Windows 11 system requirements
64-bit processor
4GB of RAM
64GB drive
1Ghz clock speed
UEFI, Secure Boot capable
TPM 2.0
A display larger than 9-inches with HD Resolution (1366x768)
DirectX 12 compatible graphics / WDDM 2.x
Internet connection for Windows 11 Home
Is it just me?
To me these requirements are extremely generous. 4GB of RAM? Seriously? I can’t imagine running Windows 10 (again) on my Thinkpad Twist with 4GB of RAM and an i5 processor from 2014, because it’s extremely laggy. Not to mention Windows 11.
That said, even cheap laptops for 200-300 bucks already have 8GB or at least 6GB RAM, if you are unlucky or you are trading off the RAM for something else in that particular laptop.
If the above requirements are true and not just show, then they are a great improvement. Especially the CPU and RAM part is extremely generous and old computer friendly.
I know, I am going to hit walls here in this forum, as I usually do with great pleasure, when I say the following, but:
Nobody cares about 32-bit support.
Wait, wait, before anyone wants to bludgeon me, let me tell you my short but I think convincing explanation.
Example from my personal life: I have two more than 11 year old laptops and one 7 year old laptop. All of them are 64-bit. No, they weren’t too expensive and modern when they were bought. This means, already more than 11 years ago, it was pretty normal to have a 64-bit device. So, if you are still running a 32-bit device today, it most likely is more than 15 years old.
No matter how much one hates Microsoft – you can’t expect a company to make technological progress and get better every single year and at the same time demand that 15 year old dumpster laptops still run this advanced technology. It’s a paradoxon and you have to decide, what is more important to you → what has a bigger priority in your life. If you by any means want to run your old dumpster with a CPU and RAM in it, then please, get some ToriOS or something like that, but don’t complain about a brand new OS not being capable of handle such an OS.
Sure, one could also argue about SBCs or other popular 32-bit based devices, but even then the same arguments are simply not applicable. First of all, using an ARM processor, means you need something like Windows IoT, anyway. So, Windows 10/11 is out of the question, anyway. And even then, modern Raspberry Pis actually already have 64-bit processors. The same goes for modern Raspberry Pi alternatives.
Additionally, I want to point out the simple fact, in case anyone missed it, that if the RAM you require for a minimum setup is already 4GB, then you are going to need to run a 64-bit OS anyway, else your device wouldn’t be able to suffice the minimal requirements, anyway, as you can’t go beyond ~3GB RAM with 32-bit processors.
Conclusion:
If you want to run your 8 or at max 10 year old device, I can still understand it, to a certain degree. However, if you want to run your 15 year old dumpster with a CPU and RAM in it, then don’t expect modern OSes to just be okay with that. If you want to run that dumpster, you are on your own, and there is nothing wrong with that.