I have just replaced my laptop due to cessation of Windows 10 support. Went into a well-known laptop seller hoping to get good advice, and specified use of Zwift software as a requirement. I ended up with a good spec device, but after many hours of trying to install Zwift in vain, finally discovered that Zwift software doesn’t support ARM CPU’s (yet), in this case Snapdragon X. No particular complaint here regarding poor advice in shop etc (‘let the buyer beware’), but obviously disappointing. I’m loathe to bin the new laptop as all other functionality is great. Two points here: 1) let Zwift users be aware of the apparent issues with this CPU type and 2): a question for Zwift - will their technology catch up with this CPU type soon ? (it does appear to be the way of the future). Meanwhile I’ll have to bash on with my old device on Zwift. Apologies if I’ve offended any of the tech savvy folk out there, but all this CPU stuff has been a big learning curve for me. Any knowledge on the subject will be appreciated.
I wouldn’t even try to run Zwift on a laptop. I have a dedicated Windows 11 Pro PC set-up and it is only used for Zwift.
My office laptop was used for pure testing purposes to see what the GTX1650 was capable of displaying in 4K-2160 to try and evaluate what GPU was needed for 120 fps.
This is not helpful advice. I do sometimes run Zwift on a laptop and it’s fine. Not even a very expensive one - it’s a Macbook Air.
They do mention this about these processors not being supported:
Also in a forum post:
If you really need to run Zwift on a better machine then I’d think about seeing if the new one can be returned and find one with a supported processor. That’s a real pain but the only thing I could suggest especially if your current setup is barely coping.
Unless you want to spend more money (also not great) and buy something dedicated like a M4 Mac Mini (which runs Zwift really well), you just need a screen to connect it to. You could look at one from the Apple Refurbished site if they have any, that’s a possibility. A friend got one to replace a failing old windows PC which was just too slow for the basics and for the money it was superb.
It was so good I ended up getting one as well to run Zwift on. If anything happens with it I have AppleCare+ for it. It sits in the corner and connects to a wall mounted TV via HDMI taking minimal space.
Okay, I will take this advice on board. Ironically my old laptop - please don’t ask for tech details - has run Zwift with no problems for the last four years. But given this latest experience with new laptop, maybe it’s time to change tack. Thanks for reply.
Thanks. I only found the Zwift advice on supported devices after buying the ARM laptop, so no complaints about Zwift, just naivety on my part, assuming that Zwift would work on any up to date device (I did tell the salesperson about Zwift usage but he obviously doesn’t know the tech limitations…). For now I’ll continue with my old HP which does work fine. Thanks for the advice.
No problems. These salespeople don’t often know and often just want to sell a computer. 
You can still use your former PC, ending of support doesn’t mean Windows 10 won’t work anymore.
If you can return the Snapdragon machine that’s the best option if you want a better solution for running Zwift. Your best laptop option for running Zwift would be a MacBook, but if you prefer Windows then I recommend getting something like a mid-range gaming laptop with an Nvidia GPU.
I don’t know what your old laptop is, but whatever it is you do have the option to install Windows 11 on it if you want to do that. You can create Windows 11 install media using Rufus that will bypass the hardware requirements. There is no benefit to running Zwift on Windows 11 vs Windows 10, but if you feel the need, that will do it.
I just checked the refurbished site on Apple and there were no Mac Mini listed - at least here in the US.
I run a dedicated Zwift setup with the Mac Mini M2. It gets the High game profile according to TrainerDX, which is good enough for these 60+ year old eyes.
Another option for dedicated Zwift machine is the AppleTV. Not the best, but it is a decent option, regardless of what some may say.
Just got to keep watching.
Mind you it is very cheap anyway at new prices. An M4 with 512GB storage would be perfect for normal use, enough storage for future use, adequate RAM and a very reasonable price. They are pretty quick too.
It used to be a joke with entry level Mac offerings that they had 8GB ram and you paid a fortune to upgrade to what was useful, now they give 16GB by default, that’s great.
I have used Apple TV and it’s in no way comparable to a Mac Mini, despite the size similarities. Mac Mini is a fully featured computer. I went away from Apple TV because of its limitations.
I have a M4 as my main desktop. It’s a 256GB model, more than enough. I have 140GB free.
I used to use AppleTV for Zwift also. Went to a Win10 for a while, and then the M2.
Thanks to All for your replies - all helpful and increasing my (so far limited) knowledge of matters IT. I’d not heard of ‘Rufus’ before, and that looks interesting. Yes the reason for a new laptop was driven by Windows 10 ‘obsolescence’, and my old HP apparently unable to support W11. All that said, there is something ’nice’ about a new laptop, even though I missed the Zwift limitations. I’ll check out the various suggestions/advice given (all appreciated), and maybe see you on Zwift sometime….
I wonder what it is with that laptop that prevents it from supporting Windows 11.
I use W11 Pro for Workstations on a Mac Pro 2019 (Intel Xeon W3275M) and that doesn’t have the TPM 2.0 enabled by Apple, but I could use a workaround to install W11, probably similar to the way mentioned above.
Another way is this:
eBay!!! Also the M2 model was sold with both the M2 CPU and the M2 Pro, and the latter gets the Ultra profile. Personally as a non-gamer I am happy with either. Even the M1 mini is OK, gets High.
Only thing I would mention is to make sure what you buy is eligible for AppleCare+. That’s a small extra cost but a great peace of mind.
I also have a Win11 in a VM on my MacMini M4 using UTM - it shows as ARM architecture. ARM architecture uses firmware TPM, rather than the separate TPM chip that Intel processors use - at least that’s the way I understand it.
While it is possible to install Zwift on a snapdragon laptop (have it installed on my surface pro with snapdragon x plus) and it does start it really isn’t usable as it gets unstable very fast and ends up crashing.
My solution is an old android tablet specifically for zwift, macbooks and all are also an option but a decent android tablet is a very cheap and workable solution (I just don’t get the fanciest graphics, but don’t really care about that myself).
In the meantime I just hope Zwift will add proper support for windows arm devices, but not getting my hopes up…