CheckMag | Tried and tested: Does Windows 11 24H2 provide a performance boost for older Windows on ARM laptops?

The Windows 11 on Arm devices that we have reviewed here at Notebookcheck include: 

• Robo & Kala TW220 2-in-1 OLED (12.6 in, 2-in-1, Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3)
• Microsoft Surface Pro 9 ARM (13 in, 2-in-1, Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3)
• Asus ExpertBook B3 B3000 (10.5 in, 2-in-1, Snapdragon 7c)
• Acer Aspire 1 A114-61 (14 in, Snapdragon 7c)
• Samsung Galaxy Book Go (14 in, Snapdragon 7c Gen 2)
• HP EliteBook Folio 13.5 (13.5 in, 2-in-1, Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3)
• Samsung Galaxy Book S (13.3 in, Snapdragon 8cx)
• Samsung Galaxy Book2 Go (14 in, Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3)

The Samsung Galaxy Book2 Go, a 14-inch subnotebook from 2023, is our test model. Here, Samsung uses a passively cooled Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3 with eight CPU cores (4P, 4E), which meets the requirements of simple office tasks and internet surfing. Together with 128 GB of UFS storage and 4 GB of RAM (LPDDR4, onboard, not expandable), it doesn't exactly offer stellar performance.

The advantages of the slim subnotebook lie elsewhere: it runs silently (no fan on board), offers very long battery life and has a 5G/LTE modem along with navigation systems (GPS, Glonass, Beidou, Galileo) on board.

The device is generally faster and more responsive than under Windows 11 23H2, but of course does not reach the speeds of a conventional Windows on Arm device. The results of the x86 benchmarks are often on par, but the emulator ("Prism") definitely runs better in some areas. For example, Cinebench R20 and R23 deliver 10% better results. Overall, the Galaxy Book gets a small performance boost that is worthwhile. After all, Windows 11 24H2 is free.

However, not all performance-improving measures introduced with the 2024 update of Windows 11 are available. For example, Auto SR (Automatic Super Resolution), Windows' own upscaling feature for video gaming, is lacking. The Samsung notebook simply does not meet the hardware requirements.

We copied the operating system image of Windows 11 24H2 onto a USB stick and then initiated an upgrade using Windows 11 23H2. Following the installation, the computer crashed with the infamous blue screen of death and the installation process automatically rolled back the upgrade. A subsequent second installation attempt proved successful.

Following installation, the next obstacle popped up: The device manager reported a GPU problem, and the WiFi module and 5G modem were not recognized. This meant that no connection to the internet could be established. Two WiFi sticks that we tried plugging in would not function due to missing drivers (x64 Windows 11 comes with the appropriate drivers). We had more luck with a USB to Ethernet adapter, which ultimately enabled us to set up an internet connection via cable.

After letting the Windows update function do its work, the GPU worked perfectly, and the WiFi module and 5G modem were recognized and set up.