It might not get the same kind of attention as Google and Apple, but Microsoft is still one of the biggest and most powerful tech companies operating today. It runs Azure, one of the biggest cloud computing services, and maintains Windows 11 and the whole Office suite of software. It also makes plenty of Surface hardware and has a whole slew of gaming products, including the Xbox Series X. But the company is ever expanding — building new hardware, acquiring new game studios, and making sure that even if Microsoft doesn’t run your phone, it can touch plenty of the apps on it.
Microsoft is looking at new ways to bundle third-party services into Game Pass.
Microsoft has been trying to launch an Xbox mobile store for years, but it has been counting on app stores opening up.
Microsoft just added its Xbox mode to the Release Preview version of Windows 11. That means the Xbox mode, that adds a full-screen interface to the Xbox PC app, is just days away from being available on all PCs. Microsoft did promise last month that it would roll out the Xbox mode to all PCs in April, and it looks like it’s rolling out on time.
Scott Hanselman is the VP of technical staff for CoreAI, GitHub, and Windows at Microsoft, but he’s also a developer that just brought a macOS Sonoma feature to Windows. PeekDesktop is a small system tray utility that lets you click an empty wallpaper to minimize open apps and interact with the desktop and restore everything with a click. You can kind of do this with Windows key + D, but Hanselman’s tool feels a lot more like macOS.
MAI-Image-2-Efficient is debuting on Microsoft Foundry and MAI Playground today, as Microsoft’s “best text-to-image model” yet. It’s essentially a faster and cheaper version of MAI-Image-2 that Microsoft claims is a “production workhorse” for businesses. “Use it when you need volume, speed, and tight cost control — product shots, marketing creatives, UI mockups, branded assets, batch pipelines,” says Microsoft.
[Microsoft AI]
Microsoft first launched Outlook Lite as a smaller app for Android devices in 2022, at the height of an industry focus on lightweight mobile apps. It was designed to be faster, use less battery, and work well across 2G and 3G networks. Microsoft now says it will fully retire Outlook Lite on May 25th, disabling mailbox access but still allowing the app to launch. It’s time to switch to the regular Outlook app if you’re still relying on Outlook Lite.
Microsoft is in the middle of fixing Windows 11 and it wants to hear more from the people that regularly test its OS updates. Microsoft is bringing back Windows Insider meetups, starting with an event in New York City on April 21st. Members of the Windows Insider team will also be visiting Hyderabad, Taipei, San Francisco, and London in the coming weeks.
[Windows Insider Blog]
Microsoft is working on UI improvements to the Xbox dashboard that will also include a new look and feel for Xbox achievements. Xbox Insiders can now test the new achievements, which have updated icons and animations when you unlock a classic or rare achievement. The notifications will also match your custom color. You’ll also be able to hide achievements from your Xbox profile later this month.
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The Zenbook A16 is a large laptop that weighs very little and performs great.
Microsoft is testing a Windows 11 feature that would let users “feel haptic feedback effects on compatible input devices while performing certain actions, such as aligning objects in PowerPoint, window snapping, resizing, or hovering over the Close button,” according to the Windows Insider Blog. This could be really cool on a good trackpad.
[Windows Insider Blog]
Even on NASA’s first crewed lunar mission in forever, the live stream captured astronauts having issues with Outlook (New) and Outlook (classic).
While I’m pretty sure the ship’s computers aren’t running on Windows, the crew is equipped with iPhones, tablets, and laptops “to review procedures and load entertainment onto before launch.”
OpenAI’s latest round of private investment has closed, with participation from Amazon, Nvidia, Softbank, and Microsoft, as well as $3 billion from individual investors, as it prepares for a potential IPO. This comes after it announced the end of its video generator Sora, and the announcement says it will focus on building a “unified superapp” with ChatGPT, Codex, browsing, and other agents all built in.
ChatGPT has 6x the monthly web visits and mobile sessions than the next largest AI app, while total AI time spent is 4x the next largest AI app and 4x all others combined. Search usage has nearly tripled in a year, and our ads pilot reached more than $100 million in ARR in under six weeks.
In addition to bringing Claude integration to Copilot for “long-running, multi-step tasks,” Microsoft is also launching an improved Researcher agent for information gathering and a new Critique feature, which essentially tasks GPT with drafting research and then has Claude give it an edit pass for accuracy.
[Microsoft 365 Blog]
I said PC makers are ill-prepared to compete with the MacBook Neo, and I’m putting it to the test. I’ve started calling in $600-700ish Windows laptops from Lenovo, Asus, Acer and more to pit against the Neo.
What do you want to know about them? What tests would you like to see? And what other laptops should I call in?
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Later this week Xbox will hold its latest games showcase. Unlike the Developer Direct in January, which focused on titles from Xbox studios, this stream will cover upcoming third-party titles, including the upcoming Expanse game. You can watch it live on March 26th at 1PM ET.
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Chessington World of Adventures is getting a new rollercoaster, “interactive adventures,” and, of course, a bunch of block-built attractions. There’s no exact opening date yet, but in the meantime, fans in Buenos Aires will be able to craft gear and explore “iconic Minecraft biomes” at Minecraft Experience: Moonlight Trail when it opens this May.
The Copilot buttons in Windows 11 have been getting out of control, and Microsoft is now starting to walk some of them back. It’s all part of the sweeping changes coming to Windows 11 to improve performance, reliability, and user experience. Microsoft says it’s “reducing unnecessary Copilot entry points, starting with apps like Snipping Tool, Photos, Widgets and Notepad.”
