Windows 11 gets new AI-powered features in latest update — here's 4 tools to try out now
The new Windows 11 update is rolling out now, and it includes a new AI agent in Windows Settings that allows users to find and change settings by describing what they need, a Relight feature in the Photos app to adjust lighting with just a click, more tools in Click To Do and a perfect screenshot feature in the Snipping Tool.
There's also Copilot Vision that's now available in the U.S., featuring the Highlights tool that lets Microsoft's AI provide contextual help on specific tasks, showing you how to carry out activities within an app or browser. This will be available in the Copilot app by clicking the glasses icon.
Not all Copilot+ PCs are getting these updates straightaway: Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs get these AI features first, with support on Intel and AMD devices coming down the line.
Other features are set to arrive soon, including Microsoft's Copilot Vision AI being able to see your whole desktop. But for now, update your Windows 11 PC and find out what the latest Windows 11 update brings to Copilot+ PCs.
Thanks to a new AI agent, you can now change settings in Windows 11 on the fly by asking what you want adjusted instead of scrolling through the Settings app.
Using Windows' first agent for Copilot+ PCs, you can describe what you want to change in settings in the search box in the Settings app. This works on a range of customizable settings, including displays, connectivity and accessbility.
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For example, you can ask "change my resolution to 1920x1080" for your display, or "connect Bluetooth device" to find and connect headphones or a speaker to your PC — now all in Settings.
The agent will offer recommendations and even actions to change the settings of your choice with a simple click, and there's also the option to undo any setting that's changed using the agent.
To try this out yourself, follow these directions:
And that's it. If the agent isn't able to understand or change the described settings, a Windows search option will pop up instead with the relevant info.
Right now, this is only available on Snapdragon X Series-powered Copilot+ PCs, but Intel and AMD PCs will get this feature soon.
Microsoft is also adding a new Relight feature that works in the Photos app, which aims to add professional lighting controls to snaps. It makes adjusting lighting in any photo easier, which will be helpful to anyone looking to spruce up their pictures.
Relight lets you place up to 3 virtual light sources in photos, which can be placed anywhere. You can adjust the light's intensity, color and position using sliders, too, or select presets such as "Studio Portrait" and "Cinematic Glow."
You can do all this by doing the following:
Similar to the agent in Settings, this is only available in PCs with Snapdragon X Series CPUs for now, with Intel and AMD-equipped Copilot+ PCs getting it later.
Windows 11's Click to Do on Copilot+ PCs is already available, but there are now new actions to help you get through everyday tasks aside from analyzing text and offering contextual actions.
Here's a look at the features you can try out now, which can all be done by pressing Windows key + mouse click, Windows key + Q or using the Snipping Tool and selecting text.
These new features on Click to Do are currently available for Windows 11 users in English, except for those in Europe.
Windows 11's Snipping Tool is also getting an upgrade, this time adding two features. This includes perfect screenshot and color picker.
Both options are now available as part of the latest update, with buttons added to the Snipping Tool toolbar. Perfect screenshot will automatically crop and resize what's captured on screen based on the content shown (for example, focusing on an app rather than the entire screen), while color picker can capture the color code of what's inspected.
You can do each by bringing up the Snipping Tool or capturing a screenshot using the Print Screen shortcut (Windows Key + Print Screen or Windows key + Fn + Print Screen).
Remember, many of these features are only available on Snapdragon X Series Copilot+ PCs right now (which are among the best laptops), with other Intel and AMD PCs getting the features soon, according to Microsoft.
Once you've got the latest Windows 11 update, check them out! And be sure to try out these 15 top Windows 11 tips everyone needs to know.
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