Windows 11 - Is it worth it?
Generally speaking, Windows 11 is worth the update for most people. It comes with a lot of new features, performance improvements, and design changes. The biggest is the design changes and that will be the hardest thing for most people to get used to.
There isn’t a whole lot of risk in upgrading to Windows 11 either. The process of downgrading back to your previous Windows version is fairly easy.
Why is upgrading Windows so important?
Microsoft has discontinued support for operating systems older than Windows 10 and that means those versions are not being updated or improved anymore. So in turn, they become more vulnerable to malware, and other security risks. Windows 10 is still being supported so no worry there but one day it will likely be in the same boat as Windows 8, 7, XP, etc.
Operating system updates are a good thing for your PC and will help you more than hurt you but I have always believed that you as the user carry a lot of responsibility as well. These are just things to keep in mind. As an IT Professional, I still recommend being on latest versions of Windows but you are not 100% safe with just that.
New hardware and software is generally designed to work the best on the latest operating systems so these are pros to upgrade. One thing to note is sometimes older software you may use will not get an update to work on the newer versions for a while so be sure to confirm your software will work before you upgrade. Usually a quick Google search can tell you that.
What are the differences between Windows 10 and 11?
If you’ve ever used Mac OS, Windows 11 definitely took inspiration from it in it’s visual design. Windows 11 feels and looks very Mac like which can be a good and bad thing depending on the user. I generally don’t like Mac OS so Windows 11 for me visually is not the best but for you it may be different.
The design is arguably cleaner and the colors are pleasant.
The most controversial change is the start menu and taskbar are now in the center of the screen. After some backlash Microsoft added the option to move them back to the left side but it still feels a little off in my opinion. Either way, the ability to move it is appreciated.
Windows 11 lets you set up virtual desktops, allowing you to toggle between multiple desktops at once and have many different software and apps open at once and separated to your liking. You could have one desktop for your work, another for personal and another for the school work, etc. This was possible to do in Windows 10 but wasn’t as easy to use. Windows 11 has made the feature more seamless to use right away.
You can now user Android apps through the Microsoft Store and with Windows 11 you can now.
Windows 11 now has some features that the new Xbox consoles have such as Auto HDR and Direct Storage. Anything that makes gaming on PC easier and better is a win for me so this is good.
Widgets are generally better than Windows 10 and if widgets are your thing they are useful here.
Windows 11 has a new snap layouts feature that lets you snap multiple apps to different size grid layouts on the screen The snap layouts use a visual popup where you can choose what layout you want to have your open programs in be in. Just hover the mouse over the maximize button of an app or press Windows+Z while an app is open.
A personal one for me is with Windows 11 notepad has a dark mode option. I am very pro dark mode and anything that’s easier on my eyes is welcome
Windows 10
Windows 11
Upgrading can be a pain, depending on your hardware.
A lot of users have complained about the hardware requirements for Windows 11. A quick example is my personal gaming is not “Windows 11 ready” according to the requirements. I have an AMD Ryzen 9 3900X, 32GB of DDR4 3200Mhz RAM, an NVME SSD, and a RTX 3070.
The need for a TPM security chip is where most people will lose out, which even with my specs above, is why I do not meet the requirements. I do understand the usefulness of a TPM chip but to push the entirety of Windows users worldwide to require one is a stretch in my opinion. Of course any new PC purchased with Windows 11 installed will have one but there are millions and millions of existing PCs that won’t make the cut because of it.
On the topic of new PCs, I do think there really is no reason to buy a new one that has Windows 10 vs 11. Unless you have specific circumstances that require Windows 10 because of software or specific hardware that only has Windows 10 drivers you should go for PCs running Windows 11.
Windows 11 will one day take over completely and Windows 10 will phase out of support just like every other Windows version before it. Right now upgrading your current PC or pulling the trigger on a new PC with Windows 11 installed is something worth doing in my opinion.
Thanks for reading - M