GoKawiilFacepalm: Microsoft launched the more affordable Surface Pro 12 and Surface Laptop 8 last month, with prices starting at $849. The new models feature lower-end configurations than their flagship counterparts, including an older Snapdragon chipset and just 8GB of RAM instead of 16GB. Reviews of the new devices are now in, and, as expected, 8GB of memory is simply not enough to run Windows 11 smoothly.
According to The Verge, 8GB of memory works mostly fine for basic tasks such as web browsing, text editing, and video streaming on YouTube and other streaming platforms. However, the laptop would hang or freeze "for several seconds" whenever someone joined a video call on Microsoft Teams.
The report noted that the laptop struggled to handle the video stream even though it was not running any demanding workloads in the background. At the time, it only had about 10 Chrome tabs open, along with the Slack and Signal apps. The laptop also froze randomly several times a day while working in Google Docs, even when no Teams calls or video streams were running in the background.
Windows Task Manager reported that the device was using around 6.7GB of its 7.6GB of available memory most of the time. Rebooting the PC with no unnecessary startup apps running in the background reduced memory usage to around 4.2GB, but opening around half a dozen Chrome tabs increased it to roughly 5.5GB.
The review suggests that Microsoft has not optimized Windows 11 well enough to make it run reliably on 8GB of RAM, despite promising to reduce the operating system's default memory footprint as part of its Windows K2 initiative. Windows 11 technically requires a minimum of 4GB of RAM, but users have long complained that even 8GB is nowhere near enough for consistently smooth performance.
For years, Microsoft recommended 16GB of memory as the baseline for a smooth Windows 11 experience. However, in June, the company changed its stance with the launch of new 8GB Surface devices amid a severe memory shortage that has driven hardware prices sharply higher in recent months.
The updated Surface Laptop page on the Microsoft Store describes 8GB of RAM as "great for everyday use like browsing, streaming, schoolwork, and productivity apps." The 16GB recommendation is no longer mentioned, although the company notes that an additional 8GB of memory is required to access Copilot+ AI features.