Microsoft Releases Windows 11, Mac Virtualization Support Still Seems Unlikely

Following three months of beta testing, Microsoft has officially released Windows 11, which brings a new design, new multitasking features, and other software additions to the PC-using public.


Perhaps inspired by macOS, the main Windows 11 screen features rounded corners on several interface elements including application windows, and in combination with a new theming system that combines specific wallpapers with colors, the overall design looks modern, with more depth and less clutter than Windows 10, which is now six years old.

In the clearest design change, the refreshed desktop moves the Start menu and taskbar, interface elements that are familiar to all Windows users, to the center of the screen, a location not dissimilar to where the Dock lives in macOS.

windows 11 3
The taskbar includes shortcuts to Microsoft's Edge browser, widgets, Teams integration, and File Explorer. Meanwhile, gone are the Live Tiles in the Start menu, which has been stripped down for a cleaner, simpler look, and now houses links to apps and recently used files.

In the bottom-right corner of the screen, the new Action Center and System Tray sports a design reminiscent of the Control Center in the macOS menu bar, and is home to sound, display, Bluetooth, network controls, and pop-out notifications.

windows 11 4
Another area where Windows 11 appears to have taken a leaf out of Apple's book is its approach to widgets. Where widgets on macOS slide in from the right side of the screen via Notification Center, Windows 11 has them sliding in from the left side, with a panel that includes weather and news widgets by default.

One of the most notable additions in this version of Windows is in the area of multitasking. Like in macOS with Spaces, users can create multiple virtual desktops for different sets of apps. In addition, a new Snap Assist feature appears when the mouse pointer hovers over the maximize button, and offers up several window layouts that app windows can snap to. These layouts are remembered by Windows and appear as Snap Groups in the taskbar.

windows 11 2
Elsewhere, there's a new Microsoft app store featuring many new popular apps, and in a clear divergence from Apple, Microsoft also plans to host third-party stores in its Microsoft Store, including an Epic Games store, although there's no sign of the promised Android apps yet (Microsoft says it plans to preview them before the end of the year.)

windows 11 1
Windows 11 will come pre-installed on newer PCs, and Microsoft is also offering the new operating system as an upgrade for Windows 10 users who have a machine that includes the necessary Trusted Platform Module (TPM). Macs powered by ‌Apple silicon do not support Windows and there is no Boot Camp feature like there is on Intel Macs, but support for Windows is a feature that many users would like to see, at least via virtualization software.

However, Microsoft recently dampened hopes that Windows will be able to work on Apple silicon, saying that running an Arm version of Windows 11 on M1 Macs, via virtualization or otherwise, is not "a supported scenario."

Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi last year said that Windows coming to ‌‌‌M1‌‌‌ Macs is "up to Microsoft." The ‌‌‌M1‌‌‌ chip contains the core technologies needed to run Windows, but Microsoft seems unwilling to license its Arm version of Windows to Mac users.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro and Air Feature

Two iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air Colors Appear to Scratch More Easily

Friday September 19, 2025 10:02 am PDT by
As reported by Bloomberg today, some of the new iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air models on display at Apple Stores today are already scratched and scuffed. French blog Consomac also reported on this topic. The scratches appear to be most prominent on models with darker finishes, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max in Deep Blue, and the iPhone Air in Space Black. Images Credit: Consoma ...
iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.1 Beta 1

Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about. New Apple Intelligence Languages Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. AirPo...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone Like 'Two Titanium iPhone Airs' Joined at the Hinge

Monday September 22, 2025 2:16 am PDT by
Next year's rumored foldable iPhone will showcase an ultra-thin design resembling "two titanium iPhone Airs side-by-side," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says Apple's first foldable device will be "super thin and a design achievement," combining Apple's thinnest iPhone form factor with cutting-edge folding...
Apple Intelligence General Feature 2

iOS 26.1 Adds New Apple Intelligence Languages and Expands AirPods Live Translation

Monday September 22, 2025 11:15 am PDT by
With iOS 26.1, Apple Intelligence is gaining support for additional languages, including Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. Apple announced plans to expand the languages that can be used with Apple Intelligence last year, and now the added language support is here. Apple Intelligence is now available in the following...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air N1 Feature

Some iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Users Experiencing Intermittent Wi-Fi Issue

Monday September 22, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple's latest iPhone models launched on Friday, and some early adopters of the devices are experiencing intermittent Wi-Fi issues. Affected customers say Wi-Fi connectivity periodically cuts out on the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air, with hundreds of comments about the issue posted across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, and the Apple Support Community over the...
iOS 26

iOS 26.0.1 Coming Soon, Likely With iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Fix

Thursday September 18, 2025 9:17 am PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The update will have a build number of 23A350, or similar, the account said. It is likely that iOS 26.0.1 will fix a camera-related bug on the new iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro models. In his iPhone Air review, CNN Underscored's Henry T. ...

Top Rated Comments

NachoGrande Avatar
52 months ago

Lipstick on a pig
obviously haven't used windows in a long time...
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hortod1 Avatar
52 months ago
Lipstick on a pig
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
asiga Avatar
52 months ago

[...] Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi last year said ('https://www.macrumors.com/2020/11/20/craig-federighi-on-windows-for-m1-macs/') that Windows coming to ‌‌M1‌‌ Macs is "up to Microsoft." [...]
Well... to be honest... it's also "up to Apple", because if Apple decides to stop supporting users of professional applications such as Revit, Ansys, Robot Structural Analysis, CYPECAD, Catia, SolidWorks, Tekla Structures, and an endless list of professional engineering applications... then, well, you can say it's "up to Microsoft", but the thing is that Microsoft is not losing these customers. It's Apple who loses them.

Forget seeing the Mac in engineering universities. You'll see iPads, but no Macs anymore.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
emmab2006 Avatar
52 months ago
the Sheer arrogance on this forum is ridiculous. MacOS is not the sacred OS, it has faults just like windows does. i Congratulate Microsoft on their reelase.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
a m u n Avatar
52 months ago
Microsoft does not want Windows to run on M1 because it is faster than on Surface laptops & other Windows laptops. ?
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BlindBandit Avatar
52 months ago
I wish MS would get it together. Why not support Windows on Mac. I'm thinking of picking up a new Macbook pro when they come out. I would gadly pay MS to use Windows on a mac!
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)