Windows 11
Windows 11 is a major version of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft that was announced on June 24, 2021, and is the successor to Windows 10, which was released in 2015. Windows 11 was released on October 5, 2021, as a free upgrade via Windows Update for eligible devices running Windows 10.
Windows 11 features
- New Start menu and taskbar design
- Widgets mean there's lots of scope for customisation
- Snap groups enable you to set up your screen how you want
Windows 11 features various interface tweaks including a new Start menu that looks more like an app launcher, more rounded corners, snap controls that let you pin a window to a spot in your screen (and snap groups), a new Widgets area and icon in the taskbar and a new Windows setup experience.
Snap groups and Snap layouts are particularly cool - enabling you to have greater flexibility and choice over how you set up your display with multiple windows. Windows can now be arranged in different ways, while Windows will remember your layouts so you can easily get back to them in future. Windows 11 will also remember how you laid out your windows on an external display and give you access to that layout when you re-dock.
Many icons have been updated, too, giving everything a fresh feel compared to Windows 10. However, in terms of functionality, it's not a huge leap on from Windows 10 - more an iteration.
The key design change is the new Start menu which you can see above. The taskbar icons are now centralised (you can move them back if you want). The Start menu also shows you your most recently touched files.
The new Widgets bar - which you can resize - is essentially the replacement for the Start menu live tiles from Windows 10, enabling personalised information such as relevant news stories to be delivered. There should be a lot of different options here come launch as developers will also be able to contribute.
On tablets, snapped Windows change orientation if you move to portrait from landscape. Touch targets have also been made larger so it's easier to use for touch.
Android apps will also now be able to be installed on Windows 11 via the Microsoft Store which itself will be redesigned. The apps will come from the Amazon Appstore, so there won't be quite the range that you'd get on Google Play. It's been reported that this process won't be easy since you will need to sign in to an Amazon account to download it first.
Microsoft Teams will, however, be baked into the operating system it seems, seemingly now being preferred to the officially forgotten Skype.
For gaming, Windows 11 supports Auto HDR from Xbox Series X which adds HDR to games built for DirectX 11 or later.
Microsoft wants to position Windows as a platform for other stuff more than ever. Microsoft says it will welcome any type of app to the store - not just 'native' store apps even if developers use their own ways of taking customer payments.
Interestingly there are a bunch of features missing from Windows 11 which we've detailed in a separate feature but these include Live Tiles - replaced by the Widgets sidebar - Tablet Mode, Timeline and Cortana being front and centre. There are also a bunch of other apps no longer present and these include the old Internet Explorer.
