Microsoft adds welcome performance improvements for Snapdragon X Plus and Snapdragon X Elite chipsets with new Windows 11 build

It seems that Microsoft could soon offer improved ARM emulation support across its ARM product stack. Ultimately, ARM chipset adoption within Windows started slowly, thanks to the limited volume of devices released sporting anything other than x86-based processors. However, the introduction of Snapdragon X Plus and Snapdragon X Elite chipsets earlier this year has quickened the pace of ARM architecture integration within Windows 11.

In short, ARM performance on Windows has already improved markedly since the days of the Surface Pro X. However, it still lags behind what Apple has achieved with Rosetta 2, which has served as its bridge between its Intel and Apple M series generations. Seemingly, the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview represents another step change in ARM performance, albeit less so than previous software upgrades.

Starting with Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27744, it is now possible to combine ARM chipsets with AVX, AVX2, BMI, FMA, and F16C extensions. For now, this is only true of 64-bit software; by contrast, 32-bit software misses out on such advancements. Nonetheless, the new Insider Preview should provide support for Premiere Pro 25 on devices like the Surface Laptop 7 (curr. $899.99 on Amazon). Theoretically, the added extension support should bring improved gaming performance in some cases too, although the extent to which remains to be seen at this stage.