappearing. It will be interesting to see the first Copilot+ PCs for business customers and how Microsoft will promote them against “traditional” x86 devices.
Of course, Intel and AMD are not going to sit and watch Qualcomm steal their market; they are preparing their chips with NPUs and features that should rival the best of what Qualcomm currently offers.