While Microsoft remains very discreet about the characteristics of Windows 12, a designer had fun imagining what the successor to Windows 11 could – or should – look like. And the result is really attractive!
It’s no secret: while Windows 11 is still struggling to establish itself and stabilize, as evidenced by the countless problem updates that have followed since its release (see our article), Microsoft is actively working on its successor, logically called Windows 12. And if the publisher is still very discreet about the major new features of its future PC operating system, we already know that the focus will be on functions using the intelligence and the cloud, such as the Microsoft 365 office suite, recently boosted with AI (see our article), in a general movement towards this new Eldorado which has been attracting and agitating the entire techno planet for a few months, with the craze for conversational robots of the ChatGPT type.
Windows 12: very inspiring imaginary concepts
If we don’t know much official about Windows 12, a designer known as Andy Visuals had fun imagining the interface of the future system with an emphasis on innovative and practical functions. Ideas that he illustrated in a video called Meet Windows 12 (concept) and published on YouTube and which, hopefully, will inspire Microsoft developers as they are interesting.
As we can see in the video, the designer has very cleverly improved basic elements of the interface, in particular the taskbar which becomes floating and dynamic, like a dock, and the Start menu, which mixes intelligent principles of Windows 10 and Windows 11. It has also provided many customization options, for example with widgets that can be detached and placed on the Desktop, or applications that can be grouped in thematic folders placed in the taskbar. Ditto for the Desktop and Explorer, which also benefit from new practical and refined functions for presenting and manipulating files. So many original and pleasant ideas testifying to the creative spirit of this designer – who also had fun imagining iOS 17, the next system for iPhone, in another video of the same genre, as well as modernized versions of Windows 7 and of Windows XP !
Andy Visuals is not the first to embark on this exercise: other enthusiasts with overflowing imagination, such as advan Or 1043D, also made videos to present concepts of Windows 12. Of course, all these tests illustrate purely personal projections which do not bode absolutely anything of the real intentions of Microsoft for Windows 12. But, by mixing original ideas and inspired principles other operating systems – macOS and Linux in the lead – these concepts express the concrete needs of users. Needs that Microsoft teams should study in detail, to try to meet them in their own way, by recovering what would be useful to the greatest number, rather than imposing sometimes incomprehensible changes, as was the case during the Moving from Windows 10 to Windows 11…
CorePC: a new architecture for Windows?
Anyway, if Microsoft is still keeping quiet about its plans, several leaks and predictions are starting to give an idea of what Windows 12 will look like. Microsoft’s advances in this area with Bing and OpenAI, the publisher of ChatGPT – the biggest novelty of Windows 12 should be its completely redesigned architecture. According to specialists from Windows Central, the publisher’s development teams would work on a modular structure called CorePC which would be inspired, in part, by macOS, Apple’s operating system. The idea would be to abandon the monolithic side of current Windows, and in particular the legacy of older versions which weigh it down, to exploit a lighter structure, with a common core – hence the name CorePC – and adapted modules for different uses, with several levels of compatibility of functions and applications (office automation, education, creation, etc.). An architecture that would also make it possible to offer personalized editions of Windows 12 according to the available hardware configuration (laptop PC, gaming PC, etc.), in particular by getting rid of Win32, a heavy subset that not everyone needs today, but which remains present in all versions of Windows for compatibility reasons.
On a technical level, Windows 12 would take up a principle already used in macOS, iOS and even Android – and previously tested in a project called Core OS –, by distributing the system over several partitions, some of which are read-only, for sensitive modules, which would thus be inaccessible to the user and to third-party applications. A technique that also offers the advantage of offering partial updates more quickly, by facilitating maintenance. This “split” could remain completely transparent, as in macOS where the system is placed on one partition and the data on another, the user seeing only a single volume. But it is too early to know if Microsoft will adopt this mode, but we understand the interest of this “distribution system”, which would “physically” separate the “engine” of Windows from the rest (applications and data). If information from Windows Central is confirmed, this new modern and modular architecture could be a real revolution for Windows.
Furthermore, and again on a technical level, Microsoft seems to be emphasizing Rust, a modern programming language optimized for operating systems, which promises to improve both performance and stability – and which is already used to develop parts of the core of Windows 11. This profound evolution also comes with the gradual adoption of ReFS, the new file system intended to replace the venerable NTFS, again improving performance and robustness (see our article). Technical mutations practically invisible to the end user, but which show that Microsoft is modifying the Windows engine in depth.
Which PC for Windows 12?
Windows 11 lifted – and still lifts! – many criticisms as to its hardware requirements (see our article). And for good reason: it requires not only a recent processor but also a TMP 2.0 security chip, which prevents it from being used on very many PCs, even fairly recent ones (see our article). Of course, there are several ways to circumvent the constraints imposed by Microsoft (see our article), but you have to accept limitations and the lack of guarantee that everything will work correctly in the long term, especially for functional updates and security patches. . No wonder many prefer to stay on Windows 10, especially since Windows 11 is still noted for its bugs that sometimes lower its performance…
Unfortunately, and as expected, Windows 12 should not be more tolerant when it comes to hardware requirements. Worse: it could be even more greedy. Indeed, the specialists – generally well informed – of the site of the German site Deskmodder believe that Windows 12 will require at least 8 GB of RAM, double what Windows 11 requires. system. A system that is already very fat – but that can be lightened with tools like Tiny11Builder (see our article). Because we suspect that the majority of this RAM will be occupied by Windows, and not by “useful” applications and software, as is already the case for Windows 11.
Admittedly, 8 GB is not an unreasonable amount of Ram in 2023 – it is also the size of memory installed by default on most PCs currently on the market. But it is often the maximum for older computers. And, above all, this means that it will be necessary to count on 16 or even 32 GB to be able to use Windows 12 comfortably with software – and not simply to admire the Office! Clearly, if you buy a PC today hoping to upgrade to Windows 12 when it becomes available, take a model that can accommodate at least 16 GB to be quiet.
Fortunately, and still according to Deskmodder, Windows 12 should not be more demanding than Windows 11 for the processor: in principle – but this is still only speculation -, CPUs compatible with Windows 11 should run Windows 12 without being rejected. Similarly, only the famous TPM 2.0 chip would be required: it seems too early to call for a Pluto-type security system, like the one that equips the Ryzen 6000 AMD, even if it provides better protection by filling the faults of the TPM. Phew!
Which interface for Windows 12?
Error, clumsiness or leak discreetly organized to feed rumours? Hard to say. Still, when the Ignite conference that Microsoft held between October 12 and 14, 2022 for developers and IT professionals, experts with particularly keen eyesight had spotted in the presentations a strange screenshot that could give an idea of what to what Windows 12 will look like. As they explain in their article, the sleuths of Windows Central thought they recognized a prototype interface supposed to simplify interactions on the touch screens of laptops and tablets. And which could serve as a basis for the future system… The image seen briefly being of poor quality, these specialists had fun reconstructing it properly. And even if it is only a concept – a fantasy? –, several important points seem to emerge from the supposed projects of Microsoft.
Thus, in addition to an obvious general purification, which is part of the continuity of the process started for Windows 11, there is a greater modularity of the functional elements with even some ideas visibly inspired by macOS. The taskbar with its icons centered is still there, but it seems detachable, so it can be positioned anywhere on the screen. Status icons (Wi-Fi, battery, time) appear at the top right, like on a smartphone. And weather info is displayed in the upper left corner. While a floating search box – and resembling Spotlight on Mac – is found in the middle, at the top, independent of the taskbar. In fact, everything seems softer, and designed for hybrid use, both for touchscreen and for the classic keyboard-mouse couple.
When will Windows 12 be released?
Of course, Microsoft hasn’t announced anything official about Windows 12 yet. But we can legitimately assume that designers and ergonomists from Redmond are seriously working on the interface and functions of the future system to make it clearer, more practical. and more pleasant, taking into account the mistakes of the past – Windows Vista, Windows 8… – and the new expectations and habits of users. And we can also bet that Windows 12 should be released in the fall of 2024, as many experts predict. A likely date, which, three years after the launch of Windows 11, should allow the publisher to get off to a good start, having boosted its system with AI. We just have to hope that Microsoft does not make the same mistakes, by releasing a product prematurely, with simply aesthetic alterations and a few not always useful additions: it is high time to find a successful Windows, both reliable and innovative.