Looks like I may not be getting Windows 11 any time soon. According to BGR:
The best part about Windows 11 is that it’s available free of charge, which means Windows 10 users will be able to update their devices without paying any upgrade fees to Microsoft. However, some people will have to shell out extra cash for Windows 11 because Microsoft has stricter compatibility rules that exclude many older computers from running the new OS.
Microsoft will officially support 8th Gen and newer Intel Core processors and Apollo Lake, and newer Pentium and Celeron processors, reports The Verge. Over on AMD, you’d have to have Ryzen 2000, Ryzen Threadripper 2000, or Epyc 2nd Gen or later to run Windows 11.
Also, Windows 11 now requires a TPS (Trusted Platform Module) of 1.2 support or later as well as UEFI Secure Boot. This should help improve protection against malware and ransomware. And Microsoft did say that Windows 11 will be more secure than ever.
Laptops and PCs without TPM support in BIOS might run into Windows 11 installation issues. David Weston, Microsoft’s director of enterprise and OS security at Microsoft, said that “almost every CPU in the last 5-7 years has TPM.” He advises users to ensure BIOS options for “PTT” on Intel or “PSP fTPM” on AMD are enabled. That certainly doesn’t make it sound like the upgrade will be a user-friendly experience.
If your computer fails to pass the Windows 11 upgrade checker, then your CPU might not be good enough for the new OS and you’ll need to buy a new computer in order to use Microsoft’s free Windows 11 upgrade. On the other hand, if you happen to have an older system that’s already struggling with Windows 10, you should probably consider upgrading anyway.
Weird how flippantly they seem to say "throw away your perfectly capable device just because it's older, and buy a new one." Aren't these the same corporations and people who claim to be concerned about the environment, e-waste, carbon footprints, etc.?
My system is a 2nd Generation i7 built in 2011. I only expected it to "last" 5 years before I'd want to upgrade to a more powerful machine, but to my surprise I'm still very happy with how well Windows 10 performs on it even 10 years later. My only recurring complaint lately is that I have a small 128GB SSD for the OS, and a fairly large, 5TB, but very slow mechanical HDD for everything else. So I wouldn't mind getting a new SSD to help speed up access to some of my more often used apps and games now that 1-2 TB SSDs are fairly affordable.
Do you know if that is also true of Win11 Pro and Enterprise, assuming they keep those versions?
-rjbull
Check out
Microsoft's Windows 11 Specifications. It looks like the answer is... "No, but maybe yes."
- Windows 11 Home edition requires internet connectivity and a Microsoft account to complete device setup on first use.
- Switching a device out of Windows 11 Home in S mode also requires internet connectivity. Learn more about S mode here.
- For all Windows 11 editions, internet access is required to perform updates and to download and take advantage of some features. A Microsoft account is required for some features.
The latest bugbear was Microsoft News appearing on the task bar. I thought it was a program in itself and couldn't find a way to remove it, eventually realising you had to turn it off. But I didn't want it there in the first place.
-rjbull
I actually was pleasantly surprised to see the current weather show up in the tray. I just wish that clicking on it would open the Microsoft Weather app so I could see the forecast, rather than a million pointless news stories and gossip rags I'd never be interested in viewing.
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