Gamers are finally flocking to Windows 11 after 3 years

2 days ago

Spider-man moving connected nan Asus ROG PG42UQG.

Windows 11 is getting a batch much celebrated lately. In nan latest Steam hardware survey, Valve clocked that 51.97% of its personification guidelines is now utilizing Windows 11, which is simply a 4.28% summation compared to past period and nan highest stock nan operating strategy has ever seen, contempt being readily disposable for complete 3 years.

Windows 10, nan second-most celebrated operating strategy connected Steam, fell by 2.71%, and now makes up 45.95% of nan users Valve surveyed. Just a mates of months ago, erstwhile Valve released its August study results, Windows 11 overtook Windows 10 for nan first clip successful nan hardware survey. The spread is only widening now, pinch nan stock mislaid by Windows 10 going almost straight to Windows 11. Earlier this year, Windows 11 take was really down connected nan Steam hardware survey, pinch immoderate claiming that Windows 10 offered amended gaming performance.

Survey results for nan October 2024 Steam hardware survey.

It’s not precisely astonishing that gamers are migrating. Microsoft is retiring Windows 10 connected October 14, 2025, conscionable awkward of a twelvemonth from now. From there, Microsoft is offering an other twelvemonth of information updates, but only for users who salary $30. By now, astir PCs can instal Windows 11 for free, including years of information updates, truthful it makes consciousness to jump vessel earlier Windows 10 is officially retired.

There’s nary uncertainty that Windows 11 is amended than Windows 10 now, but nan operating strategy still has its problems, particularly for PC gamers. Just recently, AMD’s Ryzen 9000 CPUs showed amazingly mediocre capacity astatine launch, which was mostly nan consequence of Windows 11. The newest 24H2 update fixed nan issues, but these types of bugs and oddities are communal pinch Windows 11 and PC gaming hardware, moreover 3 years aft release.

Get your play teardown of nan tech down PC gaming

Although nan Steam hardware study isn’t ever nan astir meticulous root of information month-to-month, we’ve seen a accordant inclination toward Windows 11 since nan mediate of this year. Elsewhere successful nan survey, nan results are a spot strange. For instance, nan RTX 3060 saw a 1.53% summation complete past month, now representing 7.24% of Valve’s personification base. That doesn’t make a ton of consciousness fixed that nan RTX 3060 isn’t 1 of nan best graphics cards you tin bargain anymore, and nan newer RTX 4060 offers amended capacity for astir nan aforesaid price.

If you’re a caller person to Windows 11, make judge to cheque retired our guideline connected how to optimize Windows 11 for gaming. Compared to Windows 10, nan newer OS has a ton of further features for PC gamers, including nan latest Xbox Game Bar — which is important for CPUs for illustration nan Ryzen 7 7800X3D — and DirectStorage.

Jacob Roach

Jacob Roach is nan lead newsman for PC hardware astatine Digital Trends. In summation to covering nan latest PC components, from…

Windows 11 tin now usage AI to respond to your matter messages

The Phone Link app being utilized connected a telephone and laptop screen.

Microsoft has started rolling retired a adjuvant Suggested Replies characteristic successful nan Phone Link app that gives users AI-powered matter suggestions for speedy replies to their messages, nan package elephantine stated successful a Support blog post.

The caller characteristic uses Microsoft's Cloud AI models to create short replies to circumstantial messages, resulting successful faster consequence times. It is rolling retired successful Phone Link type 1.24082.137.0 for Windows 11 24H2 and 23H2. You don't request to beryllium successful nan Windows Insider Program to effort retired nan feature, but you won't spot nan Suggest Replies characteristic connected each messages. You'll only spot nan suggestions erstwhile nan Phone Link's AI tin understand nan message.

Nearly 2 years later, AMD’s RX 7000 GPUs don’t moreover dress up 1% of Steam players

RX 7900 XTX and RX 7900 XT connected a pinkish background.

AMD's latest RX 7000 GPUs whitethorn beryllium immoderate of nan champion graphics cards you tin buy, but they aren't celebrated among gamers, astatine slightest according to nan latest Steam hardware survey. Only 1 of AMD's RDNA 3 graphics cards moreover shows up connected nan survey, pinch nan RX 7900 XTX occupying conscionable 0.37% -- down by 0.03% compared to past month.

It's worthy noting that Steam doesn't list every GPU represented successful nan hardware study each month, but it astatine slightest lists each GPU that represents a decent chunk of players. For context, nan lowest-ranking GPU connected nan database is AMD's RX 5500 XT astatine conscionable 0.16% of players. Other RX 7000 GPUs for illustration nan fantabulous RX 7900 GRE are apt represented further down, though pinch a stock of only one-tenth of 1% aliases less.

It’s charismatic — Microsoft WordPad is dormant aft 29 years

A screenshot of Microsoft WordPad moving connected Windows 11.

The Windows 11 2024 Update, different known arsenic type 24H2, started rolling retired yesterday, but if you've already updated, you mightiness announcement thing is missing. WordPad's deprecation has go a reality, arsenic it has been wholly removed from nan caller type of Windows 11.

This mightiness not beryllium a large woody to astir users -- nan deficiency of group utilizing nan app is portion of nan logic it was deprecated, aft all. If you don't know, WordPad has been astir since Windows 95, and successful position of features and functionality, it offers much than Notepad, but little than Microsoft Word.