Microsoft is planning to throttle the amount of power that background apps can use to improve battery life in Windows 10. The software giant is testing out a new power throttling feature in the latest Windows 10 preview build (16176) which is designed to save as much as 11 percent battery usage. Windows 10 testers can access the new throttling system on Intel 6th generation and above processors, so you’ll need Skylake or Kaby Lake chips to make use of it for now.
Windows 10 will soon throttle background apps to save your battery life
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge
is a senior correspondent and author of Notepad, who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 years.
The power slider has appeared again in the latest Windows 10 preview build, and you can opt out individual apps from the power throttling too. Microsoft won’t enable power throttling when a laptop is plugged in, and you can use the slider to enable the best performance or best battery life on the go.
Microsoft started testing a similar feature before the Creators Update, but the company didn’t ship it in time. It’s clear this power throttling feature has now been delayed to Microsoft’s next major Window 10 update, expected to ship later this year.
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