Is Windows 11 Better Than 10

Warren noted that he rarely used the Widgets panel or Microsoft Teams, citing that he preferred the weather display that later versions of Windows 10 offered, and didn't use Teams to communicate with his friends and family. He also acknowledged the expansion of Microsoft Store to include more "traditional" desktop applications. Overall, he concluded that "I wouldn't rush out to upgrade to Windows 11, but I also wouldn't avoid it. After all, Windows 11 still feels familiar and underneath all the UI changes, it's the same Windows we've had for decades." Cunningham concluded that "as I've dug into and learned its ins and outs for this review, I've warmed to it more", but argued that the OS was facing similar "public perception" issues to Windows Vista and Windows 8. Internet Explorer has been replaced by the Chromium-based Microsoft Edge as the default web browser, and Microsoft Teams is integrated into the Windows shell. Microsoft also announced plans to allow more flexibility in software that can be distributed via Microsoft Store, and to support Android apps on Windows 11 .

A redesigned user interface is present frequently throughout the operating system, building upon Fluent Design System; translucency, shadows, a new color palette, and rounded geometry are prevalent throughout the UI. In October 2019, Microsoft announced "Windows 10X", a future edition of Windows 10 designed exclusively for dual-touchscreen devices such as the then-upcoming Surface Neo. Legacy Windows applications would also be required to run in "containers" to ensure performance and power optimization.

Microsoft stated that it planned to release Windows 10X devices by the end of 2020. Windows 11 includes several new features, such as improved snapping, Dynamic Refresh Rate, and Direct Storage, but the biggest change the operating system brings could be something that people never see. A recent Microsoft Mechanics video breaks down the performance improvements included in Windows 11. Compared to devices running Windows 10 on the same hardware, PCs running Windows 11 should have better app performance, improved battery life, and quicker resume from sleep times.

Microsoft improved the multitasking experience on Windows 11 with its new Snap Layouts feature. While you get six handy Snap Layout options in Windows 11, Windows 11 SE simplifies this by offering only two Snap Layouts. They let you use two apps side-by-side on your laptop at the same time. Speaking of app snapping, it's also worth mentioning that all apps launch in fullscreen mode by default in Windows 11 SE. That seems right because most Windows 11 SE-backed budget laptops will ship with smaller screens.

Outside is where the obvious changes are, building on the Sun Valley visual refresh and bringing in elements of the now-abandoned Windows 10X release. We've seen some of it in a leaked early build, but as Microsoft noted before the event, there's a lot more to Windows 11 than that version. The new taskbar and start menu are obvious changes, as is the Widgets view that extends the News and Weather tools recently added to Windows 10. It continues the visual updates with new icons, an improved dark mode, and better notifications. Windows 11 SE was announced on November 9, 2021, as an edition exclusively for low-end devices sold in the education market, and a successor to Windows 10 S. It is bundled with applications such as Microsoft Office for Microsoft 365, Minecraft Education Edition, and Flipgrid, while OneDrive is used to save files by default.

Windows 11 SE does not include Microsoft Store; third-party software is provisioned or installed by administrators. In January 2021, it was reported that a job listing referring to a "sweeping visual rejuvenation of Windows" had been posted by Microsoft. A visual refresh for Windows, developed under the codename "Sun Valley", was reportedly set to re-design the system's user interface. The new Windows OS takes cues from its smartphone relatives, simplifying basic settings changes and making them easy to access. One click or tap in the corner of your taskbar to pull up a control panel similar to Apple's Control Center, which lets you futz with settings like brightness and volume, connectivity, and more.

Windows apps now feature more aesthetically pleasing curved corners, and the Settings app has more options to change how you interact with the OS thanks to more accessibility features. New sounds and audio cues are available for blind users, and themes for people with light sensitivity or those working long hours have been updated to be easier on the eyes. Windows 11 is finally here, featuring an updated UI, better support for virtual desktops, improved window snapping, and a wealth of other changes.

For details on what is new, check out our article outlining some of the more exciting features. However, a new OS can also improve, or in some cases hinder the performance of existing applications. Instead of the somewhat clunky tiling system found in the previous iteration of the iconic taskbar, Windows 11 peels away the cruft and gives you what you need. In my case, it's a list of recently accessed files along with a tray of pinned apps for easy access, with a universal search bar at the top for easy web (or on-device) searching. The clean lines and use of widgets to display information like weather, news, and photos is a welcome change of pace from the busy screen in Windows 10.

Windows 11 and Chrome OS have strikingly similar user interfaces starting with their centered taskbar application icons, which you'll quickly notice the moment you login to either operating system. Both operating systems can also run Android apps, integrate with Android phones and support tablet mode. Depends on how you feel about some of the biggest changes coming to Microsoft's primary OS.

I haven't noticed any big performance improvements or problems running games on Windows 11. It feels exactly the same as Windows 10 for gaming, as far as I can tell. PC Gamer has noticed that Windows 11's new Virtualization-Based Security can impact gaming performance by as much as a 28 percent drop in frame rates. It's a setting that Microsoft wants PC builders to enable by default on new Windows 11 PCs, so while it won't impact people upgrading or clean installs, new gaming PCs could ship with VBS enabled. The second feature here is DirectStorage that promises to greatly enhance the gaming experience by cutting downloading times of games.

This appears to be an extension of the attempts being made by Microsoft with the Xbox Series X/S consoles where it has used clever tricks to greatly improve load times of games. However, do note that this feature will only be available on select games that support DirectStorage API on a PC with an NVMe SSD and a GPU that supports DirectX12 Ultimate. Apart from this, Windows 11 also offers what Microsoft calls the Desktops feature that gives the user the ability to set up and manage multiple iterations of your desktop. It's a simple and easy feature to use, which when gotten used greatly improves ease of use. This can be accessed by going to this new icon that all Windows users of the past will instantly notice on their home screens. This Task View button sits alongside the Start button and looks like contrasting windows over one another.

Hover your pointer over it, and you'll see a small preview of all the desktops you have open, as well as the option to set up a new one. Live Tiles are gone in favour of a snapshot view of pinned apps, recently accessed files as well as the option to restart or shutdown. The good news is if a Start button in the centre is too much to handle, you can shift it back to the left-hand traditional view. What likely won't bother Windows traditionalists is that app corners, menus and File Explorer windows have been rounded off in Windows 11 rather than the typical square look of Windows 10. If you'd like to test out the bleeding edge version of Ubuntu set to be released next year, check it out.

It will feature Gnome 42, which takes some hints from Elementary OS. There's a system-wide dark style preference and day and night scheduling options. There are new power profiles available to help save battery on laptops. It has a new multitasking panel with hot corners to help you navigate your desktop in a fast, productive manner.

The taskbar's buttons are center-aligned by default, and it is permanently pinned to the bottom edge of the screen; it cannot be moved to the top, left, or right edges of the screen as in previous versions of Windows. The "Widgets" button on the taskbar displays a panel with Microsoft Start, a news aggregator with personalized stories and content (expanding upon the "news and interests" panel introduced in later builds of Windows 10). Microsoft Teams is similarly integrated with the taskbar, with a pop-up showing a list of recent conversations. The settings app is redesigned with many other components such as file explorer etc.

Most of the UI elements have been uncluttered and rest of the option are hidden under this 'more options' in the ribbon. But not all elements are redesigned, for eg all legacy and advanced programs are still the same for eg, registry editor or services or control panel ( icons have changed but that's it). The improved Snap Layout and Snap Group features let you easily manage and resize windows on your monitor, as well as keep apps you need to use simultaneously grouped together. Hover your mouse over the window maximize button on the app of your choice to see the layout options, ranging from a side-by-side layout to a four-app grid. I've been running Windows 11 on my laptop and I enjoy the experience there, but on my desktop with three monitors, I'm holding off on upgrading.

The way I use my laptop is very different from my desktop PC, so Windows 11 fits just fine in my lap. I regularly use full-screen apps and games on my main PC, so not being able to see the time and date across multiple monitors is annoying. Coupled with the taskbar changes that prevent drag and drop, I feel less productive using Windows 11 on my main PC. Next to the Search icon is Task View, which hasn't changed much from Windows 10. Task View and theAlt + Tab functionality still overlap considerably.

TheAlt + Tab functionality shows all of the windows that you have open, including the option to include the most recent 3 or 5 tabs within Edge. Microsoft introduced Task View in Windows 10 as a way to shift between arrangements of various windowed apps on laptops and other single-screen devices. It's still an excellent tool for working on the road, but you might not find it as useful when your PC has access to multiple physical monitors. Microsoft has said the new OS will include performance improvements, including faster logins with Windows Hello, faster web browsing and faster wake from sleep mode. Windows Hello is a biometrics-based technology that lets Windows 10 users authenticate secure access to their devices, apps and networks with iris scans, facial recognition or fingerprints.

For what feels like the longest time, Windows operating systems have had a taskbar down the bottom that has a Start button on the left. Windows 11 takes a MacOS-like approach to its position with a Start button in the middle of the screen and apps around it. Initially, this design logic was intended for the cancelled Windows 10X, meant to make the interface easier to navigate for dual-screen devices. It also cleans up the entire tray area, removing the toolbar items in the far right. For the past six years, Windows users have watched on the sidelines as the tech landscape changed at a breakneck pace.

When Microsoft's sporadic "feature updates" did arrive, they were often plagued with bugs, some so damaging the updates were suspended. And yet, despite its rocky path, Windows 10 will go down as a success, a stopgap to the mess its predecessors left behind. It brought back the traditional desktop interface, gave PC owners reliable performance, and popularized touchscreen displays and hybrid 2-in-1 laptops. One of the biggest changes coming announced for Windows 11 this summer was the addition of Android app support. With Windows 11, Android would be able to run on the desktop, in a separate window that you could use with Snap Layouts and as well as with touch, keyboard and mouse – every way you interact with Windows.

And you would be able add apps to the taskbar and start menu, just like other programs, to make them part of your workflow from day-to-day. As familiar as Windows 11 might be, there's still a lot that's changed. The programs you know are all still available and supported, but they'll be joined by Android apps, running as windowed programs on the desktop (though not right away — Microsoft's still fine-tuning that feature). Your favorite multitasking functions get upgraded with new Snap Layouts, and virtual desktops are getting better with more flexibility and features. The Terminal app, a replacement for the command prompt with richer features, is now installed by default.

It is a useful application, so Microsoft is right to include it. The Terminal offers tabbed windows and a drop-down option for PowerShell as well as other command-line interfaces including Linux distributions if installed. Snap Assist is a new feature which lets users form custom layouts, meaning an arrangement of windows snapped to edges or corners of the screen. These arrangements form snap groups, and a group can be recovered by hovering over one the apps in that group on the taskbar, and selecting the group.

For those who wish to install the system on a current computer, the Windows 11 upgrade is free—for now at least. (Windows 10 was free, too, for the first year.) You just need to make sure your PC meets the minimum system requirements. Microsoft has released a small app called PC Help Check to assist with confirming you have what you need.

If everything checks out, it's simply a matter of launching Windows Update, clicking "Check for updates," then following the installation prompts. No matter what, we recommend waiting to upgrade to Windows 11 until the applications you use have official support. And if you are thinking about upgrading to Windows 11 anyway, we would heavily caution you against doing so at this time. In most cases, we saw worse performance in Windows 11, sometimes very minor, sometimes significant. As is typical with an OS launch, there will be many performance improvements and bug fixes coming from both Microsoft and the software developers in the coming weeks and months.

Do it all with the perfect balance of sleek design, speed, immersive audio and significantly longer battery life than before. Capture ideas and use your favorite Microsoft 365 applications on the vibrant PixelSense touchscreen display in 13.5-inch or 15-inch models. Choose between 11th Gen Intel Core processors or AMD Ryzen Mobile Processors with Radeon Graphics Microsoft Surface Edition.

Click the link above to learn more about Surface Laptop 4, including available color finishes and material options. As part of the minimum system requirements, Windows 11 only runs on devices with a Trusted Platform Module 2.0 security coprocessor. According to Microsoft, the TPM 2.0 coprocessor is a "critical building block" for protection against firmware and hardware attacks.

In addition, Microsoft now requires devices with Windows 11 to include virtualization-based security , hypervisor-protected code integrity , and Secure Boot built-in and enabled by default. The operating system also features hardware-enforced stack protection for supported Intel and AMD processors for protection against zero-day exploits. Windows 11, the first major Windows release since 2015, builds upon its predecessor by revamping the user interface to follow Microsoft's new Fluent Design guidelines. The redesign, which focuses on ease of use and flexibility, comes alongside new productivity and social features and updates to security and accessibility, addressing some of the deficiencies of Windows 10. So even if you want to upgrade, you'll need to check Microsoft's PC Health Check app to see if your PC will even support Windows 11.

You may need to enable TPM 2.0 from your PC's BIOS settings to get Secure Boot working, or perhaps even switch how Windows is installed on your storage if you manually installed the OS. The hardware requirements have changed a lot here, but the PC Health Check app should guide you on anything that needs addressing. Microsoft's new app store is another welcome improvement in Windows 11. The Microsoft Store has sucked for years on Windows, and it barely listed any of the apps you actually wanted to install on a PC.

That's starting to change in Windows 11, thanks to Microsoft making some big alterations. Microsoft is finally allowing developers to submit any application to the store, enabling third-party browsers and regular traditional desktop apps to appear in search results. Fortunately, theFile Explorer, where your documents, photos, videos, and downloads are stored, got a new look. The top bar was simplified with a "new folder" option on the left side. Also, icons in the top bar are no longer stacked on top of each other, resulting in a much cleaner interface.

I just wish Microsoft took this opportunity to improve the functionality of the app; moving things around and accessing your files works exactly as it did before. The millions of Windows users who don't use Teams can remove the icon, but they'll need to do so from Settings — there is no simple right-click, unpin option for pre-installed apps. Those who do use the video conferencing software can launch video calls, host chats, or bring up the full Teams app. I'm sure some will find this convenient, but most Windows 11 users will wonder why something they'll never touch is featured so prominently on the desktop.

The Snap Layouts feature has been updated with several grid-based layout options that let you set up your open programs just how you like. There's a lightly refreshed user interface, with a brighter, more modern design; a simplified Start menu that's similar to the one used in the Chrome OS; and playful sound effects. No longer a wasteland, a reinvigorated Microsoft Store now hosts genuinely popular apps like Adobe Acrobat Reader, Discord, the Epic Games Store, Firefox, and Zoom.