Is it worth joining Windows Insider?

[nystormer]

Hi everyone,

What are the benefits of joining Windows Insider? Is it primarily so that we can see advance features before they are released? Do we get bug fixes early too?

I want to see improvements faster, but don't want an unstable system. Would it be right for me to join?

 

[Trouble]

Would it be right for me to join?

Probably not. It can be a bit trying out on the edge with the Dev Channel.

IF you decide to take the plunge you might want to stick with the Release Preview Channel, it's going to provide you with the most stable version albeit at a much slower pace.

The Beta Channel is somewhere in the middle with respect to assessing risk versus stability.
Generally, reasonably stable, but...
Occasionally a bit glitchy.

What are the benefits

Nothing much in the way of rewards, outside a sneak peek into what's on the way.

I say, unless you have a physical machine, that you can set aside to run the Previews on or are comfortable using either Hyper-V or other virtual machine environments, the final risk to benefit analysis is going to be a pretty hard pass....
Even though I've been doing it since 2014 (Win10), it's always been on a spare physical machine or VM.

 

[nystormer]

Have you found problems with using Windows on the dev channel, like crashes? I want something quite stable, so the release preview sounds like it is suited.

 

[Trouble]

Have you found problems with using Windows on the dev channel, like crashes?

Not personally, but it's not for the faint of heart.
There are practically always some issues with some of the pieces and parts behaving badly which can be, at times, very annoying as well as frustrating. They're often resolved in subsequent releases but not something everyone is willing to deal with.

I want something quite stable, so the release preview sounds like it is suited.

That would be my recommendation if, you are determined to explore the Insider Preview Program.
While the "Release Preview Channel" is certainly the most stable of all the Insider options, it still may not be for everyone.

 

[Sir Vagus Mus]

Personally I would only join the Insider program if I was gonna do bug hunting and reporting, request features, etc. I did so for Windows 10 in the early days but it's not really worth it if you just want a regular computing experience on a production machine.

 

[Josey Wales]

No it is like the song Hotel California. You can check in any time you like but you can never leave. Build 22000.348 is now being released to the Public and I have been trying to get out of the Insider Program for two days. I am not in the Dev or Even The Beta channel but the RP. So I would not join it. I anyone know how to get out of it with a hack or something let me know.

 

[Bighorn]

And as was warned when the Insider Preview [formerly Technical Preview] became available, don't use it on your only machine or a production machine, things could break. I liked it on one machine but got out when Win11 came out and I didn't have a machine that could properly run it, didn't meet the system requirements.

 

[davehc]

This is significant. Quote from Josey Wales post "and I have been trying to get out of the Insider Program for two days"

I was a member a couple of years ago. I think in the end, I returned to a very old image of mine, before I became a member. It seemed the only way out

 

[Xploit Machine]

I use end-user version, still I managed to tweak some insider's feature via VIVETOOL ..Google it and download

 

[Bighorn]

This is significant. Quote from Josey Wales post "and I have been trying to get out of the Insider Program for two days"

The only way to leave it I found was to have the Retail disc for a custom computer or an OEM disc and do a full install. I've been out awhile and don't know if I can get back in on the old account.