Intel officially discontinued the 7260 series and ended mainstream driver support. While Windows 11 often automatically installs a driver via Windows Update, this generic driver might cause issues like: Low Wi-Fi Speeds Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Bluetooth malfunction
You may see a yellow warning triangle in Device Manager with a message like: or "Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43)" .
Despite the lack of official support, many users have successfully used the final Intel 7260 drivers on Windows 11. Since the 7260 was discontinued before Windows 11's release, the recommended Windows 10 drivers are your best bet. However, you'll need to find them through unofficial channels.
Since the official Intel driver page no longer hosts the files, you'll need to source the correct driver elsewhere. The driver package you are looking for is the final release that supported the 7260 adapter: . This package contains the critical Wi-Fi driver version v18.33.17.1 . intel dual band wireless-ac 7260 driver windows 11
A: Yes, as of 2025, the 18.33.0 driver continues to work on all Windows 11 24H2 builds. However, future updates may deprecate legacy drivers.
Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260 Go to product viewer dialog for this item.
After reboot, check Device Manager:
The Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260 is a legacy wireless network adapter (Wi-Fi 5) that was popular in laptops manufactured between 2013 and 2015. With the release of Windows 11, many users attempting to keep older hardware relevant have encountered significant hurdles getting this card to function correctly.
However, it's wise to view this as a temporary measure. The drivers are frozen in time and will never receive security updates or performance improvements for Windows 11. If you rely on this computer for critical tasks, you may eventually want to consider upgrading to a newer, officially supported wireless adapter for a smoother, more secure, and reliable experience in the long run.
Select and confirm. Your PC will restart within five minutes, fully resetting all virtual network switches and adapters. What to Do If Problems Persist Intel officially discontinued the 7260 series and ended
The 7260 uses a standard PCIe interface and generic Wi-Fi protocols. Windows 11 will still recognize it. The Bad News: The default Microsoft-provided driver (dated 2016) is buggy. You must install Intel’s final legacy driver manually.
A: Version 18.33.0 is the final. Do not attempt to install Bluetooth drivers from newer Intel cards (like AX200); they will fail.