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Qualcomm Unveils Snapdragon C to Drive $300 Windows Laptops

The Kryo‑based chip brings an integrated NPU and battery‑first design to entry‑level Windows machines while excluding Microsoft’s Copilot+ features.

Overview

  • Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon C platform on May 28, 2026, pitching it as an entry‑tier Windows on Arm option meant to enable laptops in the roughly $300–$400 range.
  • Acer revealed the first Snapdragon C device, the Aspire Go 15, showing configurations with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD but giving no firm price or ship date.
  • Snapdragon C uses mobile‑derived Kryo CPU cores, includes an on‑device NPU for local AI tasks, supports recent Windows 11 builds, and will not meet Microsoft’s Copilot+ requirements.
  • Major PC makers including HP and Lenovo are reported to be developing Snapdragon C systems, and Intel’s lower‑cost Wildcat Lake (Core Series 3) chips are positioned as direct competitors.
  • To hit the low price targets vendors are trading off peak performance and premium materials for long battery life, modest RAM/storage limits, and simpler chassis and displays, which will affect real‑world user experience and upgrade options.