The topic Microsoft is finally letting you delay Windows updates to a day you actually want is currently the subject of lively discussion — readers and analysts are keeping a close eye on developments.
This is taking place in a dynamic environment: companies’ decisions and competitors’ reactions can quickly change the picture.
The topic of using Windows Update has always been a tug-of-war between the user and Microsoft. Users would prefer that they update Windows on their own whim, while Microsoft would prefer that everyone download the updates as soon as they are released for the new fixes and features.
The current middle ground is the Windows Update pause feature, which does let you delay the updates, but only for pre-set amounts of time. Now, Microsoft is seemingly working on a far more elegant solution that allows people to choose the date they want to delay the update to.
This insight into how Windows 11 is shaping up is all thanks to PhantomOfEarth's post on X. If this is your first time meeting them, Phantom loves to dig through Windows Insider builds for work-in-progress and experimental features that Microsoft hasn't enabled yet. Their posts give a cool peek behind the curtain and let us see what Microsoft is working on right now.
This time around, Phantom struck gold, as they found a new Windows 11 pause updates selector that lets you pick what day you want the update delivered. It's a big step up from picking from the preset time periods and either hoping you're fine to update on that day or having to adjust it later manually.
So, how long can we delay updates for? Well, we're not sure yet. While Phantom does reply to the original post with screenshots showing off the calendar with pickable dates, they do warn us to exercise caution when drawing conclusions from them, as the feature "is in a preview build where it isn't even rolling out." Still, it's nice to see that people are regaining a little bit more control over when Windows 11 updates.
