The rumour mill is always churning when it comes to the latest announcements from Microsoft, but it is hard not to see Windows 11 as one of the least secretive operating system announcements from the company – especially when a developer build was leaked to the public a short while ago. But, it is all official now, with Microsoft confirming that the “next generation of Windows” will be available from this holiday season. Insider preview builds will be made available from this week.
Some promoted features of Windows 11 include:
- Microsoft has modernized the design and user experience in Windows 11, from the new Start button and taskbar to each sound, font and icon. New Snap Layouts, Snap Groups, and Desktops in Windows 11 allow for easier multitasking and organization of your Windows.
- New Teams integration directly into the Taskbar can instantly connect you through text, chat, voice or video with anyone, anywhere across Windows, Android and iOS.
- Windows 11 delivers the best PC gaming experiences yet, offering Auto HDR, Direct Storage, and access to the Xbox app to play great games with Xbox Game Pass.
- With Widgets, a new personalized feed powered by AI, opens a curated view directly from your desktop. For creators and publishers, Widgets also opens new real estate within Windows to deliver personalized content.
- The new Microsoft Store is your single trusted location for apps and content, creating a more open ecosystem for developers and creators, as well as a faster, more secure experience for IT professionals.
More into gaming? Sarah Bond (CVP, Game Creator Experience and Ecosystem at Microsoft) shared some of their gaming highlights with Windows 11. You can read these below, but of course, keep in mind that some of the more ambitious features will require you to have the specs to deliver them:
Immerse Yourself in Superior Graphics
Games will look better than ever thanks to Auto HDR, a unique capability we’re offering with Windows 11 which automatically adds High Dynamic Range (HDR) enhancements to games built on DirectX 11 or higher that previously only leveraged Standard Dynamic Range (SDR). HDR allows a supported game to render a much wider range of brightness values and colors, giving an extra sense of richness and depth to the image. We introduced this tech in our Xbox Series X|S consoles and got an outstanding response from creators and players. We’re excited to bring this groundbreaking technology to Windows 11.
Buckle Up for Gaming at Amazing Speeds
With a high performance NVMe SSD and the proper drivers, Windows 11 can soon load new games faster than ever thanks to a breakthrough technology called DirectStorage, which we also pioneered as part of the Xbox Velocity Architecture featured in the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
With DirectStorage, which will only be available with Windows 11, games can quickly load assets to the graphics card without bogging down the CPU. This means you’ll get to experience incredibly detailed game worlds rendered at lightning speeds, without long load times. “DirectStorage Optimized” Windows 11 PCs are configured with the hardware and drivers needed to enable this amazing experience.
In addition to supporting the new hardware advances needed for DirectStorage, Windows 11 will continue to have the broadest hardware support in the world. Everything from our new Xbox Wireless Controllers to mechanical keyboards and gaming mice, to the Xbox Adaptive Controller, to surround-sound headsets, external GPUs and more. So, you’ll still be able to connect millions of gaming peripherals and accessories to game the way you want.
Experience an Incredible Selection of Games
Of course, even the best graphics and speed are nothing without games. That’s why we created Xbox Game Pass for PC, a membership which gives you access to a library of over 100 high-quality PC games across genres. Game Pass is built to bring the power of games to everyone. And with the Xbox app now built into Windows 11, access to Game Pass is easier than ever. The Game Pass library is incredible, and as we announced earlier this month, you can look forward to releases like Halo Infinite, Twelve Minutes, Age of Empires IV, and more this year.
Game Pass for PC includes PC games from Xbox Game Studios and Bethesda the day they launch, an EA Play membership at no additional cost with Game Pass for PC or Ultimate, and a great selection of titles from partner developers big and small with more entering the library all the time. And with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, you can also experience Xbox Cloud Gaming on Windows PCs via a browser, so even an entry-level device can play the biggest Xbox console titles. And as we recently announced, we’ll add cloud gaming directly into the Xbox app on PC.
Also, because of our commitment to player-first innovations like cross-play and cross-save you can play these games seamlessly across devices with a global community of millions of players. Simply put, Game Pass is the best way to discover and play your next favorite game.
Enjoy a preview of Windows 11 below if you are curious, and take in what could arguably be called some of Microsoft’s best built-in Wallpaper yet.
