We all thought that Windows 11 would revolutionize our PC experience, and it’s a shame because, despite Microsoft’s promises, it seems to be underperforming, even on supercharged machines. At least that’s the bitter conclusion drawn by Andy Young, a former engineer at the Redmond firm, in a post on Twitter.
The man has a PC equipped with a $1600 Intel Core i9 processor and no less than 128GB of RAM—a racing beast designed to handle the most demanding tasks effortlessly. And yet, when he launches the Windows 11 Start menu, it’s a cold shower. The icons struggle to display, the clicks disappear into limbo; in short, it’s utter chaos.
“The performance is comically bad, but what is happening in Redmond?“
Because yes, Andy Young is no ordinary critic. For 13 years, he worked at Microsoft as a senior software engineer. He was involved in the development of Windows and knows the system’s intricacies like the back of his hand. So, when he sees his creation floundering like this, it breaks his heart.
“I love Windows, but here, if the data suggest that the software you’ve built is frustrating a significant percentage of users, then there’s still work to be done.”
Reactions to his tweet were quick to follow. Many users have shared their disappointment and frustration with Windows 11’s lackluster performance, even on robust configurations. Slow startups, latency in window display, and various bugs—complaints abound.
So, is Windows 11 simply an interstellar sham?
Maybe not, but it is clear that the user experience is far from optimal, despite the regular updates deployed by Microsoft. Will the next version of the system, codenamed Sun Valley 3, be able to turn things around?
We’ll see, but in the meantime, the most demanding users are increasingly looking towards Apple and especially Linux with its light and fast distributions.
In any case, if Windows 11 seems a bit clumsy, you should know that there are many tricks to boost its performance. For example, disable unnecessary visual effects, clean up your startup programs, optimize the registry… In short, a little targeted tuning can work wonders. And if nothing really helps, you can always revert to the good old Windows 10 while waiting for better days.
