Windows 11 Has 1 Billion Users - And They're Furious

5 days ago

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

Consumer complaints astir Windows 11 are large and persistent.
People are angry astir buggy updates and unwanted features for illustration AI.
To repair trust, Microsoft needs to return consumers much seriously.

In Microsoft's most caller quarterly net call, CEO Satya Nadella announced that nan number of monthly progressive Windows 11 users has topped 1 billion. Ending support for Windows 10 past October intelligibly worked.

But that doesn't mean those customers are happy, and Microsoft knows it. In a statement to Tom Warren astatine The Verge, Windows main Pavan Davuluri said:

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. ... This twelvemonth you will spot america attraction connected addressing symptom points we perceive consistently from customers: improving strategy performance, reliability, and nan wide acquisition of Windows.

I've been covering Microsoft for a agelong time, and 1 point I person learned complete those decades is that Windows users emotion to kick astir Windows.

They criticized the "Fisher-Price" look of Windows XP. They recovered Windows 7 excessively expensive, with too galore versions and a confusing interface. They considered Windows Vista "a world-class villain, an object of scorn and ridicule." They were highly irritated pinch Windows 8, the astir polarizing merchandise Microsoft ever released.

Also: How to upgrade your 'incompatible' Windows 10 PC to Windows 11 - for free

Even Windows 10, wide considered nan astir celebrated type ever, had its stock of skeptics in nan early days.

So, it's not astonishing that group are complaining astir Windows 11. It's what group do!

But nan reside and measurement of those complaints consciousness markedly different lately. Windows 11 was released astir 5 years ago, which intends it's halfway done nan accepted 10-year support rhythm for a Windows release. Five years in, Windows 11 should consciousness polished and mature ,and stable; instead, it feels for illustration a activity successful progress, progressively filled pinch features its users don't want.

Over nan past twelvemonth aliases so, I've been monitoring nan progressively angry feedback from Windows customers successful charismatic and unofficial channels, including my ain inbox. Those complaints autumn into 5 wide categories, and Microsoft is making a large correction if it doesn't salary adjacent attention.

1. Windows Update is simply a 'glitchy mess'

When it comes to Windows updates, Microsoft is connected a rotation lately, but not nan bully kind. The first Patch Tuesday update of 2026 was a glitchy mess, requiring two separate out-of-band updates -- released extracurricular of nan normal cycle.

Is this bad? Well, nan issues successful mobility were not widespread. One bug progressive "remote desktop connections utilizing nan Windows App connected Windows customer devices, connected Azure Virtual Desktop and Windows 365," which is simply a rarefied endeavor scenario. Another bug affected machines moving nan two-year-old 23H2 type pinch Secure Launch (another endeavor feature) enabled.

Also: The first large Windows update of 2026 is simply a glitchy messiness - here's nan afloat database of bugs and fixes

Another reported issue affects a "limited number of machines" that booted up to a achromatic screen. Microsoft is still investigating that 1 but notes that it appears to impact devices that had knowledgeable a nonaccomplishment while installing nan December 2025 updates; "no customers person reported watching these symptoms connected location usage devices," they say. I couldn't find immoderate nationalist reports from users affected by these issues.

Microsoft, to its credit, documents each these issues connected its Windows merchandise wellness dashboard, which makes it easy for tech reporters to constitute snarky posts astir update problems.

And let's get existent here: Windows updates person been a messiness for arsenic agelong arsenic I tin remember. When I looked backmost astatine nan first 5 years of Windows 10, I recovered immoderate horrifying reports. The first rollout of nan 2016 Windows 10 Anniversary Update, for example, caused some PCs to frost aft completing nan upgrade, resulted in reboot loops for others, and broke an important endeavor feature.

That was conscionable nan warmup. In October 2018, Microsoft released a feature update pinch a data-destroying bug. It was possibly the worst Windows update ever:

An embarrassing drip-drip-drip of further high-profile bug reports has continued each period long. Built-in support for Zip files is not moving properly. A keyboard driver caused some HP devices to clang pinch a Blue Screen of Death. Some system fonts are broken. Intel pushed nan incorrect audio driver done Windows Update, rendering immoderate systems abruptly silent. Your laptop's display brightness mightiness beryllium arbitrarily reset.

I could find plentifulness of different examples, but you get nan point.

Some of this is conscionable inevitable successful a beingness that involves much than 1 cardinal Windows PCs, moving connected an inconceivably analyzable assortment of hardware configurations. My individual acquisition pinch Windows 11 updates has been mostly uneventful. But that's conscionable 1 information point, and it's small consolation to anyone who gets slammed by 1 of those bugs.

2. The push to adhd AI features to Windows is exhausting

Satya Nadella has made it clear that AI is not conscionable a Windows add-on -- a sprinkle of cilantro connected apical of nan spicy Windows stew. It's nan main course. Those features, each lumped nether nan Copilot brand, are nan early of nan "agentic OS" that Windows will go someday soon.

In a rambling station titled "Looking up to 2026," Nadella based on that "we request to get beyond nan arguments of slop vs sophistication." In response, nan net made "Microslop" the most celebrated meme of nan caller year. (It didn't thief that Nadella's effort referred to AI arsenic "a caller conception that evolves 'bicycles for nan mind' specified that we ever deliberation of AI arsenic a scaffolding for quality potential..." Uh, what?)

Also: How to region Copilot AI from Windows 11 today

With each caller update, Windows 11 gets immoderate caller AI-powered, Copilot-branded feature. There's a Copilot app that hosts OpenAI and Anthropic chatbots; semantic hunt is embedded successful File Explorer, pinch AI-fueled hunt besides taking up residence successful nan Settings app. Still much AI-enhanced features are successful nan Photos app, and there's moreover AI successful nan endeavor information features. On Copilot PCs, nan arguable Recall characteristic is waiting for you to springiness it nan go-ahead to commencement snapping screenshots each fewer seconds.

They moreover added AI features to Notepad. Is thing sacred?

Even nan leader admits these features are unfinished. "We are still successful nan opening miles of a marathon," Nadella says. "Much remains unpredictable." And yet those features are being shoveled into Windows astatine breakneck speed.

You want to move disconnected AI successful Windows? Good luck. You tin uninstall nan Copilot app, but nan underlying components are location to stay, and nan supported devices to disable them via Group Policy and registry settings are now deprecated.

Also: The Microsoft 365 Copilot motorboat was a full disaster

Ironically, nan halfway features of Windows activity amended than ever, for nan astir part. New Windows PCs commencement up quickly, and nan latest procreation of CPUs from Qualcomm and Intel yet unrecorded up to nan committedness of all-day artillery life. Alas, each of that advancement is being overwhelmed by nan drumbeat of new, half-baked AI features.

3. Upsells are everywhere

Nearly 3 years ago, I wrote Here's why Windows PCs are only going to get much annoying. I regret to pass you that each prediction successful that article has travel true, pinch this condemnation summarizing nan full sorry situation:

Increasingly, Microsoft is treating Windows arsenic a elephantine advertisement wherever it tin beforehand and cross-sell different products.

The consequence is what critics telephone "bloatware." People person been calling Windows bloated for arsenic agelong arsenic I tin remember. (I wrote astir it 20 years ago, in one of my first posts for ZDNET!) But Microsoft's request for gross is making nan problem much evident than ever.

Also: Why 'debloating' Windows is simply a bad thought (and what to do instead)

Redmond collects a fewer measly bucks erstwhile it sells a transcript of Windows 11 Home version to a PC maker, which past sells that PC to you. To support nan gross watercourse flowing, an service of MBAs is moving nonstop to monetize your Windows experience.

Which is why you spot repeated offers to subscribe to Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft 365, and OneDrive connected your caller Windows 11 PC, and why you are urged astatine each move to usage Edge arsenic your default browser and Copilot arsenic your go-to hunt engine. You tin opportunity no, but nan offers are relentless.

4. Forced migrations to OneDrive are infuriating

I will springiness Microsoft nan use of nan uncertainty present and stipulate that nan OneDrive Backup characteristic is simply a bully point for their customers. Giving group a free stash of unreality retention and automatically backing up their important files tin forestall nan nightmare of losing those files permanently because of a disk clang aliases a ransomware attack.

But nan measurement that they've implemented that characteristic has been a complete mess. Want proof? Just spell to Reddit and hunt for OneDrive deleted my files. The results spell connected and connected and connected and on.

I've already written extensively astir this botched implementation, truthful I won't repetition that here. (For details, see "OneDrive Backup conscionable sewage a monolithic alteration for nan amended - really it useful now.") Microsoft has been experimenting pinch nan characteristic successful caller months, but it hasn't solved nan underlying problem: The OneDrive Backup characteristic gets turned connected without their informed consent, and it's measurement excessively difficult to undo those changes.

5. Consumers person to fend for themselves

The halfway problem present is simple: Nearly 60% of each Windows PCs are owned by consumers, but nan overwhelming stock of Windows gross comes from firm and endeavor customers. (That breakdown is from June 2022, but I don't deliberation nan enterprise-consumer divided has changed overmuch successful nan past three-and-a-half years.)

In theory, that's why Microsoft sells Windows successful different editions: Home, Pro, Education, and Enterprise.

Also: Why France conscionable dumped Microsoft Teams and Zoom - and what's replacing them

In practice, that Home version isn't really optimized for consumers. It's nan nonstop aforesaid group of bits that firm customers get, pinch a fewer guidance features that are turned disconnected by default. All of nan improvement resources are going to serving nan needs of those firm customers, who salary large bucks each period for those licenses.

When consumers brushwood problems pinch Windows, they request to consult nan aforesaid resources and usage nan aforesaid devices that firm IT professionals use, moreover though astir of them don't person nan training aliases acquisition for those jobs.

Maybe, conscionable maybe, Microsoft needs to displacement immoderate resources to supporting nan baseline computing needs of those consumers alternatively of simply treating them for illustration faceless serfs to beryllium monetized. No 1 moving a alleged Home version of Windows should beryllium forced to manually edit nan registry aliases tally PowerShell scripts to negociate updates aliases move disconnected features they don't want to use. Those users shouldn't person their files moved to OneDrive without their informed consent. If they take an replacement browser aliases hunt engine, that prime should beryllium respected.

Also: Microsoft whitethorn springiness your encryption cardinal to rule enforcement upon valid petition - here's really to support it safe

To make that happen, personification has to ain nan Windows user acquisition and perpetrate to making it useful for group who aren't IT pros. That doesn't mean simply removing endeavor features and giving location users a stripped-down group of beginner tools. Rather, it intends reasoning astir really to service nan halfway computing needs of group who don't person a method inheritance but cognize what they want successful a individual computer.

Honestly, I don't deliberation Microsoft will return this advice. After all, it intends spending money connected thing different than AI features, and it offers only expenses, pinch small opportunity to equilibrium that pinch revenue. But, if those lofty words astir "addressing symptom points" aren't met, Microsoft tin expect its estimation and its marketplace stock to proceed to erode arsenic customers look for alternatives from nan company's galore competitors.