Windows 11: What To Expect
For years, Windows has been the primary platform preferred by PC users. It offers a wide range of features and options that makes it easy to enjoy browsing the internet, working from almost anywhere, or gaming. Now, Windows 11 is taking that to a whole new level.
Whether you’re considering Windows 11 for business or personal use, there are several things you can expect.
1. Improved Graphics
For many workers and gamers alike, high-quality graphics are a must. Windows 11 offers DirectX 12 Ultimate, which provides better, immersive graphics at high frame rates: perfect for animation, gaming, or putting together stunning videos that are sure to help you draw in your viewers and bring them directly into the world you have created–or, conversely, allow you to be drawn into the incredible virtual world created by your favorite game designers.
2. Integrated Chat
Are you already using Microsoft Teams as part of your business? Chances are, you’re already familiar with the convenience of the chat feature, which will keep you connected to the members of your team at all times. Now, with Windows 11, you have an instant connection through text, chat, voice, or video, with all of your contacts, regardless of the platform they choose to use. You can also connect with people who have not downloaded teams via two-way SMS: an easy way to connect with every member of your team regardless of where they are.
To many Windows 11 users, this integrated chat feature is all about connection. Over the past year, more people than ever before have struggled with connection to the people they love most. Now, Windows 11 is offering one more strategy that can help bring them back together.
3. Customized Desktops
Your desktop real estate is important. You don’t want anything unnecessary on your desktop, nor do you want to miss out on anything important because you can’t see one window under another. Now, Windows 11 is offering features that make it easier to organize that critical space as never before. Snap Layouts and Snap Groups allow you to quickly set up your layout based on what you want to be able to see at any given time, including putting up multiple programs or tabs on your screen so that you can easily move from one to the next.
Even better, while you can have your desktop snap to specific layouts in a blink, you can also customize your desktop based on the activity you’re planning to engage in behind your screen. Have a different setup for work or school versus gaming? Prefer one layout on presentation days and another when you’re working in the office? The new Windows 11 features make it simple to go straight to the desktop design you prefer for any given situation. For workers, that can mean keeping your preferred setup private when you’re using your computer to manage a presentation or sharing a screen with a coworker.
4. Easy Access to the Information You Need
Windows 11 includes a new feature known as Widgets: a personalized feed that offers insights and information about the outside world. It’s designed to make it easy to see the features and content that you need most. It doesn’t interfere with focus or cloud your screen, since it slides across it like a pane of glass and allows you to easily access the content you really need. It could open your weather, the news, or your notifications.
Widgets helps prevent you from having to pick up your phone to access the information that you check regularly throughout the day. It’s a simple, intuitive platform that helps provide the brain breaks you need or keep your information right in front of you. In addition, you can use it to do things like manage a virtual To Do list, check the weather, take a look at your calendar, or keep up with specific feeds, all without having to move away from your computer. In many ways, it can help improve overall flow and keep you more focused on the task at hand.
5. Additional Security Measures
Cyberattacks have been on the rise over the past year as never before. We’ve seen attacks launched on big businesses that have threatened supply chains, brought about shortages, and created mass challenges. Windows 11 aims to address some of those challenges with additional security measures that help provide an additional level of protection for both businesses and private users.
6. Familiar Processes and Usage
Many businesses worry about upgrading to the latest form of Windows–or, indeed, any app or platform–because they know there’s a learning curve. With Windows 11, however, you’ll find that both you and your IT team have an easier time adjusting to the new platform than ever before. As far as actual use goes, Microsoft describes Windows 11 as “like taking a Windows 10 update.” It uses the same general management experience you’re already familiar with, but upgrades the experience with new features. On the back end, including cloud configuration and Microsoft Endpoint Manager, you’ll find that Windows 11 works much the same way you’ve come to expect from Windows 10: no new learning required. Windows 11 is also still compatible with most of the apps and platforms you’re already using thanks to App Assure, a service that helps fix the issues that customers with 150+ users deal with any compatibility issues they face when upgrading to the new platform.
Windows 11 Services & Support
Windows 11 is the latest technology for a new generation of users: people who, now more than ever, need connection, security, and convenience. If you’re already using Windows 10, whether for business or personal use, the upgrade to Windows 11 is simple–and it could be one of the best decisions you make for your business. Want to learn more about how Microsoft platforms, including Microsoft Teams or Windows, can benefit your business? Need IT management solutions that will help keep your business up-to-date? Contact us today to learn more about our IT options.
With over 35 years in the business of supporting and implementing technology for the SME market, and 6 years previously in Corporate IT and Voice. I have seen a great deal of change. The only common thread is I have always focused on the Business Wise application of Technology. We always try to look 5 years ahead of the current technology to make sure our clients are on the right track to meet current and future needs.
