Windows 11’s AI-powered Voice Clarity feature improves your video chats, and the setup (finally) has a new look
Windows 11 has a new preview build that improves audio quality for your video chats and much more.
Windows 11 preview build 26040 has been released on the Canary channel (the first test builds), complete with the Voice Clarity feature that was previously exclusive to Surface device owners.
Voice Clarity uses AI to improve audio chat on your end, eliminating echo, reducing reverberation or other unwanted effects, and suppressing intrusive background noise. In short, it helps you be heard better and your voice clearer.
The catch is that apps must use communication signal processing mode to take advantage of this feature, which is unsurprisingly what Microsoft’s own Phone Link app uses. WhatsApp is another example, and some PC games will work well with this technology, allowing you to shout at your teammates and be crystal clear while doing so.
Voice Clarity is enabled by default – after all, there’s no real downside here, apart from using a bit of CPU juice – but you can disable it if you want.
Another smart addition here is a connection between your Android phone and Windows 11 PC for photo editing. Every time you take a photo with your smartphone, it’s immediately available on the desktop PC (you’ll receive a notification) and you can edit it in the Snipping Tool (instead of having to bother with the image on your handset ).
For the full list of changes in build 26040, see Microsoft’s blog postbut another of the bigger introductions worth highlighting here is that the Windows 11 installation experience has been given a long-overdue lick of paint.
Analysis: Setting the Scene
It’s about time the Windows configuration gets some attention, as it’s had the same basic look and feel for quite some time. It would be nice if the modernization got a bit more sparkle, we think, although the improvement is a good one, and it’s not exactly a crucial part of the interface (since you don’t see it after you install the OS anyway ).
We already saw the ability to send photos from Android phones to the Snipping Tool appear in the Dev channel last week, but it’s good to see a wider rollout to Canary testers. It’s just being rolled out though, so keep in mind that you might not see it yet if you’re a Canary Channel resident.
As for Voice Clarity, that’s clearly a welcome addition of AI for all Windows 11 users. Whether you’re chatting with your family to catch up on the weekend, or working remotely and using your Windows 11 PC for meetings, it goes without saying that you’ll want to be heard better by the person (or people) at the desk. other end of the line. a good thing.