Notepad enhancements Archives

Winsage

January 22, 2026

Microsoft unveils wave of new Windows 11 features in Paint and Notepad

Microsoft is rolling out updates for Notepad and Paint in Windows 11. Notepad will feature advanced Markdown capabilities, including strikethrough formatting and nested lists, as well as a formatting toolbar for easier access to formatting options. A new "Welcome Experience" popup will inform users of new features whenever they are added.

Winsage

September 19, 2025

Notepad’s AI writing features will soon run locally on Copilot+ PCs

CoPilot+ PC owners will soon have access to Notepad's AI writing capabilities without needing a subscription. Previously, these tools required a CoPilot Pro or Microsoft 365 subscription. The update is being rolled out to Windows Insider beta testers and is currently available only in English. Additionally, Paint is receiving upgrades, including the ability to save projects as .paint files and an opacity slider for tools. The Snipping Tool is also being updated with a quick markup option for annotating images. These updates are available through the Canary and Dev Insider channels, and anyone with a Microsoft account can sign up for free.

Winsage

May 7, 2025

A New Start Menu and More Major Upgrades Are Coming to Windows 11

Microsoft announced significant upgrades for Windows 11, including enhancements to the Start menu, Copilot AI, and utilities like Paint and the Snipping Tool. The Start menu will become larger, more customizable, and user-friendly, allowing users to view all apps at once, hide recommended shortcuts, and increase the size of the pinned apps panel. A "phone companion" feature will be integrated into the Start menu. These changes are expected to roll out to the Windows Insider channel within the next month. File Explorer will introduce AI actions for document summarization and image editing directly from the right-click menu. Notepad will gain AI text generation and summarization features, along with lightweight formatting options like bold, italic, lists, and Markdown support. Copilot Vision will allow users to interact with AI regarding on-screen content. Some features will debut on Copilot+ PCs with Snapdragon chipsets, including an AI agent in Settings to assist users with adjustments and the Click to Do feature for scheduling meetings and launching Immersive Reader mode. The Photos app will introduce a relight feature for dynamic lighting control. Paint will gain capabilities for creating custom stickers from text prompts and an AI-powered object select tool. The Snipping Tool will receive enhancements like intelligent screenshot cropping, text extraction, and a color picker. The Narrator on Copilot+ PCs will be upgraded to provide rich descriptions of images.

Winsage

November 8, 2024

Microsoft starts rolling out AI to these decades old popular tools on Windows

Microsoft is integrating advanced AI capabilities into its Paint and Notepad applications. Paint will feature Generative Fill, allowing users to add or alter image elements through text prompts, and Generative Erase, enabling the removal of unwanted objects while filling in the background. These features are being rolled out to Windows Insiders, with Generative Fill initially available on Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs and Generative Erase accessible to all Windows 11 users. Notepad will introduce a Rewrite feature for rephrasing text, currently in preview for select regions, and has improved launch performance, reducing app launch time by over 35% for most users and up to 55% for some.