Tuxedo suspends Linux laptop plans with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite SoC

Tuxedo teased a new ARM notebook that's powered by the 12-core Snapdragon X Elite SoC in 2024. The laptop would run on Linux, which would've made it unique given that all the other systems powered by Qualcomm's PC SoCs are Windows on ARM (WoA) devices.

However, after 18 months of work, Tuxedo has shared that the brand is putting a hold on the project as Linux with Snapdragon X Elite SoC is "less suitable than expected." The company shares that many of the strong points of these SoCs are not evident on Linux (Windows-powered 2024 Microsoft Surface Pro curr. $899.99 on Amazon).

For example, Tuxedo mentions that long battery life, something that Qualcomm boasts about for Windows on ARM, "were not achieved under Linux." The company also shares that many of the key functions, such as BIOS updates under Linux, were also missing on the architecture.

Another key factor that Tuxedo considered is that the Snapdragon X Elite SoCs are now two years old, and Qualcomm has already announced the successors. Putting more time and effort into the last-gen processors wouldn't make sense, but the good part is that the company didn't fully abandon the project.

As the announcement states, if Tuxedo is capable of reusing a "significant portion" of the work put on the Snapdragon X Elite, the team will resume working with the Snapdragon X2 Elite SoCs. Of course, Qualcomm's support will play an important role in this case.

The announcement further reveals that all the work that Tuxedo has put into the project will be public. This will eventually allow the community to benefit from the time and effort that the team has put in so far.