Four reasons not to upgrade to Windows 11

I admire the enthusiasm you oozed for Windows 11 in Issue 624’s Cover Feature (pictured), but in the interest of balance I feel compelled to give an opposing view.

I’m not against Windows 11.

From what I’ve seen, it’s a perfectly adequate operating system, and isn’t the dog’s dinner that Windows 8 was. But it has some flaws – four in fact – that need to be fixed before I’ll consider upgrading.

First, the right-click context menu doesn’t have enough options. You need to click again to see all the options that Windows 10 offers. Second, Microsoft has made it harder to set default programs for specific purposes because you have to include different file and link types. Third, you can’t move the taskbar to the top or side of your screen. And fourth, you can’t launch Task Manager by right-clicking the taskbar.

Some of these annoyances can be fixed by installing third-party software, such as Winaero Tweaker. But the measure of a good operating system should be how few third-party programs you need to install to make it work how you want.

So for now I’ll keep a friendly distance from Windows 11. If these flaws are addressed in a forthcoming update, then I’ll happily upgrade. I’m under no pressure to do so, though, because Windows 10 remains an excellent operating system that I enjoy using. David Hitchin

PC, although I’ll have the added convenience of being able to use it in other rooms around the house – and it will always be plugged into the mains. Reading laptop recommendations in your magazine lately gives the impression that the largest screen size available with a laptop is 15.6in. Stefan Kuc