Xbox Mode is getting a smart new feature that makes switching back to the Windows desktop effortless

Windows 11 has a new Gaming Task View for XBOX mode that helps users hop back to the desktop or adjust power options for a device. That feature is now in testing among Windows Insiders.

Microsoft released builds in every Windows Insider channel to wrap up the week. I've listed all the changes below except those exclusive to the Release Preview channel since those features have largely been in testing before today.

While the update to XBOX mode is the headline feature of these builds, there are several other welcome changes. For example, Windows Hello can now temporarily brighten your screen to help you sign in when in a dark room.

Gaming (Beta, Experimental)

• We're introducing a refreshed Gaming Task View experience in XBOX mode, featuring a new navigation bar that provides quick access to Exit to Desktop and Power Options. This update makes key system actions easier to access while gaming.

Magnifier (Beta)

Magnifier now understands each of your displays

• More and more of the work people do happens across more than one screen. You draft on one display and keep source material open on another. You fill in a form while a reference document sits beside it. Those extra displays can be more helpful when each one can do its own job, and now Magnifier supports exactly that.
• To use this update, set your monitors to Extend in System > Display, not Duplicate, so Windows treats each screen as its own space.
• Every screen keeps its own view at its own zoom. In earlier versions of Magnifier, zooming in stretched a single magnified view across all of your displays, so one screen's zoom followed you everywhere and screen edges blurred together. With this update, each monitor's boundary is respected, and each monitor can have its own zoom percentage. Your writing screen can be at 300% while your reference screen stays at 150%, and the magnified view no longer spills from one display into the next. This behavior matters because different tasks and screen resolutions often require different levels of magnification to remain comfortable to read.

Setting the zoom on each screen is easy. Choose whichever method feels natural:

• Move your mouse pointer onto the screen you want to adjust, then press Windows key + Plus (+) or Windows key + Minus (-), or hold Ctrl + Alt and rotate your mouse wheel.
• Set the percentages directly in Accessibility > Magnifier.
• Drag the Magnifier toolbar onto a specific screen to adjust that screen from its on-screen controls.
• Per-monitor zoom is turned on by default. If you prefer the classic behavior where a single zoom spans all of your displays, you can turn per-monitor zoom off at any time from either the Magnifier toolbar or Accessibility > Magnifier. You can turn it back on whenever you like.

Keep the view that matters, right where you need it

• As you move your mouse from screen to screen, the magnified view naturally follows your pointer. Sometimes this might cause you to lose sight of the content that you're actively working on.
• Viewport locking keeps that view in place. For example, you might be drafting an email based on a section of a document open on another display. Position that display so the paragraph you need is in view, press Ctrl + Windows key + K, and the screen holds its view steady while you move your cursor over to write. The locked screen stays fully live and interactive, so you can glance back, click, or copy from it whenever you need to, and its view stays put until you release it.
• A message appears on the screen when it's locked, so you always know what's being held. To lock or unlock a screen, point your mouse at that screen and press Ctrl + Windows key + K again. To release everything at once, press Windows key + Esc to dismiss all locks. You can change the lock shortcut to Ctrl + Alt + P in Accessibility > Magnifier.

Settings - Home (Beta)

• We're beginning to expand the new Device Info Card experience for Settings Home to additional markets globally. Available for Windows Insiders signed in with their Microsoft account, the Device Info Card provides a quick snapshot of your PC's key specifications and usage. From the card, you can go directly to Settings > System > About to see more detailed information about your PC.

Settings - Privacy & security (Experimental (26H1))

• The improved Privacy & security page in Windows Settings helps you find the Camera, Microphone, and Location privacy controls more easily. It groups similar controls across the page and brings usage information from deeper linked pages onto this page.

File Explorer (Beta)

• Key file information, such as name, location, and date, now appears in a consistent layout on the File Explorer search results page, making search results easier to scan.

File Explorer (Experimental)

• Improved responsiveness of folder views so they update and sort correctly when files and folders are added or renamed.

Family Safety (Beta, Beta (26H1), Experimental (26H1))

• Improved family safety messaging when applications are blocked because of age-restricted parental controls.

Other (Beta, Experimental)

• Improved shutdown reliability, reducing the chance of a hang on shutdown in certain cases.
• The dialog for certain system messages, like low battery and permissions, should use the expected modern design again.

Other (Beta (26H1), Experimental (26H1))

• Fixed an issue with msmpeg2ac3dec.dll which was leading to some apps and games crashing recently.

Web sign-in (Experimental)

• Web sign-in now works on Microsoft Entra hybrid joined devices. Before this update, it was only available on Microsoft Entra joined devices. You can sign in to Windows at the lock screen with a passwordless credential: a FIDO2 security key, a passkey on your phone, or a Temporary Access Pass (TAP). You don't need a password. Once you're signed in, Windows gets a Kerberos ticket, so on-premises file shares and internal sites keep working. For more information, see Use web sign-in to enable passwordless sign-in in Windows.

Windows Hello (Experimental)

• Windows Hello facial recognition can temporarily brighten your screen to help you sign in when you're in a dark or dimly lit room.
• To turn on this feature, go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options > Facial recognition (Windows Hello) and turn on Automatically adjust screen brightness during face recognition.

Windows Search (Experimental)

• Addressed underlying issues that could cause search to appear missing or stop working after the previous update, including if you rapidly clicked the search icon repeatedly.

Search (Experimental (26H1))

• Search home has been simplified to reduce visual clutter and make it easier to get back to recent searches quickly.
• Search does a better job showing where a result comes from, whether it's an app, setting, file, web result, or Store suggestion, so it's easier to tell what you're looking at and where you'll go before you click.
• A new setting in Settings > Privacy & security > Search lets you choose whether web and Microsoft Store suggestions appear alongside local results.

Run (Experimental)

• Improved the window position when using an Arabic or Hebrew display language.
• Improved performance of the Run dialog when navigating to very large folders.
• Fixed an issue where your text might unexpectedly disappear if you started typing too quickly after opening Run.
• Made a few other small visual fixes and refinements.

Pointer Indicator (Experimental (26H1))

• We're introducing the Pointer Indicator accessibility setting. This feature enables Windows users with low vision to easily locate and use their cursor to increase productivity and efficiency when using a Windows device.
• To enable this experience, go to Settings > Accessibility > Mouse pointer and touch, and enable the Pointer indicator setting. You can also search for the setting by name. When the setting is enabled, you can toggle it on or off with the keyboard shortcut, Windows logo key + Ctrl + Shift + X.

Live Captions (Experimental (26H1))

• We're improving Live Captions with a new Include Screen Reader audio setting, which is off by default. With the setting off, Live Captions won't transcribe audio from screen readers such as Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, keeping captions focused on microphone and system audio.

Taskbar

• New! This update improves animations of app window previews when you move the mouse across app icons in the taskbar.
• This update improves the underlying state persistence of taskbar settings related to multiple monitors across monitor connections and disconnections.

Since revamping the Windows Insider Program earlier this year, Microsoft has sped up its release schedule for builds. As a result, we often end the week with a batch of five or six new builds to check out.

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