4 reasons why people are holding onto Windows 10 (and why I think they’re wrong)

• Windows 11 doesn’t run well on older PCs
• Windows 10 is comfortable and stable
• Microsoft keeps pushing AI where it isn’t needed
• Windows 11 doesn’t offer any compelling improvements

As you might be aware, Microsoft recently pushed Windows 10 into an end-of-support phase, over 10 years after its initial release — well, sort of. The company is continuing to put out security updates if you enroll for them, so you’ll be able to use it for a while yet. Once that extended support is over in October 2026, however, you’ll be taking a risk whenever you go online, which might as well signal the death of the OS unless you’re extremely confident in third-party security tools and your Wi-Fi router‘s firewall.

Some people are still clinging on to Windows 10 despite all this, and Microsoft’s repeated attempts to get them to upgrade to Windows 11, which is already over four years old. I actually sympathize with the stalwarts — but when you look at the main reasons people are clinging onto the older platform, it increasingly looks like a refusal to adapt, rather than something that makes logical sense. I’ll explain that sentiment as I go along.

Windows 11 doesn’t run well on older PCs

Yes, but…

This is the big one, naturally. To run Windows 11 at all, a PC needs a 64-bit, dual-core processor clocked at 1GHz, and support for two key technologies, Secure Boot and TPM (Trusted Platform Module) 2.0. TPM is required for multiple Windows 11 features, such as BitLocker encryption and Windows Hello logins. In the case of Hello, it’s what allows your biometric data to be safely stored on-device, typically on a dedicated chip.

At this point, though, any PC that doesn’t drastically exceed Windows 11’s requirements is likely too slow to be relevant, unless perhaps it doesn’t do anything more than control a mall display or a machine in a factory. TPM 2.0 is five years old, and can usually be switched on via software if it’s not already active. Secure Boot has been around even longer, baked into Windows since 2012. And if you’re still running a 32-bit PC in 2025, it’s a dinosaur, because 64-bit consumer processors have been around since 2004.

At this point, any PC that doesn’t drastically exceed Windows 11’s requirements is likely too slow to be relevant.

It’s true that any graphics card you use has to support DirectX 12 or later, which might be a tougher ask — yet even GPUs reaching back to 2014 are compatible, and I guarantee you’ll want something better than that if you want to play modern games. If your PC can’t run Windows 11, you’re probably long overdue for an upgrade. It’s going to feel like Neo waking up from the Matrix.

Windows 10 is comfortable and stable

Time to evolve

There’s an appeal to a “lived-in” operating system. It’s like my electric unicycle — it might seem intimidating at first, but once you develop the muscle memory for it, using it is as intuitive as breathing. Any good interface really is meant to fade into the background, letting you focus on what you’re trying to accomplish rather than how you’re doing it. I’ll bet a lot of Windows 10 users barely blink when they need to tweak settings or customize the software’s layout.

Windows 11 is going to be around for quite a while, so you’ll probably have to adapt to it sooner or later.

Windows 11 does make some controversial changes to the taskbar and Start menu, among other things, but having used most major versions of Windows since 3.1, I find it just as quick and functional as any previous release once you get past the initial learning curve. That curve isn’t even steep, since Windows 10 and 11 frequently look identical in screenshots until you begin picking apart the details. There’s no sense missing out on the new software’s improvements. Windows 11 is also going to be around for quite a while, so you’ll probably have to adapt to it sooner or later.

As for stability, Windows 10 is about as rock-solid as you could ask for, but Windows 11 has plenty of updates under its belt, and a year from now, it’s going to be the only one getting further improvements.

Microsoft keeps pushing AI where it isn’t needed

The battle against the bloat

This is where I most empathize with the holdouts. While Copilot is present in Windows 10, it’s something you can easily ignore or uninstall. In Windows 11, Microsoft seems hellbent on integrating it wherever possible. This goes well beyond putting a shortcut in your taskbar. Multiple features are now based on Copilot, such as Recall activity histories, Click to Do action suggestions, and AI help in Settings. There’s even AI in Paint, that most basic of art tools.

My advice is to get used to Copilot being around, and keep ignoring it when it doesn’t accomplish anything.

While these features might be genuinely useful to some people, I find them to be bloatware, options that I rarely if ever bother with. Recall is controversial — while it’s currently an opt-in function with encryption and filtering safeguards, some people still don’t like the idea of Windows taking screenshots of almost everything they do on the off chance they might need to remember something.

You can uninstall Copilot from Windows 11 as well, but that feels increasingly futile given Microsoft’s priorities. My advice then is to get used to it being around, and keep ignoring it when it doesn’t accomplish anything. Who knows — you might learn to appreciate it more than I do.

Windows 11 doesn’t offer any compelling improvements

It’s the little things

Yes, apart from compatibility with future software and hardware, Windows 11 doesn’t offer any must-have upgrades at first glance. A few changes are honestly baffling, such as Recall and the Widgets panel. The Widgets panel is generally useless apart from weather forecasts — by default, it’s full of seemingly random news stories, and it assumes that everyone has a vested interest in sports and the stock market. You have to spend time customizing your feed to get anything meaningful, which is redundant when you could just visit a few websites every day the way you probably already do.

Windows 10 is effectively a time capsule at this stage — a major leap from the disaster that was Windows 8, but a capsule nevertheless.

The more time you spend with Windows 11, though, the more its smaller improvements stand out. Notepad gets tabs and autosave functions. File Explorer has better contextual and toolbar menus, plus native support for RAR and 7-Zip archives. If you’re a gamer, you can take advantage of technologies like Auto HDR and DirectStorage, assuming of course that your computer is compatible. Just about everyone will appreciate the availability of Snap Layouts for multitasking, and Windows Hello-based passkeys, which are more secure and convenient than passwords.

More importantly, perhaps, you need to be onboard with Windows 11 if you want to continue seeing enhancements. Some of the things I’ve mentioned in this article weren’t originally in the OS, but have since been patched in. Windows 10 is effectively a time capsule at this stage — a major leap from the disaster that was Windows 8, but a capsule nevertheless.