Microsoft has officially released its highly anticipated Windows 11. The latest version of the popular PC operating system has just launched earlier today (5th October 2021) and is available for free download on systems that are compatible with the update.

For those interested, you can check for the update on the Windows Update settings. Furthermore, new Windows 11 powered PCs and laptops will be launching later today as well. Panos Panay, Microsoft chief product officer for Windows and Devices stated that “We’re pumped to be launching Windows 11; the entire user experience brings you closer to what you love, empowers you to produce and inspires you to create. Windows 11 provides a sense of calm and openness. It gives you a place that feels like home. It’s secure and everything is designed to be centered around you.”

According to the American tech giant, only existing PCs will be eligible for a free Windows upgrade. Although, the new update supports only new hardware for its system requirements. So, this would rule out a number of PCs that run Windows 10 but sport outdated processor. However, Panay believes that all Windows 10 devices with a compatible CPU will “be offered the upgrade to Windows 11 by mid 2022.”

The new update is free for genuine Windows 10 users, so Windows 7 or previous versions may need to buy Windows 11. Keep in mind that the latest laptops released from known PC brands like HP, Dell, Lenovo, Asus, Acer, and others will run Windows 11 pre loaded. To check for your system’s Windows 11 compatibility, one can download the PC Health Check app from the Microsoft website.

RELATED:

• Windows 11 security feature could impact gaming performance in pre built PCs
• Apple makes more money via gaming than Sony, Nintendo, Activision combined
• Microsoft promises Android 11 update for Surface Duo before year’s end
• Microsoft fixing key bugs on Windows 11 prior to October 5 release

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Microsoft has been proactive with the Windows 11 update and improvements ever since it came into existence. Microsoft is aiming to finalize things and present a seamless experience before it begins rolling out to the general public starting next month. A new Windows 11 build 22454 has been released for the Insiders in the Dev Channel that brings a modern context menu design for the Recycle Bin along with a bucketload of fixes and improvements.

Major changes:

• Right-clicking on Recycle Bin on the desktop now uses the new modern context menu.
• Added an option when right-clicking a network share in File Explorer to pin it to Quick Access without having to click Show more options.
• We have begun releasing an updated version of the Korean IME with adjustments made based on Windows Insider feedback. We believe this will provide a more reliable input experience for Korean on Windows 11. The updated version of the Korean IME follows the new visual design of Windows 11 with acrylic in the candidate window, a new selection visual, and dark mode support. It also improves improved performance and compatibility. The updated Korean IME is rolling out to a subset of Insiders in the Dev Channel first, to help us quickly identify issues that may impact performance and reliability. Over time, it will roll out to everyone in the Dev Channel. Please file feedback via Feedback Hub under Input and Language > Text Input.

Bug fixes and improvements:

• We fixed the issue that was causing PCs with Windows Defender Application Guard (WDAG) enabled to bug check continuously. PCs with WDAG enabled should now receive Build 22454.
• Windows Terminal is listed again when right-clicking on the Start button (WIN + X).
• The narrator should announce the Start launch more reliably now.
• The Desktops flyout should now dismiss properly for Narrator users when scanning with item navigation across the Task View button.
• Fixed an issue where the preview thumbnails for Desktops were not rendering correctly for certain aspect ratios.
• Fixed a rounding issue that was making the volume icon tooltip show the wrong number in some cases.
• The input indicator, Quick Settings, and notification center icon tooltips will no longer display behind the flyouts when they’re open.
• Addressed an underlying issue that was resulting in the volume icon in the Taskbar displaying sound was muted when that was not the case.
• Fixed an issue that could cause the Taskbar to unexpectedly get stuck on top of full-screen applications, such as PowerPoint presentations, after interacting with the Taskbar previews.
• Taskbar icons should no longer flicker when you mouse over them while using a contrasting theme.
• Fixed an issue where app icons would occasionally unexpectedly animate onto the Taskbar from somewhere other than from below.
• Shift + Click on an app icon in the Taskbar to launch a new instance of that app (for apps that support multiple instances) is now working again.
• Did some work to address an issue where app icons could get stuck in an alert state in the Taskbar even if the app in question was closed.
• Fixed an issue that was causing the text candidates to not appear after the first time the handwriting panel was invoked.
• Mitigated a stutter in the animation when tapping a text field to invoke the touch keyboard.
• Fixed a bug that was causing clipboard history to not render for some people.
• Displaying 3rd party IME icons in the input indicator should be more reliable now.
• Addressed an explorer.exe crash that could happen when changing window focus while using the touch keyboard.
• Fixed an issue for people who’d opted into the previous version of the Japanese IME that was causing certain games to crash.
• Fixed an issue where the tip for voice typing when using the touch keyboard wouldn’t be connected to the microphone button.
• Addressed an issue where the touch keyboard could get into a state where the key labels would be invisible due to the wrong background color being used.
• Mitigated an issue that was leading to the touch keyboard settings flyout having white on white text sometimes.
• Did some work to address an issue where interacting with the expressive input button in the touch keyboard could result in the candidate area having a broken layout.
• Improved the reliability of context menu invocation.
• Mitigated a couple of issues that were causing leaks when using File Explorer.
• The context menu will now not immediately dismiss when the option to open things with a single click is enabled in File Explorer.
• If you press F11 to full-screen File Explorer, then use WIN + Shift + Left/Right to change what screen the window is displaying on, pressing F11 again will no longer jump the window back to the original screen.
• Mitigated an issue when typing with certain 3rd party IMEs into the search box in Settings that could result in the candidate window being rendered elsewhere on-screen (not attached to the search box) and/or characters inserted into the search box not displaying.
• We did some work to help address an issue that was making the Windows Insider Program page in Settings appear blank sometimes.
• The mouse pointers under Accessibility > Mouse pointer and touch are no longer invisible for Arabic and Hebrew display languages.
• System > Storage > Show more categories > Other should no longer always say it’s managed by group policy even when it isn’t.
• Added some links to “Find my device” in Settings to help you learn more about the privacy resources.
• Start time and end time pickers under Focus Assist > During these times are now visible when the focus is set while using a contrasting theme.
• Addressed a crash that could happen when using Sound Settings.
• Fixed an issue with the volume slider in Quick Settings that was causing the volume to sometimes save at a slightly different level than what was actually set.
• Fixed a crash that could happen when the network icon updated states on the login screen.
• Made a change to address an issue where title bar options including close, minimize, and maximize were not appearing as expected in certain apps when moving the mouse to the top of the screen while the app was maximized.
• Improved icon rendering for certain apps in the Search hover flyout.
• Addressed an issue that was causing overlapping text in the Share window for certain languages.
• Made some performance improvements when switching to the Details tab of Task Manager.
• If the Windows Security app is open when switching to dark mode, the UI elements should respond better now and not have unreadable text.
• If there are a large number of exclusions listed under Virus and Threat Protection in the Windows Security app, it will now display a progress indicator when loading them.
• Fixed some text clipping in the Windows Security app when using the option in Accessibility Settings to increase the text size.
• Mitigated an issue that was causing the WM_CTLCOLORSTATIC message used in certain apps to be ignored, so the colors in some places wouldn’t appear correctly.
• Fixed a leak when the desktop background was set to a slideshow, impacting performance over time until explorer.exe was restarted.
• Mitigated an issue that was causing some PCs to bugcheck while on modern standby.
• Fixed an issue that was causing slower Wi-Fi speeds after enabling Hyper-V and creating an External V-Switch.
• When animations are disabled in the system, there should no longer be a fade animation in UWP apps like Settings or the Feedback Hub when transitioning from the splash screen to the app content.

The list is big (more on the build 22454 can be checked out at Windows 11 blog) and mostly improves the functionality ahead of the October 5 launch.

Related:

• Huawei confirms Windows 11 support for all its MateBook Series Laptops (gizmochina.com)
• Lenovo launches Yoga Slim 7 Carbon, Slim 7 Pro laptops, with Windows 11 and Ryzen 5000 series CPU – Gizmochina
• Ineligible Windows 11 PCs being booted out of Windows Insider Program (gizmochina.com)

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