[German]Microsoft is working on new features for Windows 11 that will be rolled out as a feature drop update in spring 2024. This package, which has also been referred to as the Moments 5 update for Windows 11 23H2, is expected to be released on Patchday in April 2024. There is even speculation that it could be traded as 24H1 – but I personally think this is unlikely.
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Feature Drop update (Moments 5)
Microsoft only wants to deliver a feature update for Windows 10 and Windows 11 once a year. However, the developers have provided the option of rolling out innovations to the user interface or applications out of sequence as so-called feature drops or moment packages with regular updates.
In December 2023, there were first reports (e.g. from Windows Central in the article The next Windows 11 feature drop is coming in early 2024 — here's what to expect), which reported a feature drop update in early 2024. I had posted the above roadmap in the article Windows Platform Roadmap for 2024: Microsoft's plans for the coming year, where a Moments update for Windows 11 is listed, which could come in February/March 2024.
- For Europe, Microsoft primarily wants to implement the changes to Windows 11 that are required for compliance with the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA). In the blog post Windows 10/11: Changes due to the European Digital Markets Act, I provided some information on this – e.g. the Edge browser should be uninstallable.
- According to Windows Central, Microsoft is working on upgrades to some of the accessibility features built into Windows 11, improvements to Windows 365 cloud PC integration, and the ability to remove messages from the Widgets Board and Bing from the Windows Search pane.
- Martin writes on ghacks that Microsoft could replace Windows 11's default wallpapers with dynamic Spotlight wallpapers, is planning an option to add friendly device names for the operating system's Nearby Share feature and, of course, will introduce or improve AI features across the board. Notepad could also get a character counting option.
Windows Central wrote in the above-linked post that this update is running internally at Microsoft as a "February 2024 Moment" and should reach RTM status in February. It could then be delivered a few weeks later – perhaps in March 2024 via Windows Update.
Dell says: Moments 5 is coming in April
At the end of last week, there were initial reports (e.g. here) that the Moments 5 feature drop would be delivered on the second Tuesday (patch day) in April 2024. The reports draw this information from the announcement of new Dell XPS notebooks on January 4, 2023. One user noticed that the marketing material mentions "Windows 11 version 24H1" – as he writes in the following tweet.
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The term "Moments 5" update is also mentioned there – although I don't currently believe that this feature drop update will be released to users as "Windows 11 24H1". Microsoft will reserve "Windows 11 24H2" for the second half of 2024 as a feature update. According to Neowin.net, a footnote in the Dell marketing material mentions that Wi-Fi 7 will be supported. But this Windows 11 "version 24H1" for Dell XPS notebooks is not scheduled to be available for download until April 2024. The factory installation of this version on the machines is planned from August 2024.
But it's all still very much speculation – and I personally wouldn't attach anything to the name "Windows 11 24H1". What is emerging from the reports is that the "Moment 5" update is to be completed in February 2024. At the end of March 2024, it could be offered as a preview update via the Windows Update search (for Seekers). It would then be distributed to all Windows 11 users with Windows 11 23H2 on April 2024 Patchday, Tuesday, April 9, 2024. Let's see if this is the case.
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