Microsoft is quietly turning the Xbox button on controllers into a small but consequential multitasking shortcut in Windows 11: a long press now opens Task View so gamers can switch between apps and games without leaving the controller, while a short press still opens the Game Bar and a...
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controlled feature rollout
controller first
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handheld gaming
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rog xbox ally
task view
windows 11
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xbox button mapping
Microsoft’s quiet tweak to the Xbox controller on Windows 11 — making a long press of the central Xbox button open Task View while preserving a tap for Game Bar and a sustained hold to power the controller off — is small in code but large in intent, signaling a deliberate push toward...
accessibility
controlled feature rollout
controller first
controller mapping
game bar
handheld gaming
insider preview
oem partnerships
on-screen keyboard
task view
windows 11
windowsinsider
xbox button
Microsoft’s latest Insider preview quietly repurposes the Xbox/Guide button into a three‑state system control: a short tap still summons the Game Bar, a long press now opens Task View, and a sustained hold continues to power the controller off — a small UX tweak that signals a deliberate push to...
Microsoft has quietly put the “Windows 12” party on hold: the next public release from Redmond is Windows 11, version 25H2, arriving as a lightweight enablement update in the second half of 2025 rather than a ground-up OS reboot — and that decision changes what upgrade planning should look like...
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Microsoft is quietly experimenting with a small but consequential change to how the Xbox button behaves on Windows 11: a long press of the Xbox button now opens Task View, while a short press still summons the Game Bar and a sustained hold continues to power the controller off.
Background /...
accessibility
controller input
controller ux
game bar
handheld windows
input mapping
insider preview
long press
multitasking
press and hold
rog xbox ally
short press
task view
windows 11
windowsinsider
xbox button
Microsoft has quietly repurposed the Xbox button on gamepads when used with Windows 11 Insiders: a long press now opens Task View while a short press still launches the Game Bar, and a press-and-hold continues to power down the controller — a small but practical tweak rolling out to Dev and Beta...
Microsoft is quietly rolling out a one‑click pathway to check your internet connection from the Windows 11 taskbar: a new system tray shortcut that opens a network speed test in your default browser, currently visible in Insider preview builds.
Background
Microsoft has long leaned on...
beta channel
bing speed test
browser-based test
dev channel
insider preview
internet speed test
iperf
ookla speedtest
privacy and security
speed test
speedtest cli
system tray
taskbar
taskbar shortcut
web-based diagnostics
wifi quick settings
windows 11
windowsinsider
Microsoft has begun testing a change that remaps the Xbox button on controllers in Windows 11 so a long press opens Task View, while a short press still opens the Game Bar and a sustained hold still powers the controller off.
Background
Microsoft has steadily worked to make Windows 11 friendlier...
Microsoft’s latest Windows 11 Insider preview builds quietly add a one‑click internet speed‑test shortcut to the taskbar network flyout — but the shortcut simply opens Bing’s web‑based speed test rather than running a native, offline measurement — and the same builds also include a subtle but...
ai in windows
background ai tasks
beta
beta build 26120
beta channel
beta-channel
bing
bing speed test
bing tools
bing widget
bing-speed-test
bluetooth and devices
browser
browser launch
browser widget
browser-based
browser-based test
browser-based-test
browser-launch
canary
cli tools
cloud-based
connectivity
dev
dev build 26220
dev channel
dev-channel
diagnostics
edge
edge browser
edge-browser
enterprise
enterprise it
enterprise policy
enterprise-it
enterprise-privacy
group policy
insiderinsider build
insider preview
insider preview build
insider-preview
internet speed
internet speed test
internet-diagnostics
internet-performance
internet-speed
internet-speed-test
iperf
iperf3
it admin
it administration
it administrators
it admins
it-admin
kb5065782
latency
mdm
microsoft
microsoft ux
mobile devices
native diagnostics
native tools
native vs web diagnostics
native-diagnostics
native-vs-web
network
network diagnostics
network flyout
network icon
network speed test
network tray
network troubleshooting
network-diagnostics
network-icon
network-troubleshooting
networking
one click
one-click
one-click-test
ookla
ookla speedtest
ookla-speedtest
pc troubleshooting
power users
preview
preview build
privacy
privacy and security
privacy telemetry
quick settings
quick-settings
settings refresh
shortcut
speed test
speed test launcher
speed test tools
speed testing tools
speed-test
speedtest
speedtest by ookla
speedtest cli
speedtest widget
speedtest-cli
speedtest-ookla
system tray
system-ui
taskbar
telemetry
third-party tests
throughput
troubleshooting-tool
ui-ux
user experience
user-experience
ux
web based test
web launcher
web shortcut
web widget
web-based
web-based diagnostics
web-based test
web-service
web-tool
web-widget
wi-fi
wi-fi quick settings
wifi
wifi settings
wifi-settings
windows 11
windows 11 insiderwindowsinsiderwindows updates
windows ux
windows-11
windows-insiderwindows11
Microsoft’s latest Windows 11 Insider builds are shipping a new, full-screen renewal prompt aimed at lapsed Microsoft 365 subscriptions — an eye-catching SCOOBE (Second‑Chance Out‑of‑Box Experience) screen that insiders and early reports describe as a full‑screen nag to renew rather than a...
Microsoft has quietly published official ISO images for Windows 11, version 25H2 to the Windows Insider Preview downloads area, completing a key piece of release scaffolding for IT teams, OEMs, and enthusiasts even as most devices receive the feature update as a lightweight enablement package...
Windows 11’s 25H2 installer has arrived for testers, but the copy available today is a Release Preview disk image (ISO) and still a preview build — meaning most users should sit tight and wait for the official, staged rollout through Windows Update rather than rushing to download and manually...
Microsoft has quietly made the official x64 ISO for Windows 11, version 25H2 (Build 26200.5074) available to Release Preview Insiders, completing a key piece of release scaffolding that IT teams, OEMs and imaging specialists have been waiting for even as Microsoft continues to deploy the update...
Microsoft has made Windows 11, version 25H2 available to testers in the Windows Insider Release Preview channel, delivering the update primarily as a lightweight enablement package (eKB) that flips features already staged on 24H2 devices — while Microsoft delays broad ISO publication and...
Microsoft quietly pulled back the promised ISO images for Windows 11, version 25H2 this week, updating its Release Preview announcement to say the ISOs are “delayed and coming soon” even as the update itself lands in the Release Preview channel as an enablement-package style release.
Background...
Microsoft is quietly folding AI-powered image editing and Bing visual search directly into the File Explorer right‑click menu as part of Insider testing, a move that turns the once‑simple file manager into a micro‑workflow gateway for quick edits and visual lookups.
Background
Microsoft’s...
Microsoft’s latest pre-release whisper to the Windows Insider Program’s most experimental ring landed with a thud of déjà vu: the Canary channel recently received a new build — reported as Build 27938 — that mainly repackages features already seen elsewhere in the Insider ecosystem, notably...
Microsoft Weekly: what happened with the SSD scare, the 25H2 ISO delay, and what you should actually do now
Summary (quick)
A widely shared set of social-media reports in August 2025 claimed the August cumulative security update for Windows 11 (KB5063878 / 24H2 servicing stream) was causing...
24h2
25h2
3-2-1 backup
backup
data recovery
disk health
enterprise it
firmware updates
iso delay
kb5063878
microsoft telemetry
patch management
phison
release preview
smart
ssd
ssd failures
windows 11
windowsinsider
Windows 11’s typing ergonomics just got a small but decisive polish: Insiders can now insert an en dash (–) and an em dash (—) with single memorable keystrokes — and that change is already shipping in recent Dev and Beta channel preview builds. This is the kind of tiny usability fix that saves...
Microsoft is quietly rolling out a meaningful upgrade to voice input in Windows 11 Insider builds — a smoother, on-device dictation experience tied to Voice Access and targeted at Copilot+ hardware — while also shipping a focused Beta/Dev Channel flight that expands Studio Effects, tightens...
accessibility
beta channel
copilot+
dev channel
enterprise testing
file explorer
fluid dictation
hardware gating
insider testing
language support
local processing
oem drivers
on-device ai
on-hover actions
privacy
productivity
studio effects
voice access
windows 11
windowsinsider