Windows 11 vs. Windows 10: Should You Upgrade?

Although it absolutely was leaked forward of your formal announcement, most of the very important details about Windows 11 finished up declared within just an psychological livestream fronted by Microsoft,s Panos Panay. All of the particulars, that is definitely, except for its release date. But now, inside of a site post, the business has unveiled that it's going to be out there from 5 October 2021.

The article clarifies, though, that you simply gained,t necessarily be able to get it on that date: ,Adhering to the incredible learnings from Windows 10, we wish to be certain we are supplying you together with the very best experience. Which means new suitable units are going to be offered the up grade very first., Basically, Microsoft doesn,t desire a repeat on the Dwelling windows 10 rollout where some applications and components basically didn,t function using the new OS and prompted a lot of grief.

This time around, the rollout ,will likely be phased and measured with a focus on quality,. The company says it expects all suitable equipment to be provided the free enhance by mid-2022, and that it's going to use ,intelligence models, that consider hardware, reliability metrics, age of device and other factors. So don,t be surprised if you don,t see a pop-up giving you the option to up grade from Property windows 10 on 5 Oct.

You should, however, start to see laptops and PCs running Property windows 11 start to be sold from that date.

What,s Windows 11 like?

Clearly wanting to avoid upsetting millions by making radical changes (as it ultimately did with Home windows 8) has kept the same basic layout, albeit with a significant redesign. You,ll also find rounded corners everywhere you look and a new centrally positioned Start Menu, while you can return the latter to the side if you,d prefer.

There,s a new widgets panel which can show the weather, stocks, news and other things - seemingly replacing the old Start Menu,s live tiles - and improved grouping and snapping of open Windows so you can focus more easily on what you,re trying to do.

Windows eleven on tablets is much improved thanks to the introduction of gestures and a new on-screen keyboard that much more similar to the one on your phone. You can even install and use Android apps, via the Amazon Appstore.

But while there are lots of visual changes, Windows 11 should be an easy transition from Home windows 10 for most people.

When is Windows 11 coming out?

Initial launch day: 5 October 2021

Free enhance for Windows 10 PCs from early 2022

Early build out there now to Windows Insiders

At the launch event, Microsoft confirmed that Windows eleven would begin rolling out ,this holiday,. The US holiday season typically refers to the period between Thanksgiving in late November and the new Year, but in tech spheres Oct is usually included too.

And as you know if you didn,t skip straight to this section, the official rollout will begin on 5 Oct.

That,s really the day that OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) can begin to launch Windows 11 components. The web site article states that ,in-market products, which are qualified for the enhance are going to be made available it later as part of a phased and measured approach.

In an formal publish, the Windows Twitter account appeared to confirm that Windows 10 users be waiting until 2022 for the free improve:

If you don,t need to wait that long, Microsoft has already released an early build via its Residence windows Insider Program. Anyone with a Dwelling windows 10 sign up to the Beta Channels and get early access. Check out our dedicated guide on how to acquire the home windows eleven beta.

That,s also the only way to obtain House windows 11,s Android app support for the foreseeable future, after Microsoft confirmed it won,t be available at launch on 5 October. It,s one of Home windows 11,s most exciting new features, but you,ll probably now have to wait until 2022.

If you do decide to download an early build, remember that these are usually relatively unstable and prone to more bugs. As a result, most people shouldn,t install them on their main PC.

How much will Dwelling windows 11 cost?

Free for qualified PCs

New components pricing dependent on manufacturer

This is of course one of your biggest questions, but the good news is that it'll be free for qualified PCs. However, Microsoft has updated the components requirements, so it,s not as simple as all Windows 10 gadgets getting Property windows eleven.

Naturally, upgrading from Residence windows 10 won't be the only way to have Windows 11. Once it launches, new laptops and PCs will be running the operating system out of your box, negating the need to have to buy a license separately. It,s impossible to say how each organization will price their components, but expect it to be similar to the equivalent House windows 10 products.

Wasn,t Windows 10 the ,last ever, version of House windows?

That,s what Microsoft said when it introduced Windows 10, yes. But apparently it changed its mind about that. The corporation could have rolled out these changes in the Property windows 10 update, but it chose not to refer back to this statement during the launch event and might be hoping its customers have short memories.

Indeed, based on what we,ve seen so far, House windows eleven still feels too much like a Property windows 10 feature update.

Will my current PC / laptop run House windows eleven?

Microsoft has published a list of minimum hardware requirements:

1GHz dual-core processor

4GB RAM

64GB of storage

UEFI, Secure Boot capable

Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0

Graphics card compatible with DirectX 12

Bigger than 9in display with 720p resolution

Microsoft account internet connection

For more information, check out our separate guide: Will my PC run Windows eleven?

However, it,s not quite as simple as that. Microsoft isn,t enforcing these components requirements during the testing phase, and there,ll still be a way to install the final version of Windows 11 on unsupported PCs.