Tech

Windows 11 is bringing back Sound Recorder with a new design

Enlarge / Sound Recorder is back, but it’s wearing Voice Recorder’s clothes. (credit: Microsoft) Windows’ Sound Recorder app has gone through a few iterations since its initial release in Windows 3.0 back in 1990, when it launched as a simple app that could only record 60 seconds of audio at a time. But the app […]

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Gamers are adopting Windows 11 about half as quickly as they did for Windows 10

Enlarge (credit: Microsoft) There was a time shortly after Windows 10’s release when Microsoft would release specific adoption numbers frequently, trumpeting how quickly the then-novel free update was being adopted by users of Windows 7 and Windows 8. The company hasn’t repeated that strategy for Windows 11, leaving us to rely on third-party data to […]

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New wallpapers and better window snapping come to latest Windows 11 preview builds

Enlarge / A PC running Windows 11. (credit: Microsoft) Windows 11 has settled down a lot since its original release, but Microsoft continues testing new features and tweaks to the operating system in its Insider Preview program. So far this month, the builds have focused on bug fixes and UI tweaks, but a few notable […]

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Annoying desktop watermark comes to users of unsupported Windows 11 PCs

Enlarge / Windows 11 running on an old Windows 7-era HP laptop. (credit: Andrew Cunningham) Windows 11 has stricter system requirements than any Windows version before it, dropping support for a wide range of pre-2018 PCs in the name of improving the Windows platform’s security baseline. You can work around these requirements to install Windows […]

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Roshan accidentally reveals that it is usually testing ads in Windows Traveler

Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson / Ars Technica ) House windows 11 testers are regularly acquiring new Windows 11 features of which Microsoft wasn’t ready to demonstrate anyone yet. Sometimes that implies digging up a new Task Manager or tabs for the File Explorer . And often it means selecting advertisements for other Microsoft goods as […]

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Microsoft company accidentally reveals that it will be testing ads in Windows Browser

Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson / Ars Technica ) Home windows 11 testers are regularly getting new Windows 11 features that will Microsoft wasn’t ready to display anyone yet. Sometimes that indicates digging up a new Task Manager or tabs for the File Parcourir . And frequently it means locating advertisements for other Microsoft items as […]

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Microsoft accidentally reveals that it is testing ads in Windows Explorer

Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson / Ars Technica ) Windows 11 testers are regularly finding new Windows 11 features that Microsoft wasn’t ready to show anyone yet. Sometimes that means digging up a new Task Manager or tabs for the File Manager . And sometimes it means obtaining advertisements for other Microsoft products as you browse […]

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A mixed bag of Windows 11 beta updates includes hidden File Explorer tabs

Enlarge / The File Explorer is finally getting some tabs. (credit: Rafael Rivera ) Microsoft is testing a tabbed interface for the Windows 11 File Explorer, according to screenshots from developer Rafael Rivera. You can’t access the feature without changing hidden settings in the latest Insider Preview build for the Dev channel, but XDA Developers […]

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Microsoft is trying to lower carbon emissions via Windows Update, of all things

Enlarge / Windows Update will try to do its thing when your local power grid is being powered with green energy sources. (credit: Microsoft) A future Windows 11 update might make your PC more environmentally conscious. In the latest Windows Insider preview build released to the Dev channel, Microsoft is testing out a new feature […]

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Microsoft identifies and mitigates new malware targeting Ukraine “within 3 hours”

Enlarge (credit: Drew Angerer | Getty Images) Microsoft has been pushing harder to increase the baseline security features of Windows PCs for a couple of years now—the “secured-core PC” initiative launched back in 2019 was meant to guard against firmware-level attacks, and Windows 11’s system requirements mandate support for many supported-but-optional security features from Windows […]