微软表示，经过数月的研发，Windows 11的响应速度提升了20%；改进后的内存管理机制在配备8GB内存的电脑上效果尤为显著。目前公布的唯一一项实际测试结果显示，Windows 11在配备16GB或更多内存的电脑上确实表现更好，但在配备8GB内存的电脑上则没有明显变化。
Microsoft says months of work have made Windows 11 up to 20% more responsive and that better memory management makes a meaningful difference on PCs with 8GB of RAM. The only published hands-on test found gains on 16GB and larger machines, and none at all on an 8GB PC. Microsoft says Windows 11 is now up to 20% more responsive, and that memory work makes an especially meaningful difference on 8GB PCs.
《The Verge》杂志于周四报道了这一消息。微软Windows体验部门的企业副总裁Navjot Virk在微软发布的官方声明中提到：Windows现在能够在内存中保留更多活跃数据（最多可达2GB），从而避免将这些数据转移到速度较慢的存储设备中。
The one published test of an 8GB machine found no change. The Verge reported the claims on Thursday. Navjot Virk, corporate vice president of Windows experiences, wrote in Microsoft’s post that Windows can keep up to 2GB more active data in memory instead of moving it to slower storage.
新的系统设计使得各种应用程序（如小工具）只有在被打开时才会被加载，Virk称这一改进为配备8GB或更少内存的电脑节省了超过200MB的内存空间。系统中的“开始”菜单、“文件资源管理器”、“搜索”功能以及“截图工具”等组件都得到了优化。
Widgets now load only when opened, which Virk said frees more than 200MB on machines with 8GB or less. Start, File Explorer, Search, Snipping Tool and Edge were all touched. The taskbar can finally sit at the sides or top of a display.
任务栏现在可以设置在屏幕的左侧或顶部；“Windows Hello”登录功能也变得更加快速；在使用特定版本的Windows 11时，AirPods的配对速度提升了15秒。
Windows Hello sign-in is faster, and AirPods pair up to 15 seconds faster, on a different build. The promise is not new.
其实，微软早在8月份就曾承诺会优化Windows系统以适应8GB内存的电脑。当时微软提到了负责内存管理的组件WinUI 3和WebView2。
Pavan Davuluri said in August that Microsoft would shrink Windows to fit 8GB machines, naming the memory allocator, WinUI 3 and WebView2.
微软确实提供了具体的测试数据：将版本26300.9550与版本26200.7628进行对比后，发现系统的响应速度提升了20%（测试内容包括“搜索”、“开始”菜单、右键点击、设置、截图工具和“文件资源管理器”等功能的执行时间）。不过需要注意的是，这些测试并未专门针对内存使用情况进行设计。
Microsoft did publish a baseline. The 20% compares build 26300.9550 against 26200.7628, timing Search, Start, right-click, Settings, Snipping Tool and File Explorer. None of those is a memory test. The reliability half of the plan has a record.
虽然微软在提升系统可靠性方面取得了显著进展（6月份的更新修复了208个漏洞），但该更新也引发了一系列新的问题（例如某些HP和Dell电脑上的BitLocker恢复功能出现了故障）。关于内存使用效率的提升，微软并未提供具体的量化数据；其官方说明仅表示这些改进是基于同一版本系统的优化结果。
June’s update fixed 208 flaws and brought a cascade of bugs, including BitLocker recovery screens on some HP and Dell machines. The memory claims carry no such measurement. Their footnote says only that they rest on improvements in the same build. Windows Latest tested it this month: a 16GB laptop used about 2GB less, and an 8GB PC nothing at all, still at 96%.
所有这些改变的背后，价格因素起到了关键作用。谷歌曾在7月份表示正在重新设计Android系统以降低其对内存的需求，并引用摩根士丹利的预测：到2025年，每GB内存的成本将从目前的12美元降至2.80美元。
Price is why any of this is happening. Google said in July it was reworking Android to need less RAM, citing Morgan Stanley figures of $2.80 per gigabyte in 2025 against $12 now.
内存制造商已将产能转向用于人工智能数据中心的高带宽内存。三星预计要到2028年才能缓解。
Memory makers have moved capacity to high-bandwidth memory for AI data centres. Samsung does not expect relief until 2028.
欧洲是压力显现的地方。欧洲台式电脑第三季度出货量下降约20%，第四季度预计下降近30%。笔记本电脑预计下降20%。
Europe is where the squeeze shows. European desktop shipments fell about 20% in the third quarter, with almost 30% forecast for the fourth. Laptops should drop 20%.
Context发现，当地之所以还有购买，是因为Windows 10支持终止，而非人工智能电脑功能。欧洲人更换机器是因为旧机器坏了。
Context found that what buying there was came from the end of Windows 10 support, not AI PC features. Europeans replaced machines because the old one died.
高德纳预计，到2028年，500美元以下的个人电脑将几乎消失，而美国电脑的平均售价已超过1000美元。微软正针对8GB进行优化，因为它正在成为上限。
Gartner expects the sub-$500 PC to all but disappear by 2028, and the average American machine already sells for more than $1,000. Microsoft is optimising for 8GB because it is becoming the ceiling.