What’s New in the Windows 11 2023 Update?

In the next few weeks’ Microsoft will be releasing the Windows 11 2023 Update. It was expected to be 23H2 but now Microsoft are pushing them as a feature release to the current 22H2 update. This update is a small update delivered via a servicing update rather than the 4GB updates we have seen in the past. The update has big improvements to File Explorer, Windows Copilot AI, and many other aspects of the OS. These are my highlights of the update:

File Explorer

Microsoft has overhauled File Explorer with this release using the modern UI framework. The address bar has moved up with the command bar slotted in below it, and on the righthand side there is a new detail pane.

File Explorer is integrated with the Photos app, so there is a new Gallery link which takes you to your photos collection. This makes it really easy to get at your photos from OneDrive, and the Gallery is also included in the Open/Save dialog. F

ile Explorer now has support for additional compression file formats, so it can un-compress 7zip, TAR and RAR files now without the need for any additional software. You can’t create compressed archives with the new formats yet.

Windows Copilot

Microsoft is bringing AI into Windows in multiple locations, but the main focus is with Windows Copilot. This is a text-based chat that uses Bing AI to perform searches, which is essentially a wrapper for the regular bing.com chat feature but with links to the OS. You can ask copilot to turn on dark mode or turn off Bluetooth, but at the moment it is pretty basic. Hopefully, Microsoft will add more features in the future. There are also AI recommendations in the start menu.

Taskbar and quick setting improvements.

There are new settings for combining the taskbar buttons and labels so you can have it set to never combine. In quick settings there is a new volume mixer so you can control the volume of individual apps.

Settings

Settings has a new start page with a tile-like interface. Here, you have quick access to common settings like Microsoft accounts and personalization.

Widgets

While Widgets may not be everybody’s favourite Windows 11 feature, over time Microsoft has made it more useful. In this update, there is a new widgets picker and links to the Microsoft store for widget-enabled apps.

Windows Backup

Windows Backup has been re-invented, and now backs up your PC settings to the cloud. It can backup your folders (via OneDrive), apps, settings, and credentials. When you set up a new Windows 11 PC, you can choose to set up the new PC with your previous backup.

How to get the Windows 11 2023 Update

Once Microsoft releases the update it will be pushed out via Windows Update, so you can go to Windows Update and check for updates or wait for your system to install it automatically.

Conclusion

Once Microsoft releases the update, it will be pushed out via Windows Update. You can either go to Windows Update and check for updates manually or wait for your system to install it automatically.

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