The release of Windows 11 hasn’t necessarily been the success that Microsoft wanted. While the launch of Windows 11 saw a significant amount of PC users upgrade their operating system, months later, that increase slowed to a crawl. Around 20% ofWindowsusers overall have made the step to use Windows 11. Yet despite the slow uptake for Windows 11, Microsoft appears to be moving forward toward future iterations of the OS.Windows 12may even be appearing faster than most would expect.
According to a report from WindowsCentral,Microsoftis shifting its engineering schedule so that a “major” Windows release will be delivered every three years. That could mean that Windows 12, or whatever Microsoft decides to call the next iteration of Windows, will arrive as soon as 2024. The report claims the new version of windows is currently being referred to as “Next Valley,” seemingly a temporary name as Microsoft continues to evaluate what the 2024 release will actually contain.
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Between now and 2024, Microsoft plans to release more regular featureupdates for Windows, in addition to the annual significant updates announced in 2021. These smaller updates will be released up to four times a year starting in 2023 and are being referred to as “Moments.” WindowsCentral says that Microsoft’s release of the Taskbar weather button for Windows 11 earlier this year is an example of what these Moments will look like.
While the launch of a major Windows release in 2024 may appear to be very soon, it’s actually a delay of sorts on Microsoft’s part. Previously, Microsoft had planned its next major Windows release for 2023, which was known internally as Sun Valley 3. Now Sun Valley 3’s features are being separated and will be included with the previously mentioned Moments updates. These newWindows 11 featureshave yet to be confirmed.
The next iteration of Windows may now be coming in 2024 instead of 2023, but the shift to a 3-year release schedule for major iterations of Windows is an acceleration compared to previous plans. It’s been seven years since therelease of Windows 10, after all.
The last time that Microsoft tried such an aggressive release schedule, withWindows Vista, 7, and 8 released between 2006 and 2012, adoption of the new operating systems was a rocky road. Perhaps that’s what Microsoft would like going forward, though. 20% adoption every 3 years, or the opportunity of higher adoption with a particularly successful release, may be more appealing than the current status quo, after all. Over 75% of Windows users still use Windows 10 and getting them to budge may take a shift in thinking.
