Tabs to File Explorer and more finally arrive in new Windows 11 2022 update
Better accessibility options, taskbar improvements and more
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After what felt likeradio silencefromMicrosoftsince April, the company has announced that amajor 2022 updateforWindows 11is now available to all users from today (September 20), with tabs in File Explorer being one of the tentpole features, even though it’s a feature arriving in October.
Microsoft’sInsider program, which allows you to try out features in development for Windows on yourPC, has been hinting at a bunch of ways to speed up your workflow, alongside improving the divisive taskbar and Start menu.
Thisnew updatenot only brings better customization to the Taskbar, but greateraccessibility featuresthat bring live captions across theoperating system, and a more natural human voice for text-to-speech features.
Finally, tabs have arrived to Explorer
Tabs in File Explorer may not sound like a big deal, but once you start to play around with the feature as you move files around, you wonder how you managed without it after all this time. However, for some reason Microsoft has confirmed that this one feature will arrive toWindows 11users in October.
Adding a new tab is just like your web browser, by pressingCTRL + Tfor a new one to appear in the same window. Dragging and dropping files between tabs is easy enough, so you can re-arrange photos and games without having multiple Explorer windows to do this as before.
However,accessibility is another tentpole featurefor Windows 11’s first major update. Natural voices for narration and text-to-speech finally replace the robotic voices of past Windows releases, making your opinions and statements more human than before.
Alongside this improvement, there’s also live captions that are now system-wide, not just limited to a few applications as it was before. You’ll be able to switch this on by going toSettings > Accessibility > Live Captions, where these captions will be at the top of the display. Microsoft Teams calls, videos, and more will be displayed with subtitles thanks to this new update.
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Granted, there arebetter customization optionsfor the taskbar, but this will be seen as a small victory in the war for this part of Windows 11, as users will still be limited in how they can change the look of it.
Regardless, this new update is at least proof that Microsoft has been listening to feedback, and is a great example of how it’s catering to the accessibility needs of Windows 11 users.
If you can’t see the update showing on your PC as yet,our guideshould give you an idea as to how you can access it.
Daryl had been freelancing for 3 years before joining TechRadar, now reporting on everything software-related. In his spare time, he’s written a book, ‘The Making of Tomb Raider’. His second book, ‘50 Years of Boss Fights’, came out in 2024, with a third book coming in 2025. He also has a newsletter called ‘Springboard’. He’s usually found playing games old and new on his Steam Deck, Nintendo Switch, and MacBook Pro. If you have a story about an updated app, one that’s about to launch, or just anything Software-related, drop him a line.
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