Microsoft Weekly: Big Start menu upgrade and a new era of PC

This week's Microsoft Weekly recap is about new processors, Start menu updates, a new era of PC, and more.

This week's news recap is here, with Microsoft teasing a new era of PCs, Qualcomm announcing new chips for $300 Windows laptops, Windows 11 getting a big Start menu upgrade, gaming news, and a lot more.

Quick links:

1. Windows 10 and 11
2. Windows Insider Program
3. Updates are available
4. Reviews are in
5. Gaming news

Windows 11 and Windows 10

Here, we talk about everything happening around Microsoft's latest operating system in the Stable channel and preview builds: new features, removed features, controversies, bugs, interesting findings, and more. And, of course, you may find a word or two about older versions.

Microsoft released the May 2026 non-security update for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2. KB5089573 was released with the promising low-latency mode to improve performance, shared audio support, multi-app camera support, and other feature upgrades and quality improvements. The update is optional, and everything it has to offer will be bundled in the June 2026 Patch Tuesday update. By the way, Microsoft resolved installation issues with this month's Patch Tuesday update, so you should be able to install KB5089549 successfully.

Microsoft and Qualcomm are making Windows laptops more affordable. This week, Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon C, a low-end processor for Windows on ARM devices targeting the $300 price range. Laptops and tablets with this processor promise quiet operation at low temperatures, all-day battery life, and "responsive performance." In addition, these chips feature built-in Neural Processing Units (NPUs) for on-device AI. However, it seems that potential buyers will have to accept plenty of compromises, as one of the first laptops with the Snapdragon C has "up to 8GB of RAM" in its spec sheet, potentially hinting at a 4GB or 6GB RAM configuration.

Qualcomm is not the only one launching new chips. Microsoft published a teaser of "a new era of PC," with NVIDIA doing the same on X. Next week, at Computex 2026, we should see the debut of NVIDIA's N1 processors for desktop computers. Build 2026 is also kicking off, but do not expect to see Windows 12 there. And while Microsoft promises a new era, according to HP, plenty of users still enjoy the good old Windows 10.

Did you know that Windows 11 and 10 have a unified folder with all the tools available out of the box? This week, Usama Jawad shared his joy of discovering the Windows Tools folder, which lists every single tool for customizing and adjusting settings in Windows. I will chip in with a tip: do not go there during the night. This folder remains hideously unoptimized when Windows is in dark mode. Another useful tool for a Windows PC is a TaskSlinger, a third-party replacement for the stock Task Manager.

Finally, check out this neat File Explorer concept designed by Zee-Al-Eid Ahman, who suggests a few interesting upgrades for the stock file manager in Windows 11.

Windows Insider Program

Here is what Microsoft released for Windows Insiders this week:

Updates are available

This section covers software, firmware, and other notable updates (released and coming soon) delivering new features, security fixes, improvements, patches, and more from Microsoft and third parties.

This week, Mozilla released Firefox 151.0.2, another bug-fixing update for the recently launched version 151. The update packs ten important fixes and patches to address Split View issues, crashes on Windows with certain input methods, and other bugs.

Microsoft had a bunch of big Copilot updates this week. For one, the company revealed a major Microsoft 365 Copilot redesign with performance improvements. Also, Copilot Health, a wellness-focused flavor of Microsoft's AI, is now available in the United States.

May 2026 is now over, which means it is time to recap the new features and changes in Microsoft's apps and services, including Excel, Teams, and more. Speaking of Teams, the service is getting a new efficiency mode, and a couple of updates in the Admin Center revealed more details about it.

Here are other updates and releases you may find interesting:

• Microsoft 365 Copilot Notebooks gets new tools to turn documents into mind maps and more

• Microsoft's MAI-Image-2.5 enters Arena's top 3 with better image generation

• Microsoft is finally bringing the All Accounts view to Outlook on Windows

• Microsoft confirms Domain Controller bug in Windows Server 2016

• Microsoft 365 Copilot clears AI security audit once again

• Microsoft just made it possible to use VS Code completely offline with local AI

• OneDrive is getting a powerful file rename feature soon

   

Here are the latest drivers and firmware updates released this week:

• Intel 32.0.101.8824 with optimizations for 007 First Light and all sorts of crashes and corruption fixes.
• NVIDIA 610.47 with optimizations for 007 First Light, LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, and more. With the release of this driver, NVIDIA has officially retired the legacy Control Panel. The company claims that the new NVIDIA App now has every feature and setting from its old-school counterpart, and future drivers will no longer include it.

Reviews are in

Here is the hardware and software we reviewed this week

This week, Steven Parker reviewed the GEEKOM A9 Max 2026 mini PC with a dual-channel RAM setup. The device is not new to Neowin, as we have already reviewed it, but the thing is that our initial review was done with a PC running in a single-channel mode. The latest review shows how an incorrect memory setup leads to massive performance losses, crippling the processor and its potential.

Pulasthi Ariyasinghe published his Corsair Cove preview. This pirate city builder has impressive scale and logistics. Check out his early impressions here, and stand by for a future release with more details and additional content, such as a full campaign, multiple base island options, a massive map to explore, dozens more buildings and ships, and more.

On the gaming side

Learn about upcoming game releases, Xbox rumors, new hardware, software updates, freebies, deals, discounts, and more.

CD Projekt RED dropped some great news for fans of The Witcher 3. A decade after the initial launch, the studio dropped a new story expansion called Songs of the Past. It offers a new adventure, but the exact details remain unknown. What is known is that CD Projekt RED is increasing the game's hardware requirements, so check them out here.

Activision and Microsoft announced the next installment of Call of Duty. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 has been announced with a trailer, campaign, and multiplayer details. There is also a release date and some bad news for those still playing games on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Unfortunately, the next Call of Duty is not going to previous-gen consoles, even though the studio promises to "go back to the roots."

The Epic Games Store is giving away two games this week. One is Lonestar, a sci-fi roguelike where you hunt criminals across the universe. The second is Calico, a community simulator where you rebuild and manage a cat cafe. As usual, you can find more deals and specials in our weekly Weekend PC Game Deals series.

Bad news for those who want to purchase the Steam Deck: Valve restocked its supply and announced a major price increase for the handheld console. Now, depending on the configuration, the Steam Deck is up to $300 more expensive, casting major doubts on the upcoming Steam Machine's affordability.

NVIDIA GeForce NOW is getting new games, as usual. This week's update includes 007 First Light, World of Tanks: HEAT, Romestead, Starminer, BeamNG.drive, Alchemy Factory, and more.

Other gaming news includes the following:

• Star Citizen crowdfunding reaches $1 billion, gaining the last $100 million in six months

• No Man's Sky gets alien Death Stars for players to defeat together

• Epic Games unveiled Unreal Engine 6

• Microsoft delays Fable out of 2026 to give it a dedicated "moment to shine" and avoid GTA VI

• More Xbox console personalization options and an outage notification are now in testing

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Sunday 31 May 2026 at 7:22 am AEST (my time).

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