Copilot PCs struggle to run games

[Da King]

https://www.mactrast.com/2024/09/micros ... -pc-games/

"The Copilot+ PCs are powered by Arm-based Qualcomm Snapdragon chips that include the CPU, GPU, and a Neural Processing Unit. By using an Arm chips in the place of Intel processors, Microsoft’s PCs now into some of the same problems faced by users of Apple’s Macs with Apple Silicon, such as an inability to run popular PC games designed for the x86 chip architecture. Approximately 15 percent of PC laptop users are gamers."

LOLOL. This is hilarious. Intel must be ROFLing right now.

This is such a bad look for Microsoft.

"Hey, we are making PCs that specialize in running AI! We call them Copilot+ PCs!"

"Unfortunately, you cant play 1/2 your games on them."

"So yeah, now you need two PCs... one to do AI things on, and one to play games on."

What a clusterfuck. Nice job, Microsoft.

(I almost put this in the "Great Moments in Computer Programming" thread, but thought it deserved its own topic)

[Jizaboz]

Ha wow yeah so don’t see how that will fly with typical gamer types. I mainly use my Mac for work, but it did annoy me when they rolled out the 64 but because it killed things I had used for years such as WINE.

[Da King]

Call me stupid, but I'm guessing the 15% of PC users that are "gamers" also have a heavy intersection with those who would be interested in using Copilot. I'm guessing this affects a lot of people.

[Tdarcos]

The ARM processor is a RISC chip as opposed to X64 which is a CISC chip. With ARM having fewer instructions, the wiring on the chip and the number of transistors is reduced, so a smaller chip die can be used. This reduces power drain which makes ARM chips a better choice for power-limited devices, like portable devices or laptop PCs.

Since AAA desktop PC games typically run "on the bleeding edge" they require as fast a processor as they can get, which means the program probably can't be recompiled to release on ARM.

It's a trade-off, lower power consumption, but x86/x64 apps won't run on it. If all you do is office work or using a browser, an ARM-based microcomputer may be a good fit. Firefox and Libre Office/Open Office have versions for it.

[Da King]

"Average Joe" who just wants to buy a computer to run Windows doesn't understand all that.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Do they LOOK nice, at least??

[Tdarcos]

"Average Joe" who just wants to buy a computer to run Windows doesn't understand all that.

A simpler analogy, one I learned through unfortunate experience: "You can't put 10W40 motor oil in a car whose engine is designed for 5W30, and want the motor to last more than a few days."

[AArdvark]

Did you get a flat tire?

[RealNC]

This is such a bad look for Microsoft.

I'm not sure people buy ARM laptops for gaming. The ARM-based Chromebooks aren't a bad look for Google either.

[Casual Observer]

"Average Joe" who just wants to buy a computer to run Windows doesn't understand all that.

A simpler analogy, one I learned through unfortunate experience: "You can't put 10W40 motor oil in a car whose engine is designed for 5W30, and want the motor to last more than a few days."

That is NOT what killed your engine.

[Jizaboz]

"Average Joe" who just wants to buy a computer to run Windows doesn't understand all that.

A simpler analogy, one I learned through unfortunate experience: "You can't put 10W40 motor oil in a car whose engine is designed for 5W30, and want the motor to last more than a few days."

That is NOT what killed your engine.

Lol

[Da King]

This is such a bad look for Microsoft.

I'm not sure people buy ARM laptops for gaming. The ARM-based Chromebooks aren't a bad look for Google either.

"Average Joe" doesn't buy an ARM laptop. He probably doesn't even know Intel vs AMD.

He buys a Windows laptop. Or a Macbook. Or a Chromebook. He buys by operating system.

Now, if he wants a Windows laptop, he has to declare upfront what his long-term use case is for that laptop.

Terrible.

[Jizaboz]

Yup, completely true.

[Casual Observer]

A simpler analogy, one I learned through unfortunate experience: "You can't put 10W40 motor oil in a car whose engine is designed for 5W30, and want the motor to last more than a few days."

That is NOT what killed your engine.

Lol

This was commander's car before he put in the wrong oil.


Seriously commander, the wrong viscosity of oil will not kill your engine in a few days. You just forgot to check it and fill it up.

[Flack]

My kneejerk reaction to this story was to say welp, people need to do their research. Obvs, the story here is "people bought the wrong tool for the job and are now whining about it."

That being said, I went to Best Buy's website and typed in CoPilot+ laptop. The first one that comes up is a Microsoft Surface Pro for $2,099. Although it does say Snapdragon X Elite in the title, I'm guessing that doesn't clue most regular consumers into what's under the hood. It's got a terabyte SSD drive, 32GB of RAM, and a 13" OLED screen. By all accounts a fairly solid laptop.

Down under "highlights" it has the following features listed: "High quality content (games, movies)" and "Superior display for gaming and streaming". There's nothing to say that it's not 100% compatible with every other modern Windows PC so... yeah, I'm a bit swayed. This does seem like an issue.

Also, the original article says one issue is that "anticheating software can't be ported to this processor" which... I've seen Doom running on a toaster so I'm pretty sure there's a smart teenager out there who could figure it out.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/microsoft- ... Id=6582838

[Da King]

This will take a year or so before it starts getting any widespread media attention. People dont upgrade computer like they do phones... its a longer upgrade cycle, it'll take longer for those laptops to get into gen pop. And people dont know what AI offers yet, so they wont be buying AI-optimized computers. Eventually this will get out, adn the shit WILL hit the fan. Buckle up, Microsoft. Its not your fault, but its coming.

[(ᵕ˵ ૩ᵕ)━☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ]

Also, the original article says one issue is that "anticheating software can't be ported to this processor" which... I've seen Doom running on a toaster so I'm pretty sure there's a smart teenager out there who could figure it out.

I think they're likely referring to Denuva and or BattlEye with the latter being Windows level malware root kit "cheat detection" that is currently plaguing Steam deck / Linux users as Rockstar is now using it for GTA V Online.