I'm absolutely sick of Microsoft's Windows 11 24H2 update, as it's now causing Bluetooth and webcam issues

Angry businessman destroying his desk and laptop with a baseball bat

(Image credit: Stokkete / Shutterstock)

Microsoft's Windows 11 24H2 update continues to affect PC users, with new Bluetooth and webcam issues
Windows is failing to detect webcam and has audio playback issues on Bluetooth audio devices
The latest KB5050009 (24H2) and KB5050021 (23H2) builds appear to be responsible

It's not a secret that Microsoft's Windows 11 24H2 has been a massive problem for plenty of PC users, with bugs and functionality issues present across the board, which has more recently affected gamers - and now, it looks like a new set of issues have arrived to cause more frustrations.

As reported by Windows Latest, the most recent 24H2 KB5050009 build is leaving users with webcams that aren't being detected and Bluetooth audio devices no longer working even when connected to a system. I can corroborate this last point, as Windows 11 shows Bluetooth audio devices as connected, but without any audio, leaving headphones and more useless for the time being.

Windows Latest claims states that this audio issue occurs on both KB5050009 (24H2) and KB5050021 (23H2), along with USB DAC ports not working with the latter.

The only fix for the Bluetooth issue (as of now) is uninstalling the recent update, while the webcam problems reportedly require a reinstallation of Windows 11. Considering the effort it takes for both supposed fixes, it might be better to wait for Microsoft to address the matter with a patch - but who knows if that won't introduce new issues as well.

The biggest problem here is that it can be hard to diagnose some of the reported issues - there’s an abundance of different PC setups, with different applications installed which could be responsible for some bugs. In this case, it appears that it's indeed a widespread issue (notably with webcams), with users of Microsoft's Feedback Hub voicing their complaints.

A Windows 11 laptop sitting on a desk in front of a window — (Image credit: Shutterstock / Melnikov Dmitriy)

Alright, it's time to stick with SteamOS via Bazzite for now...

If Windows 11 24H2's update breaking multiple games wasn't bad enough already, the Bluetooth issues have taken matters to a new level of frustration. Since I use Windows 11 primarily for gaming, this has hit me - and audio playback on Bluetooth devices isn't the only issue I've run into, as the taskbar and quick settings both become unresponsive (even after pressing the Windows key), forcing me to restart the system.

This isn't ideal for gaming or even general usage, especially when coupled with random slowdowns and stutters in multiple games - Ubisoft's hand was forced to update its Assassin's Creed games that were facing constant crashes. It's already a pain having to deal with PC ports and figuring out what might be the cause behind occasional stutters and more, and 24H2 has added to this.

Until these problems are fixed, I feel like I need another operating system to run my games on. Since Bazzite (and Valve's SteamOS) are far more suitable to use on a handheld gaming PC, I would be cautious about installing it on a desktop PC - and I've only tested Bazzite on the Asus ROG Ally, but if it means I have to use my handheld over my powerful desktop machine while Microsoft puts these issues to bed, then so be it.