Recall seems to be working on 4GB RAM, that's 1/4th of min. requirement revealed by Microsoft
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Key notes
- Windows 11’s Recall feature lets you search your screen activity history but requires specific ARM processors (currently).
- Tech enthusiasts are backporting Recall to other Windows on ARM devices, even low-powered ones.
- x86 machines might require additional work due to software compatibility issues.
Microsoft’s new “Recall” feature for Windows 11, unveiled last week at the Surface event. Recall lets users create a searchable history of their screen activity by taking periodic screenshots. While intriguing, this functionality is currently locked to specific hardware – Copilot+ PCs with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Series processors.
The good news? Tech enthusiasts are already working on making Recall accessible on other Windows on ARM devices. Albacore, a developer known online as @thebookisclosed, successfully got Recall running on a low-powered PC with just a Snapdragon 7cx processor and 4GB of RAM. This is impressive, considering the official minimum requirement is 16GB of RAM.
However, the 7cx chip lacks a dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU) typically used for this feature as Microsoft revealed.
Despite this, Albacore reports Recall functions “surprisingly well” on their machine. They even plan to release a detailed guide soon, allowing Surface Pro X and similar ARM device owners to try Recall themselves.
For users on traditional x86-based machines, the path is a bit trickier. With enough effort from the community, Recall might eventually be runnable on x86 machines as well.
While Microsoft assures all processing happens on-device and no data leaves your PC, some users are wary of the constant screenshotting. Thankfully, Windows 11 offers options to exclude specific apps or disable Recall entirely.
The future of Recall looks bright. While enthusiasts are paving the way for broader accessibility, hardware limitations might affect performance for some users.
