Windows Weekly (Audio) – Details, episodes & analysis

Richard Campbell is out this week! Microsoft continues to make changes to Notepad as it tests 'lightweight text formatting' in Notepad. 22H2, 23H2, and 24H2 got preview updates. And Microsoft has reportedly delayed its first-party Xbox / Windows gaming handheld.



Windows

THE GREAT NOTEPAD CONTROVERSY OF 2025

• Microsoft announced it was testing "lightweight text formatting" in Notepad.
• This is one of MANY changes its made to Notepad in recent years.
• The community has collectively lost its s#$t - most thought this was RTF support - it's not.
• Everyone is wrong. In defense of Notepad.

24H2

• Last Tuesday, 22H2/23H2 got a preview update in Week D, but 24H2 did not.
• The 24H2 update appeared later, with a ton of new features as expected - it's possible an out-of-band update requirement is responsible for the delay.
• Now we know for sure what's coming on Patch Tuesday next week.
• Windows Insider updates
  • Today, in Canary: Energy saver in Intune, re-rollout of Phone companion, more.
  • Dev and Beta (24H2): Quick machine recovery, Phone Link improvements - Plus, more just in Dev.
  • Canary: Voice access and some bug fixes.
• Microsoft makes more DMA changes to Windows 11/Edge
  • We all need these changes.
  • Apple needs to pay attention.
  • Also, hilarious: Apple copies what Microsoft did in the 1990s. Twice.
• Earnings:
  • HP
  • Dell
  • Nvidia

Microsoft 365/AI

• Microsoft announces (internally) its third major AI reorg in 15 months - Too ... slow?
• Microsoft is killing password management/autofill in the Microsoft Authenticator app (announced previously, but now a warning is showing up in the app).
  • Good, you should use a third-party password manager anyway. Also, it's really an identity manager. Also, wake up.
  • When/why to use Microsoft Authenticator.
  • And why you should also use Google Authenticator.
• June 2025 update for the new Outlook adds tons of new features.
• Research and Analyst AI agents are now GA in Microsoft 365 Copilot.
• You can experiment with short, phone videos on your phone with Bing Video Creator.
• FU, OpenAI! NYT licenses its content to Amazon.
• Samsung may drop Gemini for Perplexity.

Xbox/Gaming

• Microsoft has reportedly delayed its first-party Xbox/Windows gaming handheld.
  • Xbox continues to be in a holding pattern on hardware - Theories include an Arm revolution in waiting and Amy Hood getting serious about trying to make this business profitable.
  • Are handheld gaming PCs the next Netbook or mini-tablet ... or this is market real, sustainable, and big enough to matter?
  • SteamDeck/Linux could be a problem here - related to this, Nvidia news.
• Microsoft reaches its first-ever agreement with a game studio union.
• Semi-related: J Allard is one of about 100 former Microsoft execs at Amazon now, and we have an update.

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: You can replace OneDrive/Google Drive with a NAS.
  • My Synology NAS is better than expected as a Little Tech replacement for OneDrive and Google Drive. This changes everything
• App pick of the week: Microsoft Edge 137
  • Edge 137 has quietly emerged as the biggest release of this browser since its inception.
  • Edge 137 adds PIP and business improvements, removes Wallet Hub and some truly pointless features.
  • It adds Windows 11 App action support to PWAs.
  • It brings Game Assist for Game Bar to everyone.
• Photoshop for Android is here and it's free

Pa

These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/935

Hosts: Leo Laporte and Paul Thurrott

Sponsors:

• 1password.com/windowsweekly
• threatlocker.com/twit
• uscloud.com

Microsoft shakes up Windows Update with third-party app integration while AI features flood into Paint, Notepad, and Snipping Tool. Plus, the browser wars heat up as Arc pivots to agentic AI and Opera launches Neon, while Richard calls in from Cape Town with whiskey wisdom.

Windows 11

• It's Week D! Microsoft issues preview updates for 23H2/22H2 - Windows Key + C for Copilot, Drag tray, FAQs in Settings, Lock screen widget customization, IT admin controls for Taskbar
• Windows Insider Program
  • Canary - Microsoft adds support for asymmetrical key encryption that won't be vulnerable to quantum computing attacks
  • Beta (24H2) - New Microsoft 365 text actions in Click to Do, Lock screen widget customization, multiple dashboards in Widgets, App recommendations in Open with dialog, PC to PC migration experience in Windows Backup
  • New Paint, Notepad, and Snipping Tool features in Canary and Dev - Paint sticker generator and Object select tool, Snipping Tool perfect screenshot and color picker, Notepad writing tools (draft from prompt, rewrite text, etc.)
  • Now Windows Update is going to update third-party apps too
  • As promised last week, Notion is now available in the Microsoft Store
  • Signal will explicitly prevent Recall from screenshotting the app
  • Related: Why is Lenovo doing so well financially?
    • Also related: IDC predicts 4.1 percent growth in PC market this year to 274 million units

AI and Web Browsers, Oh My

• Browsers go agentic
  • The Browser Company says it will no longer offer functional updates to Arc as it focuses on Dia
  • Opera announces Neon, its agentic AI web browser
• Hand-wringing as OpenAI buys Jony Ive's newish company
• Duck.ai if you ask it nicely (and use the right model)
• Yes, Google is going to put ads in Search AI Mode
• Vivaldi 7.4 arrives for desktop and for mobile
• Firefox 139 is a minor update - maybe it's time to move to a 6 week schedule?

Xbox and Games

• Xbox's Copilot for Gaming Launches on iOS and Android in Beta
• FTC drops its bid to unwind Microsoft acquisition of Activision Blizzard
• Sony discounts PS5 and peripherals temporary to undercut Switch 2

Tips and Picks

• Tip of the Week: 'Fear and Loathing in Seattle' and 'More Fear and Loathing in Seattle'
• App Pick of the Week: Instapaper
  • Plus: Fences 6 is GA on Windows 11
• RunAs Radio This Week: How to Talk to Security with Sarah Young
• Brown Liquor Pick of the Week: Aerstone 10 Sea Cask

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• Melissa.com/twit
• cachefly.com/twit

Agentic AI is the theme of the show this year, and this time its multi-agent with orchestration! But first, we need to discuss the protestors. Paul and Richard have stories. So many stories!

Build 2025

• New Microsoft 365 Copilot features are rolling out now because it's a day that ends in y
• Tuning is the unexpected Build Bingo center square term - rolling out to agents
• GitHub Copilot is open source in VS Code, more
• Win32 app support improvements, no more fees in Microsoft Store
• A shift in making Windows 11 the best place for developers - some things said, some left unsaid
• Edge gets new AI features too of course
• New native app capabilities in Windows App SDK, React Native
• And, pre-Build, 50 million Visual Studio users
• Copilot for consumers does image generation now. Fun tip: You can Minecraft-ize photos
• OpenAI has a coding agent too, obviously
• And OpenAI is buying Jony Ive!

Windows

• Administrator Protection is coming soon - And not just for businesses. This feels very much like the firewall in XP SP2, it's going to be disruptive
• New 24H2 features in Release Preview: New text actions in Click to Do, a lot more
• New 24H2 features in Dev and Beta: AI actions in File Explorer, Advanced Settings, Search improvements, more
• New 23H2 features, Windows 10 features in Release Preview
• Surface Laptop Studio RIP
• Calendar companion app for Windows 11/M365
• Microsoft may finally put the Teams antitrust issue in the EU behind

Xbox

• Fortnite returns to the Apple App Store
• Apple blocked it first, Epic complained to judge
• And Microsoft files a legal motion against Apple and for Epic Games
• Qualcomm job listing confirms Xbox plans to some degree
• What happens when you combine Qualcomm NPU with Nvidia GPU?
• Xbox May Update arrives and it's a big one
• Retro Classic Games for Xbox Game Pass
• Game Bar updates, Edge Game Assist, GeForce now etc. on PC
• Custom Xbox gift cards
• More streaming of your own games
• Hellblade II is coming from Xbox to PS5
• Many more games coming to Xbox Game Pass across platforms

Tips and Picks

• App pick of the week: You can try Microsoft's command line editor now
• Game pick of the week: Doom: The Dark Ages
• RunAs Radio this week: PowerShell 7.5 and DSC 3.0.0 with Jason Helmick
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Tamnavulin Sherry Cask

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• spaceship.com/twit
• uscloud.com

Get to know Microsoft's latest Patch Tuesday updates and new features in Windows 11, such as improvements to the Start menu, File Explorer, and Copilot integration. They also cover new AI features coming to the Photos app for Copilot+ PCs and updates to the Microsoft Store. The discussion then shifts to developer conferences like Google I/O and Apple's WWDC, with a focus on their respective AI advancements and product strategies. Plus, the controversy surrounding Microsoft's decision to no longer host its Build conference in Seattle. Don't miss the discussion on the evolving role of the iPad as a potential threat to Surface devices due to recent software enhancements!

Windows 11

• June Patch Tuesday is here! Big changes for Windows 11 versions 22H2, 23H2, and 24H2
• New Start menu finally debuts in Dev and Beta - synchronized again for some reason
• Copilot+ PCs get Relight feature and natural language search in the Photos app
• The Microsoft Store gets a major update in the Beta channel
• And Canary is still a thing, no one knows why

Developer conference season draws to a close

• Build: Protests, problems, and more problems
• Microsoft pulls out of Seattle permanently
• Google I/O: Stunning array of AI announcements. But Android 16 is on a weird slow boil after a truncated development cycle
• Apple WWDC: Apple Intelligence? Look, Liquid Glass! Also, some actual advances across its newly unified platforms
• Look out Surface: The iPad is a real computer now - And it only took 15 years
• Microsoft, Google, and Apple all played to their strengths
• Between Windows 11 2xH2, Android 16, and iOS whatever - do the platform makers even know how to ship software anymore?

Xbox

• Microsoft unveils the first Xbox-branded third-party gaming handheld as part of its Xbox Games Showcase 2025 event - a few interesting things there as well - COD: BO7, Gears remake, Gears v.next delayed to 2026
• This heavily modified/optimized version of Windows 11 is coming to more gaming handhelds
• Looking to the future: What if this is literally the model for future Xbox console hardware? What if the next Xbox was a NUC?
• More Game Pass titles across platforms for the second half of June
• You can add 4 TB of storage to your Xbox, but it will cost you dearly
• Apple loses again in Epic v. Apple, Fortnite can stay in the App Store and developers can stop getting robbed by Apple
• The Nintendo Switch 2 launched this past week and is apparently the best-selling console of all time at launch
• PS5 controllers to support multiple Bluetooth connections

Tips and Picks

• Tip of the week: Share Feature, image crunching
• App pick of the week: Dia Browser
• RunAs Radio this week: The Case for Telemetry with Liz Fong-Jones
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Glenlossie 26

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• uscloud.com
• 1password.com/windowsweekly

No, it's not you. Windows Hello doesn't work in the dark anymore. For reasons. Say "Hello" to the Windows Hello controversy of the month!

Windows

• AI agent in Settings and Recall export experience in Dev/Beta channels - plus the old clock is back, baby
• July Patch Tuesday preview: App defaults (EEA only), Share images with visual preview, and some fixes for Windows 11 (The first one is coming to Windows 10 too - tied to the DMA news from last week.)
• Commentary: What Apple gets right in macOS 26 (and otherwise)

Surface

• One year with Surface Laptop 7
• Microsoft issues its first firmware updates for Surface Pro 11 and Surface Laptop 7 in several months, sort of

Microsoft 365

• BBB complains about how Microsoft promotes Microsoft 365; Microsoft disagrees but will change the way it communicates about these features

AI

• OpenAI, Microsoft, and... the nuclear option??
• The Open AI Files provides an insider view of the company and finds it lacking
• Copilot Vision is GA in the United States - It's also free to try on mobile
• The Browser Company starts explaining Dia, finally

Xbox and Games

• Microsoft announces (extends?) partnership with AMD on future Xbox hardware - a one minute video with plenty to parse
• Next-gen hardware
• Multi-year partnership with AMD on Xbox consoles and gaming handhelds
• Compatibility with existing game libraries
• Working closely with the Windows team, ensure Windows is the number one games platform
• Microsoft shares Xbox Ally details with devs, a hint at the coming Windows-based Xbox platform requirements?
• More Game Pass titles for June, including an old favorite
• Minecraft gets three great updates
• Steam will run natively on Apple Silicon soon. Unlike all the games.

Tips and Picks

• Tip of the week: Don't give in
• App pick of the week: Camtasia online
• RunAs Radio this week: SQL Server 2025 with Bob Ward
• Brown liquor pick of the week: The Macallan 18 Sherry Oak Cask

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsor:

• uscloud.com

Windows 10 EOL update

• Microsoft confirms that Windows 10 EOL is a go for October. But...
• Consumers can now get a free year of extra security updates instead of paying(!)
• Businesses can now enroll in extended security updates program
• Microsoft 365 apps on Windows 10 to get security updates through October 2028

Windows 11

• A few new features via the Insider Program
• Recall gets a new home page and some nice updates to hardware indicators in Dev and Beta
• We know there's a Settings AI agent coming to Windows 11. Apparently, it needs its own local AI model. And why this might be problematic
• Canary gets features we've seen elsewhere, plus an ISO - plus a new 24H2 build in Release Preview with features we can expect on June 8, Patch Tuesday
• Microsoft launches AI-powered learning app for Copilot+ PCs
• First Arm-based Chromebook Plus arrives with 50+ TOPS NPU, local AI features - using the chip that would make for a nice Copilot+ PC. But what's going on with Chrome OS?

Microsoft 365

• Microsoft Ignite registration is open
• Android users can now open shared Office documents without a Microsoft account

AI

• Copilot is struggling against ChatGPT, even in the enterprise
• Alexa+ is now available to over one million testers in the U.S. - but have you met even one of them?
• Android Studio gets Gemini-based Agent Mode in preview

Xbox and games

• First, the bad news: Yes, there are massive layoffs coming to Xbox next week - this is in addition to the sales org-related layoffs that are also coming, and probably more
• It's happening! Microsoft begins testing Steam integration with the Xbox app on Windows 11
• AMD expands a bit on the news that it's working with Microsoft on next-gen Xbox silicon
• June Xbox update arrives with more home screen customization, more mouse and keyboard support for more games, more "Stream your own games" titles (over 200 now)
• There's a limited edition Meta Quest 3S Xbox Edition - move quick if you want one
• Hellblade II: Senua's Saga Enhanced arrives on PlayStation on August 12 - but there's more going on here, including "Xbox on PC" language

Tips and Picks

• Tip of the week: Don't pay for Windows 10 extended security
• App pick of the week: Discord for Windows 11 on Arm
• RunAs Radio this week: Getting More from GitHub with April Yoho
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Drayman's Highveld

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• threatlocker.com/twit
• cachefly.com/twit

Microsoft's latest round of layoffs hits Xbox Gaming hard as the company cuts approximately 9,000 jobs despite record profits. This week, Paul Thurrott and Richard Campbell discuss the impact of these layoffs, Windows 11's new version naming, Microsoft Copilot coming to Mac, and dive deep into passkey security.

LAYOFFS

As expected, Microsoft began a massive round of layoffs across Xbox/Microsoft Gaming on Wednesday.

• The fiscal year started on Tuesday.
• These were originally going to happen a week or two earlier.
• 9,000 employees impacted across Microsoft - about 4 percent of workforce, Xbox/MSGaming was NOT hit hardest, Microsoft now says (on top of 6,000 in May).
• 10 percent of King being laid off.
• Carefully worded email from Phil Spencer requires some parsing.

It's Finally Official: 25H2 Is Next!

Microsoft finally admits that the Dev channel is testing Windows 11 version 25H2, which will arrive, as expected, around October

• This news came as part of another set of commingled Dev and Beta channel builds.
• 25H2 will be delivered as an enablement package, so it's a minor release technically.
• Dev and Beta are linked because 25H2 and 24H2 are linked: Each will get the same features, as started with 22H2/23H2 in late 2023.

Windows 11

Last week was Week D, but we didn't get preview updates per usual before WW

• That finally happened last Thursday - new preview updates for 24H2 and 23H2/22H2
• 24H2: Click to Do improvements, start of PC migration in Windows Backup, small icons in Taskbar, more.
• Windows Insider Preview: Those Dev/Beta builds noted above have the first implementation of third-party passkey. Microsoft Edge 138 is a pretty big update, with AI-enhanced history search and Copilot integration into the search box and new tab page.

AI

• Microsoft 365 Copilot is available on the Mac.
• Apple may cave and adopt Anthropic Claude and/or OpenAI ChatGPT for Apple Intelligence.
• After Coda's acquisition and $1 billion in funding, Grammarly acquires Superhuman to build an "AI-native" productivity suite that will take on Big Tech (Microsoft, Google) and Little Tech (Notion, Proton) alike.

Xbox and Gaming

• Xbox 360 dashboard is getting its first update in years.
• Halo Studios teases an October tease of the next Halo from the studio.
• New Game Pass titles for the first half of July - plus, COD: WWII turns up in Game Pass for the first time.
• Cursor sort of comes to the web and mobile - like Adobe Firefly on mobile, but for devs when "the mood strikes".

Tips and Picks

• Tip/App picks of the week: Cure Mac envy.
• The Mac is about to get even prettier. But Windows 11 can rise to this challenge.
  • The PC matters: Paul recommends Surface Laptop 7 as a MacBook Air alternative.
• Software? It's all free.
  • Full screen apps: Hide the Taskbar and touchpad gestures - also, use DS Clock if you need to see the time.
  • Transparent system menu? You can make the Taskbar transparent too.
  • Want Spotlight? No problem, we have Command Palette (an updated, more extensible PowerToys Run) in PowerToys.
• Bonus app pick: Inoreader for RSS feeds (and read later if you want).
• RunAs Radio This Week: More Azure Innovations with Mark Russinovich
• Brown Liquor Pick of the Week: Alberta Distillers 23 Year Old Rare Batch No. 1

These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/939

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Sponsor:

• uscloud.com

It's been a big year for Windows 11 updates. This month is at least semi-manageable! Also, a few more bits from the layoffs. Plus, Amiga Forever 11 and C64 11 Forever help you live in the past!

Patch Tuesday

• Copilot+ PC only: Ask Copilot action for Click to Do
• 24H2 only: Show smaller Taskbar icons. Screen curtain feature in Narrator. Settings home page for commercial customer
• 23H2 and 24H2: Windows Share shows preview when sharing web content. Beginning of PC migration feature in Windows Backup. More changes for EU users to meet DMA requirements, mostly Edge related
• Windows 10: EU/DMA updates as above

More Windows 11

• WE DID IT! Windows 11 is now in use on more PCs than Windows 10. It's time for Windows 12!
• No new Insider features but some bug fixes in Canary
• Microsoft Edge keeps getting more responsive

Microsoft 365 and AI

• Teams gets threading in Channels about three years later than needed
• Google brought its Veo 3 video generation model to all AI Pro subscribers last week, and now it's bringing that and two other big AI features to Pixel
• Perplexity just launched its AI web browser

Xbox and gaming

• No, Phil Spencer is not retiring
• Romero Games forced to cancel Xbox shooter, lay off 100 employees
• Warcraft Rumble Mobile won't get any more updates
• Xbox angst in the wake of last week's layoffs is mostly undeserved
• Xbox fans keep finding new ways to complain - Most of the game/studio closures we know about were well-deserved. If anything, Microsoft let these things continue for too long with no viable deliverables
• But what is Xbox? Looking at the platform and what Microsoft has done under Phil Spencer paints a very different picture than all the moaning we see on social media
• Game Pass was key to getting Satya Nadella to keep Xbox going, but after the Activision acquisition, the day and date promise was unworkable. After the changes and price hikes, it's possible that Game Pass has peaked.
• Microsoft uploaded an out of date version of Call of Duty: WWII to the Store and hilarity ensues
• Sony to publish a game for Xbox for the first time
• Epic Games quietly settled with Samsung ahead of today's Unpacked event - but not with Google

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: Office 365 for IT Pros 2026 Edition is now available
• App pick of the week: Microsoft Edge
• RunAs Radio this week: Building Real Software using PowerApps with Luise Freese
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Bolster Road Maple Rye Whiskey

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• 1password.com/windowsweekly
• threatlocker.com/twit

Microsoft just made a major change to the Windows 11 install media, and you're not going to believe what happens next! Plus, the AI spelling and grammar checking app/service that Paul relies on. And yes, he does pay for it.

Windows 11

• Copilot Vision gets full Desktop support, Voice integration across all Insider channels
• Click to Do gets a "Describe image" action, Administrator protection, App permission dialog changes in Dev (25H2) and Beta (24H2)
• Canary finally gets the features everyone else has had for a while now
• Also, Microsoft quietly killed the simplified date/time in the Windows 11 Taskbar because no one liked it
• PC sales grew 5 percent in Q2 but there is a BIG caveat
• Semi-related: Google is "combining" ChromeOS and Android
• ChromeOS will build on Android going forward, smart
• Even less related: HMD quietly pulls Nokia out of the U.S. market, the dream is over

Microsoft 365, AI

• Microsoft layoffs directly attributed to AI
• Microsoft scuttled OpenAI's acquisition of Windsurf and all hell broke loose
• Google snapped up key execs and engineers and licensed Windsurf for $2.4 billion
• All's well that ends well: Cognition acquires Windsurf
• Microsoft keeps changing the terms of the deal: Microsoft 365 apps will be updated on Windows 10 only through August 2026
• Microsoft 365 Copilot is finally getting a Memory
• OpenAI is going to war with Microsoft and the world
• It's working on a web browser
• It's also working on an office productivity suite of sorts
• Google NotebookLM gets curated featured notebooks. This is emerging as one of the more useful AI tools

Xbox and Gaming

• Xbox app for Windows 11 gets "Stream your own game" functionality
• Grounded 2, more coming to Game Pass in second half of July
• Cyberpunk 2077 is coming to the Mac for some reason

Tips & Picks

• Tip of the week: Save big on PCs, go refurbished
• App pick of the week: LanguageTool for Desktop
• RunAs Radio this week: Fabric in 2025 with Arun Ulag
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Slane Triple Casked Blend

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• helixsleep.com/twit
• bitwarden.com/twit
• uscloud.com

Microsoft finally kills Movies & TV show service in the Microsoft Store. This was the final vestigial minder of Zune that remained. There was Groove Video and Xbox Video, too. Microsoft previously killed eBook (2019) and music (2017) sales. At this point, you would have to be insane to buy content from Microsoft, sorry... but you can get to some of your content on other services via Movies Anywhere - and use the Movies & TV app for now in Windows, which is no longer bundled.

Windows 11

• It's Week D and you can't tell your Copilot+ PC features from your Windows 11 features without a scorecard
• A peek at next month's Patch Tuesday - Also, preview updates for 23H2, Windows 10
• Copilot+ PCs only: Settings agent, Click to Do improvements, Photo relight in Photos app, Sticker generator and Object select in Paint
• Everyone: Copilot Vision (U.S. only) in Copilot, Edge Game Assist, Quick Machine Recovery
• Microsoft explains how PC transfer feature will work in Windows Backup later this year
• Describe image action for Click to Do (for AMD/Intel), image descriptions in Narrator (AMD/Intel), performance log improvements (!), Click to Do search bar test, Lock screen improvements, privacy improvements head to Dev and Beta channels
• Bug fixes in Canary, back to the usual waste of time
• Brave will automatically block Recall
• WhatsApp is going PWA, killing UWP app
• Focusrite finally releases drivers for Windows 11 on Arm/Snapdragon X, removing the final major compatibility issue on that platform
• Linux (sort of) crosses the 5 percent usage milestone

Surface/Copilot+ PC

• Copilot+ PC is a failure as a brand because Microsoft focused on negligible on-device AI features
• It should have pushed reliability, performance, efficiency and battery life
• All Copilot+ PC features should come to at least those with GPUs, but really all customers
• Microsoft failed at AI, and failed with consumers, and so now it's going to tell us what consumers want from AI - a comedy
• Microsoft announces Surface Laptop for Business with 5G but the real "with" is Intel Inside
• Intel layoffs are even worse than expected and more are coming
• Microsoft has a problem and it starts with "C" and ends with "opilot"
• Microsoft SharePoint has a notably bad security flaw
• DuckDuckGo adds some neat customization features to Duck.ai and DuckDuckGo lets you hide all AI from search

Xbox and gaming

• The Xbox platform unification continues: Xbox now testing cross-device play history - Not just console games on console, PC games on PC
• Just kidding! The Outer Worlds will cost $69.99, not $79.99

Tips & Picks

• Tip of the week: You hate Big Tech, but who can you trust?
• App pick of the week: Proton Lumo
• RunAs Radio this week: Copilot Studio with April Dunnam
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Benromach 10

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!
Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit

Sponsors:

• threatlocker.com/twit
• 1password.com/windowsweekly