WW 984: For Entertainment Purposes Only - Price Shock With Surface Laptops?!

Windows Insider Program

• Release Preview channel updates (including 26H1 for the first time? - A preview of the June Patch Tuesday updates - Shared audio, NPU usage in • Task Manager, multi-app camera support, Magnifier improvements. • Taskbar updates come to Insiders! Also in Canary, weʼre throwing them a bone this time.

Enshittification remedies all around

• Microsoft just held a WinHEC for the first time since 2018 and thereʼs a new Windows Driver Initiative! • Microsoft will soon let us remap Copilot key to Right Ctrl, which is what it was in the first place. • A Linux privacy nut YouTuber confuses privacy and security and doesnʼt understand Windows 11 so... • ... Paul wrote a complete guide to the local account de-Microsoft experience in Windows 11 • Microsoft Edge will stop loading all passwords into clear text on startup like a big boy browser.

Hardware

• Paul came home to an ASUS Zenbook A16 and ohmygodohmygodohmygod

Surface

• Microsoft finally revs Surface Laptop and Surface Pro for Business, with Intel chips and VERY high prices. • Snapdragon X2 variants in late 2026 because of supply issues wa-waa-waaaaa.

AI

• MDASH is Microsoftʼs answer to Anthropic Mythos, in-house only. • Elon Musk and Sam Altman are both terrible but a jury decided against Muskʼs frivolous lawsuit. • OpenAI and Apple might head to court over Siri promises • OpenAI Codex is on mobile via the ChatGPT app • Google unleashes an AI tsunami at Google IO this week. A few relevant takeaways: • Overview of the major announcements • Google advances Android as a developer platform • Chrome is turning into a proactive assistant • Google AI subscriptions are an incredible value • Related: The Gemini Intelligence feature for Googlebooks and more has steep hardware requirements - 12 GB of RAM, flagship SoC So Pixel 10 series/Galaxy S26 series and newer only etc. • Just a reminder that Microsoft makes a Linux distribution ... for Azure specifically • More dev • WWDC schedule is up for June 8 opening day • Build 2026 kicks off June 2 in SFO • After another boring .NET 11 preview release, we finally get our first look at a major change: MAUI is switching from the Mono runtime to the CoreCLR runtime. • And we should pause for a moment to remember S "Soma" Somasegar, who sadly passed away this week.

Xbox and Gaming

• Next Xbox Elite controller leaks and it is glorious • Related: An Xbox Cloud-Connected controller leaks too and it is less than glorious. • Forza Horizon 6 is here, and itʼs on Game Pass on Day One. • Be sure to read Laurentʼs detailed review. • Haters gonna keep hating: Fans want Xbox exclusives because their heads are still in the sand. • Sony is allegedly returning to this model for single player experiences • Related: Sony raises prices on PS Plus • Fortnite comes back to the Apple App Store worldwide *excluding Australia for some reason.

Tips and Picks

• Tip of the week: Google AI Studio. • Vibe-code your next app with this incredible free tool. • Related: A look at Markdown editors.

App pick of the week: DeskScapes 2026

• Stardock DeskScapes 2026 is normally $9.99 but it will cost just $6.99 during the launch period. • Also: Firefox 151 is a big update on desktop and mobile, the latter gets the AI kill switch • RunAs Radio this week: UEFI Secure Boot with Richard Hicks • Brown liquor pick of the week: Daftmill Winter Batch Release

These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/984 Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

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