Windows 10’s next update could include a predictable but annoying extra – even more hassle to upgrade to Windows 11
Some Windows 10 users are apparently being treated (ahem) to a multi-panel pop-up that takes over the entire screen and consists of three pages convincing people with eligible PCs to get the upgrade to Windows 11.
This kind of long-winded quibble – three full screens selling the upgrade to Windows 11 – has been seen before, but now appears again, as evidenced by Windows Latest.
The tech site noted that they encountered this lengthy pop-up after installing the optional update (in preview) for January 2024.
The first screen informs the user about the available free upgrade to Windows 11 and suggests downloading it in the background (while still using the PC).
As we’ve seen before, there are sneaky tactics with the buttons too – both available options in the center of the screen say ‘yes’ to the upgrade (the choice is to get it right now or schedule the upgrade for later). If you want to keep Windows 10, that selection is kind of tucked away at the bottom of the screen.
If you click to keep the current operating system, it means you still have to navigate through two more pages, the first of which tells you that the best choice is to switch to Windows 11, and the second of which lets you confirm that you want stay on Windows 10.
We should note that Windows Latest calls this a four-page popup, but that’s not entirely true. There’s a fourth panel, but you’ll only see it if you click the See What’s Inside button to learn more about Windows 11 (which most upgrade avoiders obviously won’t see).
Analysis: Stop it already – or at least be more concise
And that’s really the point of the aforementioned upgrade avoiders: we all know what Windows 11 is by now, and we know if our PC qualifies for a free upgrade. Mainly because Microsoft did that repeatedly told us that with overly long ads for Windows 11 like this one. In fact, we’ve teased about 10 times to upgrade our Windows 10 PC (at least), with the last three (or maybe even four) being this multi-panel effort that requires some clicking through.
So why is Microsoft still doing this, since this is certainly not new information at this stage of the game? Okay, so we understand that Windows 11 is struggling to attract users, so there’s an obvious problem that needs to be fixed. But if you’re going to do this kind of thing, Microsoft, we recommend that you at least come up with a new, more concise nag screen to indicate the upgrade (if you must).
Considering that this popup appeared after installing the latest preview update during testing, it’s entirely possible that Windows 10 users will experience this after installing the February cumulative update, which is rolling out a week today (and is the finished version of that preview). So make sure you train the index finger of the mouse correctly so that you can click through the panels as quickly as possible.
That said, it’s obviously not a foregone conclusion that this will happen, but these types of sprawling popups appear quite regularly on eligible Windows 10 PCs anyway, as noted.