Latest news with #SnippingTool
Mint
01-07-2025
- Mint
Unlock Android style Circle to Search feature on Windows: Detailed setup guide
Circle to search is a popular feature from Google available on flagship Android smartphones. This makes it easy to search about anything that you see on the screen. It makes it easier to search for anything that you see on your windows laptop screen. Here is a step by step guide on how to set up and start using this tool on your laptop. Snipping Lens is a free Windows application that runs with the native Snipping Tool to search anything that you select from your Windows screen. It works just like the Circle to Search feature on Android. The only feature that's missing is that you cannot extract text from the images using this tool. Perform reverse image searches easily Extract text from images or videos where copying is not possible Translate foreign language text instantly Access Google's powerful image search engine instead of Bing Privacy ensured with automatic image deletion after one hour Visit the official Snipping Lens GitHub page and download the compatible version for your PC. In the case of Windows, download the exe setup file. Open the setup file and install it on your laptop or PC. Once installed, it will run in the background and appear in the system tray. Now, all you have to do is press Win+Shift+S hotkey to open the snipping tool. Use your mouse to drag and select the part of the screen that you want to google search. Once the screenshot is captured, a browser window will open automatically with google search page. Q1. Is Snipping Lens safe to use? A. Yes, it uploads images anonymously and deletes them after one hour, ensuring privacy. Q2. Can I use Snipping Lens on Linux? A. Yes, Snipping Lens supports Linux in addition to Windows. Q3. Does Snipping Lens replace the Windows Snipping Tool? A. No, it works alongside the Snipping Tool, adding Google Image Search capabilities. Snipping Lens is a free and powerful tool that brings Android's Circle to Search feature to Windows 10 and 11 users. It lets you search for anything that is on your screen on Google without replacing the Windows screen snipping tool.
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Yahoo
Snipping Tool Is Getting a Big GIF Upgrade
GIFs remain one of the most popular image formats on the internet, despite their age. They're even natively integrated into most messaging apps. Now, Microsoft is testing the ability to create and export them using Windows's native screenshot and screen recording tool. In the current version of Snipping Tool, the only GIFs you can export are static, just like a JPG, PNG, or BMP file. However, a new version of the Snipping Tool currently in the Canary and Dev channels lets you save your screen recordings as an animated GIF instead of an MP4 file. Most common video formats (especially MP4s) are typically smaller for any given video length, but GIFs have a few advantages. They don't require anything special to work—even a device from 2000 could run one natively—and they loop automatically, which is often a plus if you're using a GIF reaction to express something over text. Actually using the new GIF export function is refreshingly straightforward. On PCs running the correct experimental versions of Windows, all you need to do is press Windows+Shift+R to launch the screen recorder, capture what you'd like, and then click the 'GIF' button in the top right corner. You're provided a few export options: the ability to name the file and a vague 'quality' setting, which only includes high or low. That is about as straightforward as it gets, and it certainly beats capturing a recording, then importing that recording into a third-party program to trim up and export as a GIF. The length of a GIF is limited to 30 seconds—any longer than that and Snipping Tool will prompt you to export it in a video file format instead, like MP4. Though the feature is in its infancy, it would be nice to see an 'Advanced' option that provides a little more granular control over the GIF, like the ability to set the quality a bit more specifically, or an option to set the framerate. It could be a while. The current GIF export feature is being tested in the Canary and Developer Channels. Generally speaking, features tested in those channels take longer to make it to the live version of Windows than features you see in the Beta channel. It is also much more common for features tested in those channels to never make it to Windows, though given how practical a native ability to handle GIFs would be, it seems likely that this one will survive. In the interim, there are a number of screen recording apps that support creating and exporting GIFs. If you like free and open source software (FOSS), ShareX is a pretty good option. It has a huge range of features above and beyond what Windows 11's Snipping Tool currently offers. ScreenPresso is another popular application that supports exporting GIFs, though it isn't FOSS and has a paid version.
Phone Arena
27-05-2025
- Phone Arena
Your Windows 11 laptop might soon get a surprising creative tool — and it just leaked
Image Credit - Chanhee Lee on Unsplash Windows 11's useful Snipping Tool is reportedly going to get an exciting new feature to make your life easier. Basic apps are not to be underestimated, especially when those are getting frankly useful and powerful new features. Windows 11's Snipping Tool is one such basic app, but it's about to get super powerful (and fun!) with this new feature that's currently being tested. Reportedly, Snipping Tool will be getting the ability to record GIFs. Right now, this feature has not been officially announced by Microsoft, but it's been spotted in the wild by X users @phantomofearth. First look at a new Snipping Tool feature coming soon to Windows 11: the ability to quickly create GIFs from screen recordings! You'll get options to export/copy the GIF, with a choice between low and high quality. This menu can also be accessed with a keyboard shortcut, Ctrl+G. — phantomofearth (@phantomofearth) May 22, 2025 Basically, the feature may allow you to record a GIF and then copy and export the file both in low quality or high quality. The CTRL+G shortcut may help you jump into GIF creation and editing. This shortcut is not to be confused with Windows+G, which opens the Game Bar. According to the leak, you may be able to make GIFs from your screen recordings. Windows 11's Snipping Tool can already record videos, but it captures those as MP4 video files. On the other hand, GIFs are lightweight files that can be embedded easily or quickly shared in apps and websites. These files don't take a bunch of space (unlike a traditional MP4 video) and are ideal for quick expressiveness. Microsoft has given quite a lot of love to its Snipping Tool recently. Recently, a huge announcement by the tech giant with a lot of new generative-AI-powered features that will bring some great things to Snipping Tool. Like, for example, the powers to scan your screen with AI for a tightly cropped capture and the ability to use a text extractor and also a color picker straight from the Snipping Tool. There are also a bunch of other features in testing, including support for emojis, Draw & Hold which would allow you to convert strokes into shapes, and also the ability to detect QR codes.
Hindustan Times
27-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
Microsoft brings AI features to classic Windows apps: Check what's new
Microsoft is bringing artificial intelligence to three of its classic Windows apps, Paint, Snipping Tool, and Notepad, as part of the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview. These new features, rolling out to users in the Canary and Dev Channels, aim to modernise everyday tools with generative AI and smart enhancements, although many will be restricted to Copilot+ PCs. The Paint app is now equipped with AI-generated stickers and intelligent image editing tools. A new Sticker Generator allows users to create custom stickers by simply typing in a text prompt. For example, users can enter 'cat wearing sunglasses,' and the AI will generate a visual sticker accordingly. Stickers can be added to the canvas, copied to other apps, or saved for later use. Mobile finder: iQOO Neo 10 launched in India Another addition is the Object Select tool, which uses AI to isolate and edit specific elements in an image, streamlining the editing process. Alongside these tools, Microsoft is also rolling out a new Welcome Experience that highlights the updated capabilities of Paint to help users get started. These Paint features are available exclusively on Copilot+ PCs and require a Microsoft account to use the sticker generator. The Snipping Tool is also receiving AI-powered functionality. The Perfect Screenshot tool automatically refines the selection area, aiming to eliminate the need for cropping after taking a screenshot. This could be particularly useful for frequent screen capture tasks. A new Colour Picker tool has also been added. It lets users extract colour values, HEX, RGB, or HSL, from any part of the screen. This feature is geared towards designers and developers who require accurate colour matching in their workflow. As with the Paint updates, these features are currently limited to Copilot+ PCs. Notepad, the lightweight text editor, now includes a Write feature powered by generative AI. Users can right-click or use the shortcut Ctrl + Q to generate text from a prompt, offering assistance with drafting notes or expanding ideas. The generated content can be refined or discarded. To access the Write feature, users need a Microsoft account and an active Microsoft 365 subscription with Copilot Pro, as it draws on AI credits from the subscription. These updates reflect Microsoft's broader push to integrate generative AI tools into its everyday software ecosystem.
Engadget
24-05-2025
- Engadget
Microsoft Notepad's latest AI trick churns out custom text for you
Writer's block is no match for Microsoft's latest AI infusion for its Notepad app. The long-neglected Notepad now has the ability to write custom content based on any prompt you feed it, so long as you have Microsoft 365 or a Copilot Pro subscription. Microsoft's updated Notepad even lets you fine-tune the generated text with follow-up prompts. This update comes several months after Microsoft added the Rewrite tool to Notepad that lets you lean on generative AI to refine an existing chunk of text. Instead of rewriting, you can now right-click where you want brand-new text and hit Write from the Copilot menu, or use the Ctrl + Q shortcut. From its humble start as a simple text editor with no spellcheck until recently, Notepad is finally getting the modern AI makeover it deserves. Notepad isn't the only app getting some love from Microsoft. The updated Paint app can tap into generative AI to make custom stickers based on user prompts. On top of that, there's an Object select feature that can isolate specific parts of an image so you can just edit that portion. These two features are only available on Copilot+ PCs, like the recently announced HP laptops. Lastly, Microsoft upgraded the Snipping Tool with the Perfect screenshot feature that automatically edits your screen captures. With the Copilot AI, the tool will automatically resize the screenshot so you don't have to spend time getting the right crop. The Perfect screenshot feature requires a Copilot+ PC, but Snipping Tool's new Color picker tool, which can provide you with the HEX, RGB or HSL values of a color you see on screen, doesn't. As usual, these AI features will roll out to Windows Insiders users first.
