Microsoft Weekly: Xbox Live Gold is going away, Windows 11 23H2 features in Beta Channel

In this episode of Microsoft Weekly, we take a look at the long-rumored Xbox Live Gold replacement called "Xbox Game Pass Core" and its features; Windows Insiders get new builds with Windows 11 23H2 features, energy improvements, and more; plenty of apps get plenty of changes in the latest updates; Microsoft announces Bing Chat for enterprise with a hefty price-per-user; and we recall Microsoft's first attempt to disrupt the mobile market with a cordless mobile phone.

Table of contents:

1. Windows 11
2. Windows Insider, new builds, and new features
3. App updates
4. Gaming news
5. Bing Chat, Windows Copilot, and more AI frenzy
6. Trivia and more interesting stories
7. Random fact about Microsoft

Windows 11

A YouTube video published this week revealed an interesting situation with Intel's CPU latencies when running Windows 10 and 11. According to the Tech YES City channel, architecture changes in Intel's 12th and 13th-generation processors cause notable delays compared with previous-gen models.

It will be interesting to see if those issues persist in the upcoming 14th-gen models, whose specs and performance figures have already leaked.

Other not-so-exciting Windows 11 news include issues with KB5028166—the update is causing system issues with Secure Channel and other bugs, which, in turn, forced Synology to release a patch.

Another story emerged this week with details about Rust-based malware for hacking Windows and Linux servers. This piece is particularly interesting in light of news about Microsoft adding Rust to Windows 11's kernel to make the OS more secure.

Windows Insider, new builds, and new features

Several weeks ago, Microsoft released the first public preview of the Windows Copilot feature—Microsoft's new assistant powered by Bing and OpenAI. After a short testing period with select insiders, Microsoft made the Copilot available to all users running build 23493 and newer.

But build 23493 is now old news. This week, Microsoft released build 23506 in the Dev Channel with an improved out-of-box experience (the initial setup), a new Outlook to replace the old and long-abandoned Mail & Calendar, passwordless Windows Hello improvements, and various fixes.

Tip: You can get links to the latest Windows Insider builds using our handy Windows Insider build tracker widget on the home page.

In addition to the new features mentioned in the release notes, build 23506 contains a hidden set of improvements for the energy settings. Microsoft wants to make its operating system more energy-conscious, and the latest build features new stats for tracking energy consumption with detailed per-app info.

Another noteworthy update in the Windows Insider Program is a new Windows Subsystem for Android release. Version 2306 is now available for those running Windows 11 preview builds (outside the Windows Subsystem for Android Preview program), adding camera compatibility improvements, storage fixes, Android security updates, and more.

If Dev and Canary builds are not for you due to bugs and instabilities, you may want to try the latest Beta Channel build and its extensive list of new features. The new stuff in build 22631.2050 is expected later this year as a part of the 23H2 update, and Beta Channel users can already try it before the public rollout.

Downloading updates, please wait

Here is the list of noteworthy app updates released during the last seven days:

• Microsoft Edge to get back EPUB support, allowing you to read books without downloading third-party apps. Users spotted the change in one of the latest Canary builds. However, the first implementation is limited and raw, so expect improvements before the public rollout. Another great change available for testing in the Canary Channel is the ability to use Bing Chat (aka Windows Copilot) to change the browser's settings.

  

• Third-party extensions for Microsoft Edge Sidebar: Microsoft announced support for third-party projects to make the Sidebar more feature-rich and useful.

  

• Office Microsoft 365 Insiders can finally try the new Aptos font and other visual changes. The latest cosmetic Office revamp includes a new font, improved spacing, contrast, and thickness, and a new color palette. In addition, Microsoft is testing expanded support for adding pictures in Excel cells.

  

• Microsoft Dev Home Preview 0.3 is now available with the ability to rearrange widgets on the home page and multiple under-the-hood fixes.

• VirtualBox has got a major update with fixes for TPM crashes, graphics bugs when running Windows 11, and performance improvements for macOS. The latest release is now available for download for free from the official website.

• NVIDIA has updated its firmware tool for customers using the pre-RTX20 and GTX16 graphics card series. The latest release is available for all 64-bit Windows versions (including unsupported ones), and it enables the latest DisplayPort 1.3/1.4 features.

• There is also a new NVIDIA driver available for supported GPUs—version 536.67 adds the RTX 4060 Ti 16GB support, DLSS3 for Portal: Prelude RTX, and more.

• Dual-video stream support in Microsoft Teams lets you connect a second camera to your computer and ensure other participants can see whatever you want to show without you going out of the frame. The feature is now in public preview and available for Microsoft 365 Insiders.
• Ink Workspace 2.3 is now available with the Mica material, new font, new UI effects, and more. The app is a third-party hidden gem for Windows 11, and it can serve as a fantastic alternative to the still botched Start menu.

  

• Finally, Google has released Android Nearby Share for Windows, allowing Android users to send files to their PCs over Wi-Fi.

Besides multiple apps and Windows updates, Microsoft released new firmware for a bunch of its Surface computers. The Surface Pro 9 received network improvements and a new Intel app to optimize your experience. The Surface Laptop Studio got a larger release: its latest firmware resolves several battery issues and weird battery-related error messages.

Gaming news

After years of speculation and rumors, Microsoft is finally ready to retire its Xbox Live Gold brand. This week, the company announced a new Xbox Game Pass tier called "Xbox Game Pass Core." According to Microsoft, it is the "evolution of Xbox Live Gold" with the same price and extra perks.

Besides access to the multiplayer on your Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S, you get 25 essential games, such as Forza Horizon 4, Gears 5, Doom Eternal, Inside, Fallout 4, and more. Microsoft plans to launch Xbox Game Pass Core on September 14, 2023, for $9.99/mo.

In addition to the new Xbox Game Pass tier, Microsoft announced the latest batch of games coming soon to Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass. Those games include The Wandering Village, Serious Same: Siberian Mayhem, and more.

Microsoft's last-month Xbox Game Showcase event was the company's most-watched stream. It generated more than 92 million views (a 38% increase over the previous one), hardly surprising, considering the amount of games and Starfield-related footage Microsoft showed.

If you are a Cities Skylines fan, you probably cannot wait for Cities Skylines 2, scheduled to arrive in October 2023. The game's developer announced several mechanics coming to the game, such as upgradable service builds, the internet, improved garbage management, and more.

While Cities Skylines fans wait for the sequel to arrive later this year, Diablo 4 players are already enjoying the latest massive patch. Version 1.1.0 is now available for download with new items, legendary aspects, and many more.

Although Microsoft finally received the green light from the FTC to purchase Activision-Blizzard, several regulatory hurdles remain, forcing Microsoft and ABK to extend their merger deal deadline. Still, Activision-Blizzard fans are already experiencing the results of the upcoming merger: Blizzard announced its plans to bring some of its games to other storefronts: on August 10, 2023, Overwatch 2 will be available for download from Steam.

Get those freebies and discounts!

Another week—another free game from the Epic Games Store. This time, everyone gets a free copy of The Elder Scrolls Online and Murder by Numbers. Two games will remain up for grabs until the next Thursday. Also, be sure to check out our regular Weekend PC Game Deals article featuring Total War specials, bundles, and more.

Bing Chat, Windows Copilot, and more AI frenzy

Microsoft's annual Inspire conference happened this week, and the company used it as an opportunity to reveal several AI-focused announcements. For example, the visual search feature is finally available for all Bing Chat users. Also, enterprise customers will soon get access to Bing Chat Enterprise with more privacy and security. Finally, the company unveiled Microsoft 365 Copilot pricing: commercial users will have to pay $30/mo per customer.

The news about Microsoft wanting to charge $30/mo per customer caused the company's shares to hit a new all-time of $359.49.

Despite focusing heavily on OpenAI and Bing Chat, Microsoft is still open to cooperation with other companies to help them develop new language models. This week, Microsoft unveiled a partnership with Facebook Meta aiming to launch Llama 2.

Trivia and more interesting stories

Those wanting to supercharge their productivity and work with Windows PCs faster should check out my recent article covering eleven great Windows keyboard and mouse shortcuts.

This week, Intel turned 55. To celebrate this milestone, John Callaham published a quick look back at the founding of one of America's largest chipmakers.

Another look-back article from this week is all about one of Microsoft's efforts to disrupt the mobile market. And no, it is not about Windows 10 Mobile, Windows Phone, or Windows Mobile. This one dates back to 1998 and the Microsoft Cordless Phone, aka PC Phone System MP-900.

Random fact about Microsoft

Windows 8 was Microsoft's first full-scale push on the tablet market. However, the operating system released in late 2012 was not Microsoft's first attempt to make a Windows version tailored for touchscreen-enabled devices. In the early 90s, Microsoft released Windows for Pen Computing or Windows Pen Edition. Built upon the Windows 3.1 core, Windows Pen Edition offered optimizations for touch and pen input: a tool for screen calibration, a virtual keyboard, a Notepad for handwriting, and more.

Windows for Pen Computing 2.0, based on Windows 95, was out in 1995, and in 2002, Windows XP Tablet PC Edition marked the final touch-optimized edition separated from the main release. In modern days, every Windows release comes with tools and optimizations for making the operating system touch and stylus-friendly.

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