Microsoft Obliges Windows PC Maker Manufacturers To Migrate All Ssds By 2023: Report

According to the report, Microsoft plans to make it compulsory for computer manufacturers to migrate from hard disk drives (HDDs) to solid state drives (SSDs) for Windows 11 computers by 2023. The announced move by the software giant is expected to increase PC prices as Manufacturers will have to spend more on choosing SSDs to replace traditional rotating hard drives. However, the switch helps users achieve improved performance. A large number of Windows laptops now have an SSD for booting and an HDD for multiple storage.

Tom’s Hardware says Microsoft makers are pushing for their Windows 11 PCs to stop using HDDs as their primary storage and instead switch to SSDs, citing a powerful letter from Trendfocus for storage.

The exact date of the transfer has not yet been announced. However, trend analyst John Chen told the site that Microsoft had originally planned that it would be an emergency this year, although it would now be launched in the second half of next year.

The manufacturers reportedly agreed with Microsoft to take action, although Chen said “things are still going well.”

It is important to note that the current list of hardware requirements for Windows 11 does not specifically include the SSD as a required component for operating system installation. It states 64GB of storage as a minimum requirement for installing the latest version of Windows. However, Microsoft points out that users need an SSD to obtain DirectStorage and Windows Subsystem for Android.

All the leading computer manufacturers, including HP, Dell, Lenovo and Acer, have several Windows laptops that include solid state drives – along with standard hard drives for storage. But at the same time, there are cheaper models that have an HDD as their only storage option. Some models have eMMC storage, which helps manufacturers sell options on a small budget.

Switching to SSDs via HDDs will add some additional costs that computer manufacturers are likely to pass on to customers by increasing the price of their laptops to some extent.

In today’s market, the price of a 1TB HDD is close to a standard 256GB SSD. This means that if the PC manufacturer has to switch from HDD to SSD on their laptop, users will get less storage space. On the other hand, it is necessary to increase the cost of producing a particular notebook model in order to fit the storage space of its hard disk version.

Although SSDs are more expensive than HDDs, SSD operating costs are lower than HDDs in the long run because the former requires less power and cooling. It also helps provide higher read / write speeds than traditional rotary drives.

Apple’s competitor in recent years has been in its line of MacBooks and Macs with all SSDs.

As Ars Technica points out, it is likely that the announced requirement will not first restrict users in installing Windows 11 on PCs and laptops with HDDs, even if computer manufacturers will not be able to sell computers with rotating disks. However, it is not clear whether Microsoft will make the SSD requirement mandatory for all laptops or limit it to one part. It is also unclear whether the measure is primarily limited to certain markets or whether it applies at global level.

The Gadgets 360 turned to Microsoft to comment on the development, and the spokesman said it “had nothing more” to share in a comment quoted by Tom’s Hardware. However, the comment stated that the company “now has nothing to share on this topic.