Articles about Windows 11

Five-hundred-and-ninety-two in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

Microsoft will advertise a selection of apps in the Windows 11 Start menu. The change landed in the latest optional update for Windows 11 and will roll out to all users as part of the May 2024 Patch Day.

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Windows 11's Start menu will soon advertise applications in the recommended section.

Microsoft released a new optional preview update for Windows 11 this week that introduces the feature. The changes it includes will roll out to all Windows 11 devices as part of the May 2024 cumulative security update.

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Microsoft has evolved its approach to warning users about the end of life (EOL) of its Windows operating systems over the years. The methods and techniques used, from Windows XP onwards, have varied, ranging from the polite to the downright aggressive (we're looking at you, Windows 7).

This journey, revealed in a new video, highlights how Microsoft's strategy has shifted to ensure users are aware of when their operating system will no longer receive support, emphasizing the importance of security and system updates and, in some cases, upgrading you against your will without warning (we're still looking at you, Windows 7).

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Five-hundred-and-ninety-one in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

Microsoft claims that it has improved the performance of the Microsoft Store significantly. Product pages, for instance, load 40% faster now than before, according to Microsoft.

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Microsoft plans to phase out support for Windows 10 soon (unless you pay, of course), leaving users with the option to either upgrade to Windows 11 or wait for the anticipated successor, likely to be Windows 12.

Although Microsoft hasn't officially announced that next-gen operating system yet, it has dropped plenty of hints, and there’s a good chance it will come jam-packed with AI functionality, as that is clearly where the operating system -- and the company -- is headed.

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Nvidia may be the AI-focused darling of the technology world nowadays, but that doesn’t mean we should forget about good ol’ AMD. In fact, today, AMD announced the launch of its latest Ryzen PRO 8040 and 8000 Series processors designed for commercial mobile and desktop AI PCs.

The Ryzen PRO 8040 Series, specifically designed for business laptops and mobile workstations, introduces the most advanced x86 processors in AMD’s lineup. These processors are built using the innovative 4nm technology and “Zen 4” architecture, which delivers up to 30% increased performance in demanding applications. The series also features models with integrated AMD RDNA 3 graphics, pushing the limits with up to 72% faster performance and significantly reduced power consumption during video conferencing compared to competitors.

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After almost two-and-a-half years, an issue that prevented some people with Intel 11th Gen Core processors from upgrading to Windows 11 has finally been addressed.

Microsoft has quietly announced that compatibility issues with Intel Smart Sound Technology drivers and Windows 11 have been "resolved externally". Until now, there has been a compatibility hold in place for devices with both an Intel 11th Gen Core processor and certain versions of the Intel SST driver, but now this has been lifted, it is possible for owners of such systems to upgrade to Windows 11.

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In a move which is likely to be greeted with a hostile reception, Microsoft is continuing its obsession with injecting advertising into Windows. The company is using Windows Insiders signed up for Beta Channel to test the controversial addition of ads in the Windows 11 Start menu.

For now, this is a trial which is limited to beta testers in the US, but even if the most negative feedback is forthcoming, it is hard to imagine that Microsoft will back down and not roll out Start menu ads to all Windows 11 users.

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Five-hundred-and-ninety in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

The Moment Update 5 for Windows 11 is finally here for most users. It is included in the April 2024 cumulative security update for the operating system.

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Just about everyone who has used Windows has at some time complained that it is slow. The sluggish performance of Windows 11 -- in particular the Start menu -- has even been noted by an ex-Microsoft developer who worked on the creation of the operating system.

Software developer Andy Young has bemoaned the "comically bad" performance of the Windows 11 Start Menu despite using what would objectively be considered high-end hardware. He is leading calls for Windows "to be as good as it once was".

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While Microsoft releases updates for Windows 11 every month, some are more significant with others. The company has taken to releasing 'moment' updates from time to time, and these are where more interesting changes and additions are to be found.

Earlier this week, Microsoft released the eagerly awaited Moment 5 update for Windows 11 when it unleashed the KB5036893 update on April's Patch Tuesday. But just what is included in Moment 5, and is it worth installing? In short, there's a lot to be found in the update and, yes, it is definitely worth installing now. Let's take a look.

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Windows 11 Moment 5 is now available to everyone. Microsoft has released the KB5036893 update as part of its monthly update schedule, bringing the new Moment 5 features to all users, not just Windows Insiders.

As well as updating Snap Layouts and Copilot, KB5036893 also includes changes to widgets and injects AI features into Photos and Clipchamp. There are also fixes for a huge number of security issues.

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Microsoft has a vision for the look of Windows 11, and it does not want users to deviate from it. This is shown by the fact that the latest version of Windows is by far the least customizable out of the box.

With many people keen to make Windows 11 look like Windows 10, there has been an explosion in the number of third-party tweaking and customization tools; this is something Microsoft is not happy about. With the release of Windows 11 version 24H2 the company is blocking a number of utilities including the popular StartAllBack and ExplorerPatcher.

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Five-hundred-and-eighty-nine in a series. Welcome to this week's overview of the best apps, games and extensions released for Windows 10 and 11 on the Microsoft Store and elsewhere in the past seven days.

Windows 10 customers may extend support by up to three years after the operating system reaches end of support in October 2025. While Microsoft has yet to announce pricing for consumers, it announced that organizations will have to pay $61 in the first year for a regular extension. The price doubles each year, reaching an incredible $427 for the three year period.

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It is time for a new PowerToys release, and with version 0.80.0 Microsoft has a lot in store. Across the suite there are loads of changes and fixes, but there is also what everyone hopes for with a PowerToys update -- new features.

One of the highlights this time around is the arrival of Desired State Configuration support. This is a feature that makes it possible to configure PowerToys using a Winget configuration file. Other new additions include new file type support in the Peek module, and a significant update to the popular FancyZones.

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