Microsoft Weekly: Apple mocks BSOD, new Start menu, redesigned OneDrive, and more

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This week"s news recap is here, bringing you an overview of the most interesting stories from the world of Microsoft from the last seven days. This time, we have Apple mocking PCs again, the redesigned Start menu for more Windows 11 users, big updates to OneDrive, new preview builds for Windows Insiders, and more.

Quick links:

  1. Windows 10 and 11
  2. Windows Insider Program
  3. Updates are available
  4. Reviews are in
  5. Gaming news
  6. Great deals to check

Windows 11 and Windows 10

Here, we talk about everything happening around Microsoft"s latest operating system in the Stable channel and preview builds: new features, removed features, controversies, bugs, interesting findings, and more. And, of course, you may find a word or two about older versions.

Remember what happened in the Summer of last year, when a CrowdStrike outage caused blue screens of death on millions of PCs? Apple decided to take a jab at Microsoft with a new 8-minute ad that pitches Mac as a much safer alternative to Windows. Of course, comments under that video are turned off; we wonder why.

If you are still on Windows 11 version 23H2, it is time to pack things up and move to something more recent. Microsoft issued a 30-day reminder that Windows 11 version 23H2 would be out of support by November 11, 2025. If you want to continue receiving fixes and security updates, version 24H2 and 25H2 wait for you to upgrade.

Several useful tools for Windows users, particularly those planning to upgrade to Windows 11, received some updates. Flyoobe has been updated to version 1.30 with guided setup and reworked navigation. WhyNotWin11, a very handy app for compatibility checks, received a new version with improved GPU/CPU detection and other improvements.

Finally, check out a couple of editorials from Usama Jawad, where he rumbles about what is allegedly the most useless key on modern keyboards, problems with recent Microsoft 365 outages, and how the end of Windows 10 support will put users in a very sticky situation.

Windows Insider Program

Here is what Microsoft released for Windows Insiders this week:

Builds
Canary Channel

Build 27959

This build introduced the ability to move hardware indicators, improvements for the Windows Share UI, and multiple fixes.

Build 27965

The second Canary build of the week introduced the redesigned Start menu, seamless cross-device integration with Phone Link, Edit (a new command-line-based text editor), and other improvements.
Dev Channel

Build 26200.6772

Some long-anticipated changes finally made their way to Windows 11, with Microsoft finally adding dark mode to common file dialogs in File Explorer, the ability to rename the user folder during the initial setup, and more.

Build 26220.6780

The second Dev build of the week introduced a new section with recommended settings, search improvements, updates to the drag tray, and more.
Beta Channel

Build 26100.6772

The same build as the one in the Dev Channel.

Build 26120.6780

The same build 26220.6780 from the Dev Channel.
Release Preview Channel

Nothing in Release Preview this week

Besides fixing dark mode in File Explorer, the latest Dev and Beta builds introduced a not-so-welcome change. Microsoft is making it much harder to set up Windows 11 without an active internet connection for local account-only use. Fortunately, there are still methods to bypass that, so check out this guide to learn more.

Finally, Microsoft has updated the Copilot app for Windows with the ability to tap into third-party services and create Office documents for you.

Updates are available

This section covers software, firmware, and other notable updates (released and coming soon) delivering new features, security fixes, improvements, patches, and more from Microsoft and third parties.

Microsoft announced several upgrades for OneDrive this week. For starters, the company unveiled seamless Copilot integration in OneDrive for enterprise users, document auto-save in OneDrive by default, and more. For regular users, Microsoft announced a major upgrade to the photos experience in OneDrive.

For OneNote users, Microsoft is finally rolling out a highly-requested feature, particularly by those who frequently insert images into their notebooks. At long last, OneNote lets you crop images without using third-party tools.

Browser updates from this week include some useful changes for Firefox. The browser is finally getting built-in profile support, something that other browsers have had for many years. While this feature was clearly borrowed from Chrome and other browsers, Firefox on mobile has a unique "Share to summarize" feature, which got a special mention in TIME Magazine.

Microsoft Edge, on the other hand, got a small update with a redesigned profile selector that should help users better distinguish between personal and work/school accounts. The update also brought bug fixes and security patches.

Finally, Google Chrome will soon offer you a "quieter" browsing experience on Android and desktop, which will change how website notifications work on certain websites.

Here are other updates and releases you may find interesting:

Here are the latest drivers and firmware updates released this week:

On the gaming side

Learn about upcoming game releases, Xbox rumors, new hardware, software updates, freebies, deals, discounts, and more.

Some users will be spared from the upcoming Xbox Game Pass Ultimate increase. This week, Microsoft sent emails to subscribers in certain countries, such as Germany, Ireland, South Korea, Poland, and India, stating that they can continue to pay the old price, at least for now and only as long as they don"t cancel the subscription.

Speaking of Game Pass, more games are coming to the service in October. Look out for Hogwarts Legacy, Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, Ninja Gaiden 4, He Is Coming, Eternal Strands, Supermarket Simulator, and more.

Xbox Design Lab now has a new The Outer Worlds 2 design for the standard controller and the Elite variants. These look nice, and fans of the franchise will like them, but the price tag is pretty hefty even before you add extra customization.

Activision was very busy with Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and its public beta, which was extended to October 9, particularly in the cheater area. According to Activision"s RICOCHET team, the studio"s anti-cheat efforts resulted in 97% of cheaters getting ban hammers in only 30 minutes after signing in, and only 1% actually made their way to matches, only to be banned in less than one minute.

Finally, check out this week"s Weekend PC Game Deals article with plenty of various discounts on PC games, a new freebie from the Epic Games Store, and more.

Other gaming news includes the following:

Great deals to check

Every week, we cover many deals on different hardware and software. The following discounts are still available, so check them out. You might find something you want or need.

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