Windows 10 Auto HDR, Virtual Desktop Customization Are Coming
Microsoft already declared that this year's first major Windows 10 update will be a smaller one than usual, focusing more on keeping the operating system stable and polished. That doesn't mean, however, that it won't be introducing new features, some of them bigger than others and might even change the way you see things, quite literally, too. The latest Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 21337 gives a glimpse of what's coming and it has something for every Windows user, from gamers to multi-taskers and even to die-hard Notepad fans.
Microsoft has been trying to bridge the gap between two of the world's biggest gaming platforms but, fortunately for either camp, it's not exactly mashing them up together. Microsoft is instead bringing some Windows features to Xbox and vice versa, like the Xbox Series X|S Auto HDR that's coming soon to PCs as well. In a nutshell, it uses computational and graphics magic to "upgrade" games that were never designed with HDR in mind to something almost resembling HDR.
The Preview also adds more ways for power users to customize Virtual Desktops to match their workflows and tastes. You will soon be able to reorder those virtual desktops and will be able to assign different backgrounds for individual desktops. This can help give users visual cues that, in turn, could help them separate work and personal desktops as needed.
Microsoft also announced a few changes to its Inbox apps, what it calls the standard set of apps pre-installed in every Windows 10 system. In the next release, the venerable Notepad will finally get a new icon, which could end up confusing some older users. Windows Terminal is also being added to the set and both it and Notepad will be updated via the Microsoft Store rather than through major Windows updates.
The preview build also has other changes, like a more spacious layout for File Explorer. It also comes with known issues that will hopefully get ironed out before the final release goes out to the public.