Articles about Windows 11

Microsoft has made many changes in the move from Windows 10 to Windows 11, and not all of them have proved popular. One of the more controversial changes -- at least aesthetically speaking -- is the new-look context menu.

The menu that appears when you right-click on files, folders and the desktop has been given a revamp in Windows 11 and not everyone is happy with it. If you prefer things the way they used to be, there’s a registry hack you can use to tame the context menu.

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Four-hundred-fifty-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 11 has been released this week. Check out Nick's guide on getting Windows 11 right now on your PC, and Wayne's guide on restoring Windows 10, in case you need to go back.

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The roll-out of Windows 11 is now in full swing, and various problems are starting to emerge. There is a list of known issues that Microsoft acknowledges, but there have also been reports of problems with memory usage, performance issues with AMD processors, and reduced gaming performance.

Two of Windows 11's security features -- namely Virtualization-Based Security (VBS) and Hypervisor-Protected Code Integrity (HVCI) security -- have been blamed for some of the performance issues. Here's how to disable VBS so you can see if you can earn yourself a speed boost..

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Want to feel really old? The original Xbox was released nearly 20 years ago! Yes, way back on November 15 of 2001, Microsoft officially joined the console wars, competing with companies like Sony, Nintendo, and Sega. While the Xbox consoles have not been a huge success in Asia, they are wildly popular in the USA. Many people doubted Microsoft could succeed with its gaming consoles, but the Windows 11-maker is still going strong two decades later.

To celebrate the upcoming anniversary of the Xbox brand, Microsoft is launching a very special product that is sure to be a hot commodity this Christmas shopping season -- the 20th Anniversary Special Edition Xbox Wireless Controller. This beautiful controller mixes nostalgic designs with modern hardware to create something truly special.

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Windows 11 is currently rolling out to users with compatible hardware, but if you don't want to wait you can jump the queue. You can even install it on PCs without the TPM 2.0 requirement using this hack. Although it’s early days, a number of users have reported problems with the OS, which is to be expected.

If you upgrade to Windows 11 and encounter problems -- or decide it’s simply not for you -- you might want to go back to Windows 10, and wait until the new OS is a bit less buggy. The process is straightforward enough, although there are some downsides to be aware of.

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Research Vice President with analyst firm Gartner has said that Windows 11 could have been released as a feature update for Windows 10 rather than a whole new version of the operating system.

While Stephen Kleynhans praises the removal of Internet Explorer, the addition of Android support and welcomes what he describes as an "overdue facelift", he feels that releasing this as an upgrade rather than just an update is simple marketing by Microsoft. He also advises business and enterprise uses against rushing into adopting Windows 11 and predicts low usage numbers even by 2023.

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Windows 11 is here! Well, it is for some people. If you’re currently running Windows 10 and you navigate to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update, you’ll have already verified whether your PC meets the system requirements to receive the update.

Assuming it passes muster, Microsoft would like you to wait for the update to be offered to you. But what if you can’t wait, or want to use the opportunity to create a clean install of Windows 11? What options are available to you?

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Reports are coming in about a strange bug in Windows 11 that results in the Windows 10 taskbar being displayed instead of the updated versions. The same issue was reported by Windows Insiders in the build up to the launch of Windows 11, and it seems that Microsoft has not been able to get things fixed.

In addition to problems with the old taskbar showing up, users are also reporting that the Start menu is not working. Microsoft is yet to acknowledge the problems, but workarounds have been uncovered.

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With Windows 11 now publicly available the time has come for problems to start surfacing. We have already had reports of reduced performance in games as well as File Explorer using large amounts of memory; now AMD has issued a warning that Windows 11 users with certain processors can expect reduced performance.

The chipmaker has provided information about "known performance impacts reported on Windows 11 when running compatible AMD processors on certain applications". Affected processors include Ryzen 3, 5, 7, 9 and Threadripper (plus Pro variants), and the impact means that performance is reduced by as much as 15 percent.

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Windows 11 is officially here, but not all new Windows computers will ship with that version of Microsoft's desktop operating system. Understandably, for a little while at least, some machines will still come with Windows 10... they will have the ability to upgrade to Windows 11, however.

Today, ADATA unveils such a laptop under its XPG gaming brand. Called "XENIA 15 KC," it comes with Windows 10 Home, but you can absolutely install Windows 11 when you want to. This gaming notebook is downright drool-worthy. It is powered by a very modern 8-core Intel Core i7 11800H CPU and super-powerful NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 GPU. The other components are impressive as well, including 32GB of DDR4-3200MHz RAM, a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, RGB optical mechanical keyboard, and a 15.6-inch display with 165Hz refresh. It's a beast!

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Although Microsoft would prefer it if people waited to be invited to install Windows 11 on compatible hardware, you can jump the queue now and install it in a number of ways, including by downloading the ISO file, or using the Windows 11 Installation Assistant.

Microsoft has warned against installing Windows 11 on unsupported hardware but -- in the perfect display of the mixed messaging the company seems so adept at delivering when it comes to the new OS -- it’s also revealed the steps you need to take to do exactly that.

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With performance problems, confusing system requirements, high memory usage, and other issues, the launch of Windows 11 has not been as smooth as many people would have hoped. In the build-up to the rollout of the operating system, Microsoft made much of the need for systems to have TPM 2.0 in order to qualify for an upgrade -- but then the company moved the goalposts.

Having previously said that installation on computers without TPM 2.0 would not be possible, Microsoft has since revealed an official workaround that makes it possible to install Windows 11 on incompatible hardware. This is a risk, however, and there is a stark warning that you could cause damage to your PC.

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With Windows 11 now available for more people to download and install, more and more problems are starting to emerge. We've already seen a short list of known issues, and users have already complained of high memory usage by File Explorer.

Another issue that is causing some annoyance is an apparent reduction in gaming performance under Windows 11.  The slowdown is measurable in benchmarks and has been blamed on the Virtualization-Based Security (VBS) and Hypervisor-Protected Code Integrity (HVCI) security features.

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The roll out of Windows 11 started yesterday, and while many people are eager to upgrade as soon as possible, there are plenty of others who want to hold off for a little while. The list of known issues acknowledged by Microsoft may be short, but users who have upgraded to Windows 11 are experiencing other problems.

One such issue sees File Explorer using huge amount of RAM. The problem is being blamed on a memory leak and was initially reported a couple of months ago -- but now more people have access to Windows 11, further reports are coming in confirming the issue.

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Today is October 5, which is particularly significant as it is the official Windows 11 release date. This is even more special as Microsoft's latest desktop operating system isn't just good... it's great. Yes, this is probably the best version of Windows ever, and if you are a Windows user, you should absolutely upgrade if your computer is compatible.

Unfortunately, that is a pretty big "if" this time around. You see, Microsoft is quite strict with the system requirements, meaning many computers will not be compatible or officially supported. Even though Windows 10 will continue to be supported for a while, understandably, some users will want to jump ship immediately knowing their PC has no future in Microsoft's eyes. Thankfully, these users have a wonderful alternative to Windows 11 -- Linux!

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