Over time, Microsoft deprecates features in Windows depending upon low usage or the presence of potential security vulnerabilities. In the past few months, the company has announced deprecations for VBScript, Windows Mixed Reality, and Legacy Console mode. Now, the Redmond firm has revealed that yet another feature will join its graveyard of deprecated capabilities in Windows.

If you’re not already using it, Windows Phone Link is an increasingly useful tool for Android users who own PCs. In addition to notification, text, and call synchronization, earlier this year, Microsoft enabled us to use our phones as webcams — helpful if you have an old laptop with a poor quality cam but not exactly essential. However, the latest integration of Android files directly into Windows File Explorer without the need for a wire is a feature I’m wondering how I ever lived without.

Linking your Android phone to File Explorer does exactly what you’d expect: your smartphone files are listed within Windows File Explorer, seamlessly integrated alongside regular PC files, OneDrive, and any other storage you might have attached. While previously that was only possible over USB, this new implementation uses Phone Link to manage everything wirelessly. You can open your phone’s files, copy from Android to PC and vice versa, and rename, move, and delete files all over the air.

Never in my life did I think I would see affordable laptops get so good. And they get even cheaper when discounts hit! Take this ASUS VivoBook 14 as an example. This laptop is already cheap at $430, but you can get it for only $220 right now. That’s about a 48% discount!

Get the ASUS VivoBook 14 for a mere $220

This offer is available from Best Buy, and it only applies to the Quiet Blue color model. It is listed as part of a 48-hour flash sale, which ends this Saturday.

I am just amazed at what you can get these days for a measly $220. This is a Windows laptop with some pretty nice specs. It comes with a 12th-generation Intel Core i3 processor and 8GB of RAM, which is more than good enough for casual users, and can even handle some light gaming.

Other specs are pretty nice, too. It has a 128GB SSD, which isn’t much, but you could always take all the money you saved and get an external SSD, or rely more on cloud services. The 14-inch screen has an LED panel with a Full HD 1,080p resolution. It even comes with Wi-Fi 6E support. It could be an excellent laptop for the kids, or a casual user.

Again, this is a 48-hour flash sale, so you have to make up your mind quickly, before the deal ends. You have until tomorrow. Heck, it is such a good deal I am considering getting one, myself.

If you're a frequent user of the Windows Command Prompt, you might have noticed that it now opens up PowerShell by default in Windows 11. This feature has been around for many versions of Windows, and it's part souped-up command line, part automation tool, and part scripting language. While you can use it to run the same sort of tasks you used to use Command Prompt for, it's actually much more powerful and is an important tool in many IT professionals' daily lives.

Bloatware has become an inevitability with most of our devices. Even the best laptops and phones come with at least a dozen apps we don't want or need these days, and Windows 11 isn't safe from it. Some might argue that it's worse than ever, considering that out of the box, your Start menu will be littered with app icons you'll probably never use, on top of features like Copilot that just aren't for everyone yet. Both Microsoft and hardware manufacturers install a bunch of things you might not want or need.

Never in my life did I think I would see affordable laptops get so good. And they get even cheaper when discounts hit! Take this ASUS VivoBook 14 as an example. This laptop is already cheap at $430, but you can get it for only $220 right now. That’s about a 48% discount!

Get the ASUS VivoBook 14 for a mere $220

This offer is available from Best Buy, and it only applies to the Quiet Blue color model. It is listed as part of a 48-hour flash sale, which ends this Saturday.

I am just amazed at what you can get these days for a measly $220. This is a Windows laptop with some pretty nice specs. It comes with a 12th-generation Intel Core i3 processor and 8GB of RAM, which is more than good enough for casual users, and can even handle some light gaming.

Other specs are pretty nice, too. It has a 128GB SSD, which isn’t much, but you could always take all the money you saved and get an external SSD, or rely more on cloud services. The 14-inch screen has an LED panel with a Full HD 1,080p resolution. It even comes with Wi-Fi 6E support. It could be an excellent laptop for the kids, or a casual user.

Again, this is a 48-hour flash sale, so you have to make up your mind quickly, before the deal ends. You have until tomorrow. Heck, it is such a good deal I am considering getting one, myself.

Being able to connect your phone to your desktop PC or modern laptop to field messages or even make calls can be a huge boon to productivity, and there are plenty of ways of going about it. While iMessage works seamlessly across Macs and iPhones, getting iOS messages on Windows has been a bit trickier in the past. Fortunately, with apps like Microsoft's Phone Link and Intel Unison, it is easily doable with just a few steps involved in the setup process. You can also use third-party messenger apps like Telegram, Signal, or WhatsApp.

Microsoft Phone Link is the simplest way to connect an Android phone or iPhone to Windows 10 and 11. Not only is the app pre-installed for most Windows 11 users, but it’s also one of the easiest-to-use solutions, albeit with a feature set that’s a bit more basic compared to some third-party alternatives. Now, it’s about to become even more accessible, as today Microsoft announced it will soon integrate Phone Link features directly into the Start Menu.

The general functionality remains the same as ever, but it’s now more seamlessly integrated into the Windows experience. It’s also definitely more prominently placed than ever before. You’ll be able to see your phone’s battery status and connectivity, as well as access messages, calls, and photos right from the Start Menu. You’ll even be able to pick up exactly where you left off in activities from your phone and run select apps right on the big screen.

The only catch is that this new feature isn’t quite ready for prime time and there’s really no word on if or when it’ll hit the stable build of Windows 11. It’s only available to those enrolled in the Windows 11 Insider Program with Phone Link version 1.24052.124.0 or higher and will only work with Android phones to start. You’ll also need to be on Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.3790 or higher in the Beta Channel. Microsoft says the feature will roll out gradually. As an Insider, I can tell you the update has yet to reach my test laptop, so you might need to be patient a bit longer if this is something you’re keen to check out for yourself.

Troubleshooting issues in Windows 11, unfortunately, will be part of the experience of using a laptop or a desktop. Some issues are certainly more annoying than others. One category that always irritates me is anything to do with networking, as it can take multiple troubleshooting steps to resolve even basic issues. Maybe you've upgraded your Wi-Fi router, or set up a mesh network, and you've noticed that Windows is saying it could not automatically detect this network's proxy settings. Or, perhaps you've been using your laptop at school or work, and received this error when connecting back to your home network. Whatever the circumstances, this issue can be fixed fairly quickly, and I've highlighted the most useful troubleshooting steps below.

Remember when you could use a Local account on Windows without a problem? Microsoft added a way to sign into your PC with a Microsoft account, which began the company's crusade to get people off of using Local accounts. Now, the company has doubled down on its stance by removing a guide informing users on how to convert a Microsoft account into a Local one.

People really, really want Wordpad back. When Microsoft released Windows 11 24H2, it added a few new features and removed some old ones, including getting rid of the free word processor that has been around for years. Notepad has already superseded Wordpad, and there are plenty of other free word processors out there you can use instead, but people aren't happy with letting Wordpad go just yet. Someone has found a way to bring Wordpad back onto Windows 11 24H2, and you can do the same if you want this member of the Windows old guard back.

Enlarge / A rendering of the Copilot button. (credit: Microsoft)

Microsoft is all-in on its Copilot+ PC push right now, but the fact is that they'll be an extremely small minority among the PC install base for the foreseeable future. The program's stringent hardware requirements—16GB of RAM, at least 256GB of storage, and a fast neural processing unit (NPU)—disqualify all but new PCs, keeping features like Recall from running on all current Windows 11 PCs.

But the Copilot chatbot remains supported on all Windows 11 PCs (and most Windows 10 PCs), and a change Microsoft has made to recent Windows 11 Insider Preview builds is actually making the feature less useful and accessible than it is in the current publicly available versions of Windows. Copilot is being changed from a persistent sidebar into an app window that can be resized, minimized, and pinned and unpinned from the taskbar, just like any other app. But at least as of this writing, this version of Copilot can no longer adjust Windows' settings, and it's no longer possible to call it up with the Windows+C keyboard shortcut. Only newer keyboards with the dedicated Copilot key will have an easy built-in keyboard shortcut for summoning Copilot.

If Microsoft keeps these changes intact, they'll hit Windows 11 PCs when the 24H2 update is released to the general public later this year; the changes are already present on Copilot+ PCs, which are running a version of Window 11 24H2 out of the box.

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While the summer season often brings a slowdown in development cycles, recent announcements from Google and Microsoft suggest a period of active collaboration. This article ...

The post Interact with Your Android Phone from the Windows 11 Start Menu appeared first on Gizchina.com.

The next generation of Microsoft’s Phone Link feature may soon allow you to access your Android phone files from File Explorer on your Windows 11 device. The useful development would give you wirelessly access to your phone from your PC as easily as if it were an external hard drive with a wired connection to your computer.

This is the latest reported utility of the new Cross Device Experience Host from Windows, which looks set to subsume Phone Link as it rolls out more fully. Its clear aim is to make the connection between Windows and your Android phone more seamless, with features such as using your phone as a webcam and copying text from your phone’s photos coming to light earlier in the year.

For the past few weeks, the tech world has been discussing a controversial new Windows feature called Recall. This feature — which is not out yet but has been previewed by the press and select researchers — takes a snapshot of your Windows system every few seconds. These screenshots can then be searched using AI so you can copy text, download images, or simply look at what you were doing at a specific time so you can recreate that particular situation.

Now, due to public backlash to what appears to be an invasive and insecure product, Microsoft has announced a response to this controversy. In a lengthy blog post, the company lays out three core changes it is making to Recall:

Již dříve jsme informovali o nové funkci Microsoft Recall poháněné umělou inteligencí pro Windows 11 běžící na počítačích Copilot+PC, která nepřetržitě pořizuje snímky obrazovky vašich aktivit.

Když byl na konferenci Build oznámen upgrade s umělou inteligencí, vyskytly se určité bezpečnostní obavy. Zatímco Microsoft řešil výhrady ochrany soukromí prostřednictvím zajištění šifrování, bezpečnostní výzkumník nyní poukázal na některé vážné problémy s funkcí Windows AI a nenazval to nic menšího než bezpečnostní „katastrofa“.

Microsoft zajistil šifrovaný Recall zážitek, ale expert na kybernetickou bezpečnost Kevin Beaumont toto tvrzení zpochybnil. Při testování funkce Beaumont zjistil některé bezpečnostní chyby, protože data jsou uložena v prostém textu. Vyjádřil své hluboké obavy, že tato špatně provedená funkce způsobí vážné poškození image značky a zákazníků.

Podle výzkumníka jsou uživatelská data uložena v prostém textu v databázi SQLite, kde jsou uloženy všechny záznamy toho, co bylo zhlédnuto na PC. Protože jsou data uložena v uživatelské složce, mohou k nim přistupovat potenciální hackeři, kteří mohou napadnout počítače pomocí malwaru. Varoval uživatele, že s touto funkcí by měli očekávat, že kyberzločinci budou mít větší pravomoci a že dojde k nějakému vážnému „ super narušení s umělou inteligencí“ .

Zatímco Microsoft tvrdí, že k datům nemůže vzdáleně přistupovat žádný hacker, protože jsou uložena lokálně na zařízení a jsou šifrována, Beaumont tento postoj zpochybnil. Uvádí, že k databázi lze přistupovat, i když nejste správcem, a lze ji vzdáleně exfiltrovat prostřednictvím souborů AppData. Aby se ujistil, že jeho prohlášení je pravdivé, výzkumník exfiltroval data o předběžně vydané funkci a poté vytvořil webovou stránku, na kterou nahrál databázi, kde testoval, zda lze v souborech něco vyhledávat.

Beaumont si záměrně vyhradil technické podrobnosti o automatizovaném procesu infiltrace v databázi Recall. Řekl, že informace zatím záměrně nesděluje, protože čeká na reakci Microsoftu na situaci. Navrhuje, že je nejlepší prozatím pozastavit zavádění funkce kvůli potenciálním bezpečnostním problémům, které tato funkce může způsobit.

Společnost Microsoft dosud nereagovala na přetrvávající obavy týkající se bezpečnosti a ochrany osobních údajů, ale Recall je volitelná funkce, kterou lze zakázat, pokud se uživatelé necítí pohodlně ji používat. Mezitím Copilot+PC s funkcí Recall založenou na AI má být spuštěn 18. června.

Článek Funkce „Recall“ systému Windows 11 s umělou inteligencí vyvolává obavy o bezpečnost, výzkumník odhaluje rizika úniku dat se nejdříve objevil na MOBILE PRESS.

Článek Funkce „Recall“ systému Windows 11 s umělou inteligencí vyvolává obavy o bezpečnost, výzkumník odhaluje rizika úniku dat se nejdříve objevil na GAME PRESS.

When Microsoft recently introduced its Copilot+ PC platform that will bring new AI-enabled features to Windows 11 PCs that have an NPU capable of delivering at least 40 TOPS of performance, one of the key features the company highlighted was Recall. It’s a service that saves snapshots of everything you do on a computer, making […]

The post Microsoft’s Recall feature for Copilot+ PCs will be opt-in by default, in response to feedback (and criticism) appeared first on Liliputing.

Enlarge / The Recall feature provides a timeline of screenshots and a searchable database of text, thoroughly tracking everything about a person's PC usage. (credit: Microsoft)

On Friday, Microsoft announced major changes to its upcoming Recall feature after overwhelming criticism from security researchers, the press, and its users. Microsoft is turning Recall off by default when users set up PCs that are compatible with the feature, and it's adding additional authentication and encryption that will make it harder to access another user's Recall data on the same PC.

It's likely not a coincidence that Microsoft also quietly pulled the build of the Windows 11 24H2 update that it had been testing in its Release Preview channel for Windows Insiders. It's not unheard of for Microsoft to stop distributing a beta build of Windows after releasing it, but the Release Preview channel is typically the last stop for a Windows update before a wider release.

Microsoft hasn't provided a specific rationale for pulling the update; the blog post says the pause is "temporary" and the rollout will be resumed "in the coming weeks." Windows Insider Senior Program Manager Brandon LeBlanc posted on social media that the team was "working to get it rolling out again shortly."

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One thing you'll find yourself doing very often as a PC gamer is troubleshooting errors. Things have gotten a lot better these days, but a lot of games on PC still don't work very well out of the box due to some errors. One of the errors that you may face often throws an error message that reads a D3D11-compatible GPU is required to run the engine. What's annoying about this particular bug is it keeps you from the affected game until you fix it. If you find yourself stuck and are struggling to fix this particular issue, then I've highlighted a few potential ways to fix it below.

Usually, when Microsoft adds a new feature to the Windows 11 Beta or Dev branch, it's automatically enabled so people can test it out and find bugs to report. However, sometimes Microsoft hides some features, presumably because it's not quite finished yet. If you have the Windows 11Beta branch installed and you feel like doing a little digging, you can now enable a hidden File Explorer revamp that isn't visible by default.

Capturing and saving memories is easier now than it's ever been before. Most modern smartphones have very capable cameras, and they're small enough to fit into a pocket. But as good as these cameras are, there's always something you might want to tweak, crop, or change entirely, and photo editing apps let you do just that. While there are apps for editing on smartphones, computers still offer more capable experiences most of the time, and we've rounded up some of the best apps you can use for photo editing on Windows.

If you want to maximize Microsoft Copilot’s capabilities, you can enhance query responses with plugins like Spotify and Adobe. Recently, a new plugin called “Phone” ...

The post Seamless Android Integration on Windows: Microsoft Copilot Expands its Reach appeared first on Gizchina.com.

Everyone seems to have a love-hate relationship with Windows. The newer versions of Windows are quite nice, but Microsoft has the habit of overdoing things often and spoiling a good thing, like the forced Copilot integration. Microsoft seems to be testing some new changes for the Windows 11 Start Menu, mainly by adding in floating widgets, in case you didn’t already have some elsewhere on your desktop.

X user Albacore spotted support for “Start Menu Companions” on Windows 11 beta, build 26212 (h/t The Verge). As the leaker describes, these companions are apps that provide Adaptive Cards that display on a floating island alongside the Start Menu.

Have you ever deleted a file you didn't think you'd need, only to find yourself looking for it weeks later? You're not alone, and it's no fun realizing you could have saved yourself a lot of trouble if you had been more careful. Thankfully, when mistakes like this happen in Windows 11, you can try and recover the files you deleted accidentally or absent-mindedly.

Everyone seems to have a love-hate relationship with Windows. The newer versions of Windows are quite nice, but Microsoft has the habit of overdoing things often and spoiling a good thing, like the forced Copilot integration. Microsoft seems to be testing some new changes for the Windows 11 Start Menu, mainly by adding in floating widgets, in case you didn’t already have some elsewhere on your desktop.

X user Albacore spotted support for “Start Menu Companions” on Windows 11 beta, build 26212 (h/t The Verge). As the leaker describes, these companions are apps that provide Adaptive Cards that display on a floating island alongside the Start Menu.

Everyone seems to have a love-hate relationship with Windows. The newer versions of Windows are quite nice, but Microsoft has the habit of overdoing things often and spoiling a good thing, like the forced Copilot integration. Microsoft seems to be testing some new changes for the Windows 11 Start Menu, mainly by adding in floating widgets, in case you didn’t already have some elsewhere on your desktop.

X user Albacore spotted support for “Start Menu Companions” on Windows 11 beta, build 26212 (h/t The Verge). As the leaker describes, these companions are apps that provide Adaptive Cards that display on a floating island alongside the Start Menu.

When you think of mini computers, your mind will most likely jump to Apple's Mac Mini first and foremost. It's arguably the most popular mini computer out there, so that's completely understandable. But if you look hard enough, there's no shortage of mini Windows PCs out there either. In fact, I'd argue that if you're looking to buy a mini computer, a Windows computer should be your first choice, even if the popular Mac Mini looks appealing with its tiny design and impressive performance. Here are a few reasons why.

It's no secret that there are plenty of people who dislike some of the UI changes Microsoft made in Windows 11. And as a result, many apps have come out to fix or change the behavior of some parts of Windows 11 to make it more friendly towards long-time users. ExplorerPatcher is one such solution, and a free one at that.

There are many different PC software available now. Some you have to pay for, but others are free, or they have free versions. You can ...

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After a successful launch on macOS and iOS in 2022, Arc Browser, developed by The Browser Company, has arrived on Windows 11. This browser gained ...

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Enlarge (credit: Microsoft)

Microsoft is currently investigating a bug in its most recent batch of Windows 10 and Windows 11 updates that is preventing some VPN software from working properly. The company updated its list of known Windows issues to say that it has recreated the issue on its end and that it's currently working on a fix.

The VPN issue affects all currently supported versions of Windows: Windows 10 21H2 and 22H2; Windows 11 versions 21H2, 22H2, and 23H2; and Windows Server 2008, 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, 2016, 2019, and 2022.

Microsoft says the problem was caused by update KB5036893, which was initially released on April 9, 2024. The update makes "miscellaneous security improvements to internal OS functionality," among a few other minor changes. The company hasn't provided specific information on what's been broken or what needs fixing, noting only that PCs "might face VPN connection failures" after installing the update.

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Microsoft introduced massive changes to the Microsoft Store app in the last couple of months, giving a major performance boost and the ability to spot new features easily. The software giant was simultaneously putting effort into improving how you download apps from the Microsoft Store web. The work that went into making it a reality was worth it, as downloading and installing apps from the Microsoft Store website has just become substantially smoother for Windows 11 and 10 users.

Microsoft’s recent updates to Windows 11 have placed increased emphasis on user account management. This focus coincides with a growing trend of users signing in ...

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Microsoft has a rather controversial history of inserting "advertisements" for its other services in Windows 11, with these promotions sometimes causing issues in the operating system too. Now, the Redmond tech giant has been caught embedding content regarding Copilot in the Windows 11 lock screen in a rather unsolicited manner.

The Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA) is a Windows 11 feature that lets you install and run Android apps on a Windows computer. Microsoft first previewed the feature in 2021, rolled out a preview to beta testers a few months later, followed by a public beta in early 2022 and a wider launch later that […]

The post The Windows Subsystem for Android has one year to live (Microsoft pulls the plug on March 5, 2025) appeared first on Liliputing.

PC makers have begun referring to the latest laptops with Intel Core Ultra, AMD Ryzen 8040, and Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chips as “AI PCs” thanks to the advanced neural processing units integrated in each of those processors. But it’s a little vague what actually makes these “AI PCs” at this point. According to Windows […]

The post Report: AI Explorer coming to Windows 11 this fall (Copilot that remembers, helps you find anything you’ve done on your PC) appeared first on Liliputing.

Windows 12 is still quite some time away, as Microsoft continues to bless Windows 11 with feature updates. Microsoft has announced what is being called the “Moment 5” optional update with improvements to Copilot, Generative Erase in the Photos app, Silence removal in Clipchamp, improved window snapping, and more.

Copilot in Windows gets new plugins and skills

Back in November, Android Authority reported that code within the Link to Windows app pointed to Microsoft working on a feature to turn Android phones into webcams. Now the tech giant is starting to roll the feature out.

In a blog post to Windows Insiders, Microsoft announced it is “gradually” launching a feature to allow Android tablets and phones to be used as webcams. The company says the feature enables Android devices to work wirelessly and can be used for any video application on Windows 11 PCs.

Once connected, the feature will allow users to switch back and forth from the rear cameras to the front camera. Microsoft also says users will be able to pause streams and take advantage of the video effects that come with the Android device being used.

Before you start trying to test it out for yourself, know that the feature has only been rolled out to Windows Insiders for now. If you’re an Insider, you can start using the feature if your device is running Android 9.0 or above. You’ll also need to have version 1.24012* or later of the Link to Windows app installed.

The feature will be disabled by default, so you’ll have to enable it. You can turn it on by heading over to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices, where you’ll need to choose Manage devices and allow the PC to access your phone or tablet.

Despite plenty of open source and web app alternatives, Microsoft's software suites are still some of the most popular available today. In fact, over a billion people worldwide regularly use some sort of Microsoft product. And it’s no mystery as to why: Windows runs all the best applications and has the widest hardware support -- and Office is simply the most comprehensive productivity suite available today.

Windows 11 Insiders rejoice! A recent update brings exciting news for video conferencing enthusiasts – the ability to leverage your Android phone or tablet as ...

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Screen recording on your Mac, Windows PC, or Chromebook presents an exciting opportunity to showcase your gaming prowess, create informative tutorials for the software you ...

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