Windows 12 Requirements & Release date in short

A year after the release of Windows 11, various rumors about Windows 12 are still spreading. Microsoft is planning to switch to a new update series for Windows and Windows 11 will not release 23H2 or 24H2 updates in the coming months. In fact, the company has stopped providing updates for Windows 11 23H2 “Sun Valley 3” Build. However, the latest reports state that the builds of Windows 12 have already started.

Windows 12 Release date

You can learn more about this in Microsoft’s new Windows Update Roadmap. Based on that roadmap, Windows is expected to move to a 3-year release cycle. Windows 11 was released in 2021, which means that Windows 12 is likely to be released in 2024.

New features to be released in Windows 12

It is reported that Microsoft will remove the annual update process in Windows 12 as well. The company has developed a new feature called “Moments” which will bring new features throughout the year. Windows 12 is expected to deliver at least four such features in a year.

Windows 12: Hardware Requirements

Microsoft says that if Windows 12 is selected for the OS of a computer, the need for TPM must exist. However, a user who is already using Windows 11 as the OS can be confident that he can run Windows 12 as well.

The expected hardware requirements of Windows 12 are as follows.

• Processor: 1GHz or faster with 2 or more cores on a compatible 64-bit processor or System on a Chip (SoC)
• Memory: at least 4 GB RAM
• Storage: 64 GB or larger storage device
• System firmware: UEFI, Secure Boot capable
• TPM: TPM Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0
• Graphics card: Compatible with DirectX 12 or later with WDDM 2.0 driver
• Display: High definition (720p) display, greater than 9-inch diagonally and 8 bits per color channel support
• Internet connection and Microsoft accounts: requires internet connectivity and a Microsoft account to complete device setup on first use

Will it be free like Windows 11?

According to Microsoft, just like updating from Windows 10 to 11 was free, updating from Windows 11 to Windows 12 will also be free. Furthermore, the company says that it will provide an option to install Windows 12 without any charge for PCs that are still running Windows 10. However, this free version will not work for custom-built PCs. That is, if such computer users want to run Windows 12 as the OS, they will have to purchase this upcoming OS.

Although all these details about Windows 12 have not been officially mentioned by Microsoft, it can be expected that Windows 12 will be released as the next version of Windows.