- Windows 11 is rumored to get an update early next year
- It might be called the 26H1 update, but Microsoft may avoid that name
- Whatever the case, it’ll be for Snapdragon X2 Elite laptops only – but any features therein will come to all Windows 11 PCs in the 26H2 update
Windows 11 25H2 hasn’t long been on the scene, but already talk has turned to next year’s big update – and the possibility that there could be two major updates for 2026.
At this point, this is just a rumor that Neowin spotted – and even the source of the speculation isn’t sure there will be both a version 26H1 and 26H2 next year – but seemingly there will be a major upgrade for Windows 11 early in 2026.
In a post on YouTube, leaker PhantomOfEarth informs us that this update won’t be for most people. It will only be deployed for Copilot+ PCs with Arm chips. Specifically, we’re told Microsoft will be deploying this new version of Windows 11 alongside the launch of Snapdragon X2 Elite laptops (early in 2026).
According to PhantomOfEarth, “[It looks] like a Windows 11 version 26H1 is about to happen for Snapdragon X2 Elite launch ONLY (this will NOT be releasing to existing PCs, that’ll be 26H2).”
In a further post, PhantomOfEarth clarifies that this new version of Windows 11 is definitely in the works – add salt with this claim, naturally – for those X2 Elite PCs only, but that it might not be called version 26H1.
Although a reference to ’26H1′ does apparently exist, so that’s a sizeable hint this could be happening. Whatever the case, in theory, there’s a big update for Windows 11 due early in 2026, but most Windows 11 PCs won’t get it.
Analysis: an Arm-full of updates – but everyone will get the goodies eventually
For most people, then, the big release for next year will be Windows 11 26H2 as expected.
One reason Microsoft might not name the purported first upgrade for 2026 as 26H1 is that it could make folks feel like they’re missing out on something. Although, on the other hand, such a naming decision might make Snapdragon X2 Elite laptops feel like they’re more on the cutting-edge of Microsoft’s desktop ecosystem, and perhaps help to drive sales (of those upgrading from Windows 10 – there being quite a few holdouts still, myself included for now).
In reality, this isn’t much different from what Microsoft already did in the past with the introduction of the first Snapdragon X laptops. If you remember, these devices received Windows 11 24H2 before everyone else when they were launched in the middle of the year. (24H2 didn’t roll out to all Windows 11 users until October 2024, a few months after the initial Copilot+ PCs began shipping with 24H2 on board).
It’s still a pretty sure bet that Windows 11 26H2 will incorporate all the work in 26H1 (or whatever it’s called) anyway, so all this means is that non-Arm PC owners are just waiting a bit longer for an upgrade (again). Essentially, the early 2026 update for Windows 11 is likely to contain some vital work to ensure the new Snapdragon X2 Elite CPUs work as they should. (Again, in the case of 24H2, that packed some fundamental changes in terms of a new underlying platform for Windows 11, which was necessary for Snapdragon X chips to actually work).
Of course, there’ll be some shiny toys for Snapdragon X2 devices, too, no doubt.
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