Windows 10 was supposed to be the « last version of Windwows » thanks to major updates twice a year — but then Windows 11 arrived.
The latest tech news Your sardonic source for consumer tech stories Human-centric AI news and analysis Driving the future of sustainable mobility No-nonsense stories about startup growth Inside money, markets, and Big Tech Help build the bank of the future Coding for Public Service Small country, big ideas The announcement of Windows 11 was one of Microsoft‘s biggest surprises in years. Not because it’s unusual for a company to update its OS, but because this specific company promised Windows 10 would be the “ last version of Windows.” The idea was to deliver ‘Windows as a service,’ after all. Instead of major, paid OS updates every few years, we got a variety of free, bite-sized updates every few months. Windows 10 was supposed to be in a state of constant improvement. So even after Microsoft announced it would reveal ‘the next generation of Windows,’ I didn’t expect the company to actually call it Windows “11.” But I should have known Windows 10 was on its way out. Even though Windows 11 isn’t the most revolutionary update, it was destined to happen. And that’s a good thing: updating Windows 10 ad infinitum was getting so boring. Frequent feature updates to Windows 10 initially sounded like a good thing, but in retrospect, I found it to be one of the most annoying things about the OS. After a few feature updates, early in Windows 10’s life, Microsoft committed to releasing a major feature update every 6 months. These eventually arrived with fun, creative names like the ‘Windows 10 May 2021 Update.
