Recently, Microsoft held an event to launch a new version of Windows to succeed Windows 10, Windows 11. Windows 11 brings a few interface changes (new Start Menu, corner windows …) following some features like Snap layout, built-in Microsoft Teams, enhanced gaming experience, and especially the ability to run Android apps.
You will immediately notice that Windows 11 features a new Start menu and a Start button placed in the middle of the taskbar. This user interface appears to be very similar to the one we first saw with Windows 10X, a project originally aimed at dual-screen devices, but was eventually canceled. Some of the UI improvements in Windows 10X will appear in Windows 11.
The new Start menu removes the Live Tiles introduced from Windows 8 and adopts the typical launcher in Chrome OS or Android. It has apps, a recent documents section, and a search interface. Much of the interface is clearly influenced by macOS and Chrome OS, Windows 11 has rounded corners as we’ve seen in both Android and iOS.
“The team is obsessed with every detail,” says Windows director Panos Panay. Windows 11 also includes new dark and light modes, which are a lot nicer than what we’ve seen in Windows today.
However, a problem that many users face with Windows 11 is the relatively strict hardware requirements of this operating system. According to the initial information posted by Microsoft, besides the basic requirements such as dual-core 1Ghz 64-bit chip, 4GB RAM, 64GB hard drive… Windows 11 also requires a TPM 1.2 security chip.
Unfortunately, not all CPUs or motherboards have this chip built-in. Therefore, many users have expressed disappointment when their PC, which is still using Windows 10 very well, cannot upgrade to Windows 11.
But, not stopping there, Microsoft recently corrected its hardware requirements after only 1 day of publication. “The original information contained errors and has been corrected by us,” a Microsoft representative told The Verge.
It was thought that Microsoft would have a “loose” move to please users, but the opposite happened. Specifically, Windows 11 will require a TPM 2.0 chip, an upgraded version of TPM 1.2. TPM 2.0 was first announced at the end of 2014, but has only appeared on PC in the last few years.
According to the list from Microsoft, only 8th generation Intel chips and above, or AMD Ryzen 2000 series or later, will officially support Windows 11. According to the tweet of Steve Dispensa, a Microsoft official, “Windows 11 is only supported on the CPUs listed in the list. Even so, according to Steve, “This list can be adjusted over time”.
Here are the Windows 11 minimum hardware requirements:
- CPU: 1Ghz or faster, minimum 2 cores, 64-bit support- RAM: 4GB
- Storage: 64GB or more
- Security Chip TPM 2.0
- GPU: DirectX 12 compatible, WDDM 2.0 support
To find out if your PC is eligible to upgrade to Windows 11, users can download the PC Health Check tool developed by Microsoft itself.
