Microsoft has unveiled the latest iteration of its operating system with the release of Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27898 to the Canary Channel. This update introduces a suite of features designed to enhance usability and recovery, reflecting the company’s commitment to continually improving user experience.
Taskbar Icon Scaling
Among the standout features in Build 27898 is the innovative taskbar icon scaling. This enhancement addresses a prevalent concern for users who frequently populate their taskbar with pinned or active applications. As the taskbar fills up, Windows will now automatically reduce the size of the icons, ensuring that more applications remain visible without relegating them to an overflow menu.
Microsoft has provided users with three customizable options regarding this feature. The default setting activates when the taskbar reaches capacity, shrinking icons only when necessary. For those who prefer a consistent appearance, there is an option to maintain smaller icon sizes at all times. Alternatively, users can opt to disable the scaling feature entirely.
Adjustments to these preferences can be easily made by right-clicking on the taskbar, selecting taskbar settings, and modifying the “Show smaller taskbar buttons” option under taskbar behaviors.
Quick Machine Recovery
Another significant addition in this build is the quick machine recovery feature, part of the broader Windows Resiliency Initiative introduced at Ignite 2024. This tool is designed to facilitate automatic recovery from boot issues by utilizing the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE).
In the event of a system startup failure, the feature will attempt to connect to the internet via WinRE and receive targeted fixes from Windows Update, thereby streamlining the recovery process and minimizing the need for manual intervention. This functionality is enabled by default for home users, while IT administrators can manage it through Intune and a dedicated settings page found under System > Recovery.
Accessibility Enhancements
Microsoft continues to prioritize accessibility with expanded voice access features. Users can now enrich the voice access dictionary by adding custom words, enhancing the accuracy of dictation for personalized vocabulary, including names and less common terms.
The introduction of the Screen Curtain feature, available through the Narrator screen reader, further bolsters user privacy. This function blacks out the display, allowing only the Narrator to read on-screen content—an invaluable tool for users in public or shared environments.
Additionally, privacy dialogs for app permissions have received a design overhaul, dimming the screen to focus attention on the prompt. Microsoft Entra ID sign-ins will now utilize WebView2 for improved compatibility, while File Explorer has undergone minor visual updates with the addition of dividers between top-level context menu icons.
Energy Saver and Sharing Features
The Energy Saver feature has also been updated, with a preview of the adaptive energy saver now being rolled out. This setting intelligently enables or disables energy saver mode based on the device’s power state and system load, all without dimming the screen. Currently, this feature is available exclusively on battery-powered devices and can be managed under the Power & battery settings.
The Windows share window has been enhanced to display visual previews of shared content. When sharing images, users can select from High, Medium, or Low quality compression settings, streamlining the sharing process.
Performance improvements have also been made to file extraction, particularly for large archives in formats such as .7z or .rar. The Snipping Tool now features a new shortcut, allowing users to launch the text extractor directly with the Win + Shift + T command. Settings have been refined as well, offering clearer displays for country or region and additional options for managing default browser behavior.
Moreover, users can now designate their default browser as the handler for PDFs and pin it to the Start menu and taskbar for quick access.
While Build 27898 addresses several issues within File Explorer and Settings crashes, some known problems persist, including display distortion in Remote Desktop on Arm64 PCs and crashes under Power & Battery options.
Image Credit: Simon Lehmann / Dreamstime.com
