New kernels usually improve hardware support, and kernel 7.0 is no exception. But 26.04 also removes things and raises requirements, and that combination creates a short, specific watchlist. If your PC is not on it, relax. If it is, one live test settles everything.
Launch-period hardware trouble is rarely random. It clusters in predictable places: software that depended on the removed X11 session, machines below the new RAM guidance, and peripherals that only ever worked through a vendor's own driver. This page names the categories honestly, explains why each is at risk, and gives the simple test that replaces worry with knowledge.
The biggest structural change in 26.04 is the removal of the GNOME-on-X11 login session. Normal apps survive through XWayland, but tools that are the display session's customers — some remote-desktop servers, screen-sharing tools, automation and testing software, and certain accessibility utilities — historically behaved differently under Wayland.
If your work depends on such a tool, it is the first thing to test in the live session, doing the actual task, not just opening the app. A program launching is not the same as it capturing or controlling the screen correctly.
Canonical raised the recommended RAM to 6 GB for this release, alongside a 2 GHz dual-core CPU and 25 GB of disk. A PC with 4 GB that felt adequate on 24.04 is now officially below the recommended line.
That does not mean 26.04 refuses to run — it means the GNOME 50 desktop plus a modern browser can crowd the memory you have, and swapping will make the machine feel slower than the older release did. On such hardware, the lighter official flavours (covered in the old-PC guide in this series) are usually the smarter 26.04-family choice.
The honest picture is two-sided. Canonical highlights improved NVIDIA behaviour on Wayland in this cycle, and kernel 7.0 carries current driver support. At the same time, driver branch changes are the classic launch-period friction: a card served by an older proprietary branch, or a setup relying on X11-specific configuration, can behave differently until updates settle.
The live USB test answers it: boot, check the display resolution and refresh rate are correct, play a video, and if you use a second monitor, plug it in. Two minutes of testing beats a forum thread of other people's GPUs.
Hardware that works through drivers built into the kernel generally keeps working — kernel 7.0 supports more devices than 6.x did. The risk group is the opposite: printers, scanners and specialty devices whose makers ship their own Linux driver, sometimes built against older system parts.
Cheap GDI-style printers, older multifunction scanners and USB dongles for specific software are the usual suspects. Test the exact device in the live session. If the vendor driver fails on 26.04, that — not the calendar — decides your upgrade date.
Every launch has a small set of WiFi adapters that need a driver fix in the first maintenance updates. This is timing, not conspiracy: hardware quirks surface only when thousands of different laptops install the release.
Two habits protect you. Test WiFi in the live session before installing anything — no network is a stop sign. And keep a phone ready for USB tethering, so a missing WiFi driver never strands a fresh install. Honest bottom line: most hardware is fine on day one; the watchlist exists so the exceptions get tested, not feared.
See how 26.04 behaved on the test PC in the video, then run the same checks on your own hardware.
▶️ Watch Full VideoIn most cases, yes — this cycle includes improved NVIDIA support on Wayland, and the kernel is current. The safe move is a live USB test: confirm resolution, refresh rate, video playback and any second monitor before installing, especially if your card used an older proprietary driver branch.
It may install and run, but Canonical's recommended requirement is now 6 GB of RAM. With 4 GB, the desktop plus a modern browser will feel cramped. On such a PC, a lighter official flavour like Xubuntu or Lubuntu is usually the better choice.
Test it in the live session before upgrading, doing a real print and scan. Vendor drivers are the most common launch-period casualty. If it fails, stay on 24.04 LTS — supported until 2029 — until the vendor or a maintenance update catches up.