Microsoft told the world that Copilot Plus PCs would change everything.
Then the reviews landed, and the hype machine started making a weird grinding noise.
Here's the dirty secret: those flashy AI features barely exist yet.
Recall, the flagship trick that promised to remember everything you've ever done on your screen, got yanked from launch over security nightmares.
It's still crawling back through testing.
Meanwhile, the "AI Explorer" goodies and image-generation tools are trickling out at a pace that would make a snail check its watch.
So what are you actually getting if you drop $1,000-plus on one of these machines right now?
A nice laptop with a battery that lasts longer, a decent NPU chip, and a Copilot key that mostly opens a chatbot you could already use for free in a browser tab.
That's a keyboard shortcut with a marketing budget.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon X chips are genuinely impressive on efficiency, and the new Intel and AMD options are catching up fast.
If you just want a thin, quiet, all-day laptop, these things deliver.
Redmond sold a future that hasn't shipped, and early buyers are the ones holding the bag while they wait for software that may or may not arrive in a form worth caring about.
And let's talk about that "may or may not." Developers are still figuring out what to build for these NPUs.
Big-name apps that run natively and tap the AI hardware?
The ecosystem is a construction site with a shiny ribbon stretched across the entrance.
If your current laptop is wheezing through Zoom calls and the battery dies before lunch, a Copilot Plus machine is a legit upgrade, and the AI stuff will likely get better over the next year or two.
But buying one TODAY because you want the AI magic is like buying a pool in October.
Let the software catch up, let prices settle, and let Microsoft finish the features it already promised.
The early-adopter tax on this one is steep, and the payoff is a question mark wearing a Copilot key. **Our take:** Copilot Plus isn't a scam, but it's absolutely a beta test you're being asked to fund.
The hardware is solid and the direction makes sense, yet the headline features are still missing in action.
Final Thoughts
Unless you need a new laptop right this second, patience is the genuinely smart upgrade here.