Microsoft is working to rebuild trust in Windows

Jan 30, 2026 12:00 AM - 3 months ago 103537

Windows is successful a weird spot. In its 40-year history, the operating strategy has weathered its adjacent stock of missteps, but Windows 11 is testing the patience of its users successful caller ways. Persistent bugs, capacity issues, intrusive prompts, ads, and bloatware person eroded the halfway Windows experience. Early strategy request decisions person besides damaged spot among Microsoft’s astir loyal users, an erosion that’s accelerated by the company’s fierce push into AI that doesn’t ever present connected its promises.

Windows is astatine breaking point, and Microsoft knows it. Sources acquainted pinch the company’s plans show maine Windows engineers are now focusing connected fixing the halfway issues of Windows 11 complete the coming months, successful a process known arsenic “swarming.” Microsoft is redirecting engineers to urgently hole Windows 11’s capacity and reliability issues, aiming to halt the operating system’s decease by a 1000 cuts.

Microsoft is besides going to walk the remainder of the twelvemonth focusing connected each of the Windows 11 symptom points. “The feedback we’re receiving from our organization of passionate customers and Windows Insiders has been clear. We request to amended Windows successful ways that are meaningful for people,” says Pavan Davuluri, president of Windows and devices, successful a connection to Notepad. “This twelvemonth you will spot america attraction connected addressing symptom points we perceive consistently from customers: improving strategy performance, reliability, and the wide acquisition of Windows.”

Some of these improvements will beryllium basal changes for illustration fixing acheronian mode successful Windows 11 and modernizing parts that person felt neglected complete the past decade. While Microsoft has done a bully occupation connected improving driver stableness and reducing BSODs successful Windows 11, it still needs to reside basal capacity issues pinch File Explorer, aliases the truth that Linux tin often tally Windows games amended than Windows.

The capacity and reliability issues successful Windows 11 person been evident complete the past year, arsenic the unit of supporting thousands of different PC configurations mounts up. Microsoft took months to hole Remote Desktop disconnection issues, past shipped a Windows Update that wiped retired Copilot, and released updates that duplicated the Task Manager and created a nasty strategy betterment bug. Microsoft topped it each disconnected pinch an update that was expected to amended Windows 11’s acheronian mode, but besides broke it pinch a achromatic surface flash erstwhile opening File Explorer.

We’re only a period into the caller twelvemonth and the Windows 11 bugs are only getting worse. Microsoft’s first Windows 11 update of 2026 has been a buggy mess. Shutdown issues connected immoderate machines forced Microsoft to rumor an different emergency out-of-band update, and past a week later, a 2nd out-of-band hole arrived to reside OneDrive and Dropbox crashes. Microsoft has also confirmed that immoderate PCs utilized by businesses are failing to footwear aft installing its January update, because they were near successful an “improper state” aft failing to instal December’s monthly update.

The bugs and reliability issues are exasperating the different issue: Windows 11 is annoying to use. Microsoft has been pushing Windows 11 users to move to Edge and Bing successful ways I’ve ne'er seen before. At 1 constituent a mates of years ago, Microsoft moreover utilized malware-like pop-ups successful a disgusting overreach. Windows 11 users are still routinely tricked into switching to Edge and Bing aft immoderate Windows Updates. If you hunt for an point connected the Start menu, you’ll besides get pushed into Edge for a Bing consequence moreover if you person Chrome aliases Firefox group arsenic the default browser. Even parts of the Settings interface person links that unit you into Edge and Bing.

Microsoft has besides tried to upsell its OneDrive unreality retention pinch changeless nags successful Windows 11. At 1 constituent you couldn’t moreover adjacent OneDrive without being asked why. It often feels for illustration you’re fighting pinch Windows 11 to respect your defaults and settings. Microsoft is moreover forcing group into utilizing a Microsoft relationship pinch Windows 11, making it progressively difficult for the mini percent of users that want a section account.

The added hostility of fighting pinch the OS and being served ads and pop-ups has besides further surgery down spot successful Windows 11. Windows users were already wary of Windows 11 erstwhile Microsoft group strategy requirements that near millions of machines retired successful the cold, and Microsoft keeps doing things that eat distant astatine immoderate remaining trust. The launch of Recall, a Windows 11 characteristic that takes snapshots of mostly everything you spot connected your screen, was highly arguable and generated privateness concerns connected apical of suspicion astir the telemetry information Microsoft collects from its OS.

This breakdown successful spot has only made Windows 11 users balk astatine AI additions to the OS, starring to Microsoft often getting branded arsenic “Microslop” erstwhile these features appear. Microsoft did immoderate awesome engineering activity pinch Windows connected Arm for its Copilot Plus PCs, but it was undermined by Recall and the hopeless request to push its Copilot AI into each azygous portion of the OS. Microsoft’s Edge browser now has a Copilot mode, dedicated Copilot and Microsoft 365 Copilot apps are preinstalled, and Copilot is besides coming to the taskbar. Even Paint and Notepad, which were erstwhile basal apps, now person Copilot buttons and Paint is getting AI coloring books. There simply aren’t capable useful AI features to make group care astir AI PCs.

Microsoft now faces a reliable conflict to triumph backmost the spot of Windows users, fto unsocial build backmost excitement astir the OS. I’ve been covering Windows for much than 20 years, and it feels for illustration fans of the OS person vanished complete the past mates of years. It’s a acold outcry from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s committedness to win backmost Windows fans much than a decade ago. “We want to move from group needing Windows to choosing Windows, to loving Windows,” said Nadella, months earlier the institution shipped Windows 10.

Microsoft has remained tight-lipped astir the problems pinch Windows 11, and the halfway members of its Windows Insider squad moved to different roles wrong the institution recently. The Windows Insider programme was created to thief trial Windows 10 and get feedback straight from users, aft the disastrous changes successful Windows 8. Microsoft needs its Windows Insider programme much than ever before, but it now feels for illustration a faceless operation, alternatively than 1 that’s built connected organization and trust.

I’m really hoping that Microsoft’s committedness to improvements intends it besides addresses the regular annoyances of Windows 11, particularly arsenic much and much Windows users earnestly contemplate switching to Linux. There’s a agelong measurement to go, but it’s encouraging to perceive Microsoft yet respond to the complaints.

“Trust is earned complete clip and we are committed to building it backmost pinch the Windows community,” says Davuluri.

Windows 11 has reached 1 cardinal users faster than Windows 10. It’s not each bad news for Windows 11, arsenic Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed this week that the OS has reached an important milestone. Windows 11 has managed to reach 1 cardinal users faster than Windows 10 did astir six years ago. The maturation of Windows 11 complete the past 4th will beryllium related to Microsoft’s extremity of support for Windows 10, which besides helped summation Microsoft’s Windows OEM revenues.
Microsoft reports beardown unreality net successful Q2 arsenic gaming declines. Microsoft’s fiscal Q2 net item that its More Personal Computing division, which includes Windows, Xbox, and Surface, is progressively becoming a smaller portion of Microsoft. Intelligent Cloud, which includes Azure and server products, contributed $32.9 cardinal successful gross this quarter, much than double the $14.3 cardinal from More Personal Computing. In fact, the More Personal Computing section declined by 3 percent successful gross year-over-year, the only business portion to do truthful this quarter. Microsoft is blaming that peculiar diminution connected gaming, aft wide gaming gross was down 9 percent, Xbox contented and services was down 5 percent, and Xbox hardware was down 32 percent. The Xbox contented and services gross diminution is being attributed to stronger first-party contented capacity successful the erstwhile year, which suggests that softer income of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 person had a large effect connected Microsoft’s More Personal Computing business.
Microsoft gets support to build 15 information centers successful Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin. Microsoft’s caller information centers will beryllium built connected onshore that utilized to beryllium owned by Foxconn, aft the instrumentality shaper pulled backmost from its promises to build a 20 million-square-foot LCD complex. Local officials have signed off connected Microsoft’s plans to build the information centers, and jobs astatine the task could past 10 years, according to Mount Pleasant’s colony committee president.
Xbox Cloud Gaming’s caller creation teases the early of Xbox console UI. Microsoft has started testing a refreshed web acquisition for Xbox Cloud Gaming that looks overmuch much for illustration the Xbox console dashboard. It includes updated navigation features, plentifulness of caller animations, and a refreshed design. I tested it this week, and it feels for illustration Microsoft is unifying its Xbox UI crossed PC, console, and the unreality pinch this large update.
Microsoft’s latest AI spot goes head-to-head pinch Amazon and Google. Microsoft announced its latest in-house AI spot this week, which will thief big GPT-5.2 and different models for Microsoft Foundry and Microsoft 365 Copilot. The Maia 200 chip is designed for large-scale AI workloads and will spell head-to-head pinch akin AI conclusion chips from Amazon and Google. The news of Maia 200 besides sent SK Hynix shares to a record high, aft the representation shaper revealed it was the sole supplier for Microsoft’s caller AI chip.
Microsoft handed the authorities encryption keys for customer data. Microsoft complied pinch an FBI warrant past twelvemonth to unlock encrypted information stored connected 3 laptops. It complied because the laptops had stored BitLocker betterment keys successful Microsoft’s unreality service, a default mounting that makes it easier to retrieve devices. The incident has highlighted that you decidedly should not beryllium accepting Microsoft’s default of storing BitLocker keys successful the unreality erstwhile signing into Windows pinch a Microsoft account.
Microsoft Paint tin now make AI coloring books. Paint is getting a caller AI-powered coloring book characteristic connected Copilot Plus PCs that lets you make blank coloring templates utilizing a matter prompt. Notepad is besides getting the expertise to watercourse AI-generated results for Write, Rewrite, and Summarize features, arsenic good arsenic support for further Markdown syntax features, including strikethrough formatting and nested lists.
Winapp is Microsoft’s caller bid statement inferior for developers. Microsoft has released a nationalist preview of its caller Windows App Development CLI (winapp) utility. The open-source inferior is aimed astatine Windows app developers, to make it easier to activity crossed aggregate frameworks and toolchains. Microsoft says it’s cleanable for immoderate developer “wanting autochthonal Windows features aliases targeting Windows.” Unfortunately, winapp doesn’t whip the llama’s ass.
The Surface Pro 12 now has amended Surface Pen support. Microsoft has released caller firmware updates for the Surface Pro 12 this week that amended stylus support connected the device. “We’ve fixed issues wherever the Surface Slim Pen 2 unexpectedly loses pairing aft inking, pen erasing isn’t stable, and the cursor position isn’t aligned to the pen during hovering,” says Microsoft. The firmware updates besides protect against information vulnerabilities that could lead to “unexpected shutdowns and privilege escalation.”
Windows 11’s expertise to resume Android apps connected your PC is getting closer. Microsoft is getting fresh to amended Windows 11’s expertise to resume Android apps connected a PC. The package elephantine first introduced its cross-device handoff characteristic past year, letting Windows 11 users resume OneDrive sessions from their Android instrumentality connected a PC. Now, it’s expanding this to Spotify playback, browsing sessions, and Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. The characteristic is very akin to Apple’s Handoff, which lets you resume tasks crossed Mac, iPhone, iPad, aliases Apple Watch. Microsoft has started testing these additions pinch the Release Preview ringing of Windows 11, which intends they’ll beryllium released to each Windows 11 users imminently.
Microsoft illegally installed cookies connected schoolhouse devices, says Austrian information protection authority. Austria-based run group None of Your Business (noyb) has won a ruling against Microsoft complete the usage of Microsoft 365 Education successful schools pinch the Austrian information protection authority (DSB). The authority recovered that Microsoft acted unlawfully by placing search cookies connected devices of a insignificant utilizing Microsoft 365 Education. Microsoft told The Register that “Microsoft 365 for Education meets each required information protection standards and institutions successful the acquisition sector” and that it’s reviewing the Austrian information protection authority’s decision.
Microsoft has patched a zero-day vulnerability successful Office. Microsoft has issued updates for a assortment of Office apps this week, to reside a security characteristic bypass that was discovered by Google’s threat intelligence group. Affected Office versions see Office 2016, Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021 and 2024, and Microsoft 365 apps.

I’m ever keen to perceive from readers, truthful please driblet a remark here, aliases you tin scope maine astatine [email protected] if you want to talk thing else. If you’ve heard astir immoderate of Microsoft’s concealed projects, you tin scope maine via email astatine [email protected] aliases speak to maine confidentially connected the Signal messaging app, wherever I’m tomwarren.01. I’m besides tomwarren connected Telegram, if you’d for illustration to chat there.

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