Microsoft confirms Windows 11 26H1 will be for Arm devices only at launch — Snapdragon X2-powered devices officially shipping with 26H1

Source: Tom’s Hardware

Update Details

Microsoft is switching gears with its update model for 2026 and is offering a first‑half‑of‑the‑year update for Windows 11 for the first time since 2021. The trillion‑dollar software giant confirmed in a Windows IT Pro blog post that the newly released Windows 11 26H1 update is designed to only support devices featuring “new silicon.” Devices running Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 ARM SoCs are the only devices that support 26H1 for the time being.

Windows 11 26H1 isn’t an ordinary update; Microsoft also revealed that 26H1 runs on a different (newer) codebase than Windows 11 25H2, codenamed Bromine. Because of this code disparity, devices running 26H1 will be stuck on that version for the foreseeable future and won’t be able to upgrade to Windows 11 26H2 when it debuts later this year. However, Microsoft confirmed that 26H1 devices will have “a path to update in a future Windows release,” indicating that the existing Germanium builds of Windows (24H2/25H2) will likely be updated to Bromine, probably next year. Microsoft has already ruled out swapping to Bromine for 26H2.