New Windows 11 22H2 Features You Can Look Forward To

We are a strong advocate of updating Windows. Take the latest Windows 11 update, for instance; Microsoft recently rolled out the Windows 11 22H2 update, which has brought along some exciting features that can increase your productivity and security. We’ll let you in on the features we have been able to use and the ones you can expect soon. 

Windows 11 2022 Update (22H2) – Accessible Features

1. A Cleaner Start Menu

When we open the Start menu, we are often swarmed with several pinned or recommended apps. Regarding that, the Start Menu in Windows 11 2022 (known as version 22H2) has been updated in useful ways. Take the Pinned section, for example; you can change the layout per the number of items you want. To do that – 

1. Click open the Start Menu. 
2. Right-click on Pinned and then click on Settings.
   
   
3. As you can see, you have several options to personalize your Start menu. You can add or remove the items to give your Start Menu a cleaner and sorted look.
   
   

2. Group Pinned Apps In The Start Menu

Talking of pinned apps, if you have pinned multiple apps in the Start Menu, the Windows 11 22H2 update effectively organizes those. You can now create folders in the Start Menu to manage several pinned apps. To do that – 

1. Press the Windows key. 
2. Under Pinned Apps, drag the app onto the one you want to group it with. As you can see, I have grouped the Microsoft apps.
   
   
3. You can rename the grouped apps as per your wish.
   
   

3. A Video Editor With Inbuilt Screen Recorder

The new Windows 11 22H2 (previously dubbed as the 2022 update) also adds a dedicated video editor called Clipchamp. It provides you with all basic editing tools with the help of which you can crop, trim, split and do tons of other things to your footage. You can add animated texts, transitions, and some cool filters. 

The Clipchamp editor also provides you with a screen and camera recorder. You can now record yourself using your webcam or record the on-screen activities. Plus, you can even add a recording while you are editing a project. 

So, you now have one more option apart from the Xbox Gaming Bar, but Clipchamp’s screen recorder certainly looks feature rich and easier to use.

While Clipchamp offers most features free, it also has a premium version as well. Here is a screenshot that shows the difference between the free and paid version. For more pricing information, you can visit the pricing section of Clipchamp. 

4. Improved Snap Layouts

If you like working with multiple applications, you are sure aware of the Snap windows. With the latest 22H2 update for Windows 11, things have become snappier. Apart from the various snap options you could see when you click on the maximize button, you can now drag a window to the top of your screen and see the new Snap layouts dropdown. You can preview where you would be snapping that window just by hovering it over to the snap option.

And that’s not the only good thing about this, you can press the Windows + Z key combination, and the layout menu will now appear with numbers. You can choose a number, and your window will be snapped.

5. Improved Task Manager

Windows 11 2H22 gives you a new improved Task Manager. As you can see from the screenshot below, it has a more modern design than its predecessors. The ‘tabs’ usually placed on the top of the Task Manager are on the side. The company says this design intends to make it more tablet-friendly and modern. You can check this upgrade by pressing the Shift + Ctrl + Esc key. On a personal front, we observed a slight lag when clicking on each tab. Is it the same with you too? 

6. Smart App Control

The Smart App Control, is a security feature that will help you steer clear of running malicious or unsafe apps, thereby protecting your data and PC from damage. The way it works is that it judges the apps based on signals to ascertain if the apps are safe to run on a PC. And, if it finds that an app is associated with malware, it will automatically block it.  To enable this feature –   

1. Type smart app control in the Windows search bar and click on Open from the right-hand side.
   
   
2. Choose from one of the three options, as seen in the screenshot below –
   
   

7. Focus

With Windows 11 version 22H2, you get a Focus feature that helps you increase your productivity by reducing distractions. It also integrated a Clock app that will appear once you turn on the Focus feature. Once you are in the focus session – 

• The Do not Disturb will turn on. 
• A timer will appear. 
• Flashing on apps on Taskbar will be hidden. 
• Badge notifications on apps will turn off.

To open Focus: 

1. Open Settings by pressing Windows + I. 
2. Click on System from the left-hand side. 
3. Click on Focus.
   
   
4. Select your session duration and click the Start focus session button.
   
   

8. Voice Access

This feature enables everyone, especially those with mobility disabilities, to author text and control a PC using voice. Once enabled, you can browse the web, switch between apps, write emails, and do loads of other things with the help of your voice. This feature works on on-device speech recognition. For instance, Voice Access downloads a speech model so that this feature can understand you.  Here is how it works – 

1. In the Windows search bar, type Voice Access.
   
   
2. Once the download is complete, click on the mic to record.
   
   

9. Live Captions

As the name shows, Live Captions is a feature that will help you caption both audio and videos live on your screen. This feature is currently available in English (United States). To bring up the Live Captions feature, press the Windows + Ctrl + L button, and as soon as you do that, it will caption the audio being played on your computer. For example, we recorded a voice sample in English, and the feature could caption it. 

Things We Can Expect Later

There are some features that we may see in the upcoming updates. We might be able to see some of them somewhere in October 2022. Two commonly awaited features include – 

– Tabbed view in File Explorer

Feature flags currently hide this feature in Windows 11, and it lets you enable tabs in your File Explorer. You can open folders in separate tabs in the same Windows. 

– Task Overflow Feature On The Taskbar

Ever come across a situation where you had exhausted the space on your Taskbar and found it hard to find the apps that were pinned next? Enter the Task Overflow feature, which can help you easily access those apps. 

Wrapping Up

Did this post excite you to get the Windows 22H2 update? (That is if you haven’t yet updated your Windows 11 or still have Windows 10). What is that one features or features that you loved? Do let us know in the comments section below. We regularly develop such content, so don’t forget to bookmark this page and share it with other tech enthusiasts.