Neowin News Feed for: Feature

Spotify launches custom cover art for playlists, available in beta today

Steve Bennett — Tue, 22 Oct 2024 13:22:02 +0000

The feature lets free and premium users of Spotify create their own custom art for saved playlists using the mobile app. Read more...

Bluesky adds the ability to share videos

Steve Bennett — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 20:30:01 +0000

Bluesky, the social network set up by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, has added the ability for users to share videos on the platform after a huge weekend of growth. Read more...

Did somebody poke you on Facebook after a decade? Meta is resurrecting the feature

Martin Hodás — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 17:36:01 +0000

If you thought that Facebook Pokes were dead, you were wrong. They were in a coma for years, but now they are back to fight for engagement. And it seems that the younger generation likes it. Read more...

Windows 10 is getting new features again. Here are Top 5 it should get from Windows 11

Taras Buria — Sat, 27 Jan 2024 19:36:31 +0000

Despite being less than two years away from its end of support, Windows 10 is getting new features again. Here are the top 5 it should get to improve the experience for those sticking to Windows 10. Read more...

Clean Windows 11 23H2 benchmarked against Windows 11 22H2

Steven Parker — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 17:20:01 +0000

23H2 brings with it many new changes for Windows 11, some good and some less popular, like CoPilot, but who cares? All we want at the end of the day is a better more stable, and faster system, right? Read more...

Clean installed Windows 10 22H2 vs Windows 11 23H2 benchmarked for performance

Steven Parker — Sat, 02 Dec 2023 21:04:01 +0000

We've already looked if Windows 11 suffers as a result of being upgraded from Windows 10, and the results were somewhat surprising in places, now we've run the same tests on clean installs of both. Read more...

Windows 10 vs Windows 11 in-place upgrade: Intel i9 14900K benchmarked

Steven Parker — Sat, 04 Nov 2023 14:00:01 +0000

We decided to install the latest version of Windows 10 22H2 on our 14th gen Intel i9-14900K system and then pitch it against an in-place Windows 11 (also 22H2) upgrade in a series of benchmarks. Read more...

Meta expands the WhatsApp Channels feature globally

Steve Bennett — Wed, 13 Sep 2023 13:58:02 +0000

Today, Meta has announced that WhatsApp will be rolling out the Channels feature across the globe, starting in India over the next few months, following a limited launch earlier this year Read more...

Phone verification badges for Twitter confirmed to be in the works

Steve Bennett — Tue, 23 Aug 2022 11:38:01 +0000

It was recently discovered that Twitter is testing out a verification badge for users who have verified their phone numbers, and Twitter has now confirmed that it is testing this feature. Read more...

TikTok launches 'Effect House' that allows creators to make their own AR effects

Karthik Mudaliar — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 17:16:02 +0000

TikTok has launched its Effect House to open beta that gives creators the tools and resources they need to create their own augmented reality effects and share them with other TikTok users as well. Read more...

Facebook is making it easier for you to get paid back for group dinners

Karthik Mudaliar — Fri, 03 Dec 2021 18:42:01 +0000

Facebook is adding a new feature on Messenger called "Split Payments" that does exactly what it's named - it splits payments between friends or group members for dinners, household or even rent. Read more...

Spotify is testing a new style of music listening that resembles TikTok

Karthik Mudaliar — Thu, 25 Nov 2021 16:30:01 +0000

Spotify is currently testing a new feed called "Discover" which shows short clips of music videos in a style that is similar to what we see on TikTok. Users can swipe up the feed and like the songs. Read more...

YouTube Music's Explore tab now lets users see top charts from around the world

Usman Khan Lodhi — Mon, 05 Oct 2020 17:40:01 +0000

YouTube Music has expanded the Explore tab, which was released in April, to include its global YouTube Charts, letting users view the most popular music from 57 countries around the world. Read more...

OnePlus phones will start optimizing charging based on your sleep schedule

Usman Khan Lodhi — Tue, 07 Jan 2020 19:16:01 +0000

OnePlus announced a new feature, changing the way that its phones are charged. Now, the phones will wait to charge to full capacity just before the users wake up, taking sleep schedule into account. Read more...

Facebook News, a section dedicated to bringing news and journalism is now in testing

Ather Fawaz — Fri, 25 Oct 2019 14:16:01 +0000

News is Facebook's move to sustain quality journalism, provide a variety of news, and strengthen democracy. It has been built with help from journalists, publishers, and news organizations. Read more...

Google introduces new features to make travelling easier

Ather Fawaz — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 14:14:01 +0000

Changes to Google's travel website include helpful recommendations for hotels, things-to-do, forecasting of prices for flight routes and subsequent refunding for tickets in case of bad predictions. Read more...

Twitter suggested accounts to unfollow in new experimental feature

Jay Bonggolto — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 11:32:01 +0000

Twitter tested a new feature this week in which it was suggesting specific people to unfollow. The test covered only a limited number of users, though it's not clear if it's rolling out to all. Read more...

Facebook brings video calling to Messenger Lite

Paul Hill — Wed, 07 Mar 2018 17:50:02 +0000

Facebook's no-frills Messenger Lite is now able to make and receive video calls. With the new feature, you can either initiate a video call or upgrade an audio call to a video call. Read more...

Twitter now allows users to privately bookmark tweets

Gurkaran Singh — Wed, 28 Feb 2018 20:06:01 +0000

The social media platform has released "bookmarks" feature for mobile users, which allows them to save the tweets for future references. The functionality has been in testing since November last year. Read more...

Twitch launches custom chat rooms for streamers

Craig Mu — Fri, 16 Feb 2018 11:58:01 +0000

Twitch has just introduced a new 'Rooms' feature that allows streamers to create custom chat rooms. Streamers can invite audience members to their rooms and chat with them separately. Read more...

Party Chat is now available in the Xbox app for Android and iOS

Craig Mu — Thu, 15 Feb 2018 08:50:01 +0000

Microsoft has just released Xbox Party Chat for its Android and iOS apps. Users are now able to create a party, invite players, and communicate with each other via voice or text chat. Read more...

Mixer brings the hype to Fortnite with 'HypeZoneFortnite'

Craig Mu — Thu, 08 Feb 2018 08:10:02 +0000

Mixer has just launched a new HypeZone channel for Fortnite. The channel shines a light on streamers who are at the tail-end of a match, bringing the support from a bunch of viewers with it. Read more...

Microsoft is working on new features for its To-Do app

Craig Mu — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 08:12:02 +0000

Microsoft looks like they may be adding new features to their To-Do app soon. The company updated the UserVoice page for the app indicating new features they are currently working on. Read more...

Instagram releases 'Type' mode for Stories

Craig Mu — Fri, 02 Feb 2018 04:49:57 +0000

Instagram has released 'Type' mode for Instagram Stories. Users are now able to select from a wide range of special effects and fonts while also creating completely text-based stories. Read more...

Instagram releases 'Gif Stickers' for Stories

Craig Mu — Wed, 24 Jan 2018 06:30:01 +0000

Instagram has added 'Gif Stickers' to Instagram Stories. Users can now express themselves more freely by choosing from a bunch of animated stickers to place on top of their creations. Read more...

Instagram is testing a new 'Type' feature for Stories

Craig Mu — Thu, 18 Jan 2018 13:14:01 +0000

Instagram is testing a new 'Type' functionality for Instagram Stories. Users will gain the ability to create completely text-based stories without having to use an image or photo to do so. Read more...

Cortana no longer able to identify songs after Groove Music axing

Gurkaran Singh — Thu, 04 Jan 2018 03:24:01 +0000

Microsoft officially put its Groove music streaming service out to pasture on January 1st. As a result, the company's digital assistant lost the ability to identify songs vis-à-vis Shazam. Read more...

Xbox mouse support may be coming in the next Insider update

Gurkaran Singh — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 19:56:01 +0000

Microsoft may have recently shipped the Fall Update to Xbox, but it's not slowing down just yet. After much delay, mouse support may finally be coming to Xbox in the next Insider update wave. Read more...

YouTube globally rolls out in-app chat feature, making it easier to share videos

Hamza Jawad — Mon, 07 Aug 2017 22:56:01 +0000

YouTube has globally released an in-app messaging and video sharing feature, currently only available for Android and iOS users. Videos can now be shared with multiple contacts within the app. Read more...

Vivaldi makes History - allows users more privacy and insight into their online activities

Usama Jawad — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 08:00:01 +0000

Vivaldi has unveiled version 1.8 of its web browser, introducing many new features including one called "History", which allows users insights into their online activities and keep them private. Read more...

CSS Custom Properties are coming to Microsoft Edge in the Windows 10 Creators Update

Usama Jawad — Sat, 25 Mar 2017 09:58:01 +0000

Microsoft has announced that CSS Custom Properties will making their way to its Edge browser in the Windows 10 Creators Update, unlocking "potential for more creative work on the web". Read more...

Google announces Family Library to share apps, games and more with up to six family members

Usama Jawad — Wed, 27 Jul 2016 19:12:01 +0000

Google has finally announced Family Library, which will allow users to share apps, games, movies and more with up to six family members. It will roll out in various countries over the next few days. Read more...

Twitter now allows you to tweet videos up to 140 seconds long, rolls out new companion app

Usama Jawad — Wed, 22 Jun 2016 13:32:01 +0000

Twitter now allows you to tweet videos that are up to 140 seconds in length, and plans to introduce the same feature on Vine. The company has also rolled out a new "Twitter Engage" app. Read more...

Yammer welcomes new external groups feature

Matthew Sims — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 06:24:01 +0000

Corporate social network Yammer has added the option to create groups with users from several companies at once. The new feature will support easier collaboration between various corporations. Read more...

PSA: Turn off this iOS 9 setting if you don't have an unlimited data plan

Usama Jawad — Sun, 27 Sep 2015 14:18:01 +0000

There is a default setting in Apple's iOS 9, which is probably using more of your data plan than usual. Fortunately, there's an easy fix for the issue which takes less than a minute. Read more...

The Top 10 apps no Windows 10 PC should be without

Steven Parker — Mon, 24 Aug 2015 08:08:01 +0000

Now that you have qualified for the free upgrade to Windows 10, we take a look at some handy apps that you can add to enhance your experience with Microsoft's latest OS. Read more...

Xbox Games with Gold is two years old: here are some of its best games

Jett Goldsmith — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 06:28:01 +0000

The month of July marks the two year anniversary of Xbox Games with Gold, which Microsoft announced at E3 2013. 72 games have since dropped, and we detail some of the best ones. Read more...

All the technologies to look out for this year from the Chinese smartphone world

Steven Johns — Sat, 13 Jun 2015 06:46:01 +0000

2.5D screens? Ten-core MT6797 SoCs? Dual-batteries? The next year of Chinese smartphones will be really interesting, and this article will prime you on the next 12 months of Chinese handset tech. Read more...

Windows 10: Registry Editor update makes it a breeze to switch between hives

Steven Parker — Fri, 03 Apr 2015 08:56:01 +0000

In our quest to uncover yet more features added to Windows 10, we have discovered that the Registry Editor received a power user tweak to switch between hives if the key exists there. Read more...

Bringing Windows 10 Modern UI and Desktop together; this concept nails it

Steven Parker — Tue, 17 Feb 2015 09:08:01 +0000

With around two million people currently testing the Windows 10 previews, Microsoft has made leaps and bounds improving the OS based on feedback. But is it leaving Explorer and the UI behind? Read more...