Summary
- Windows 11 build 22635.3130 in the Beta channel introduces a feature that suggests apps to pin next to each other, making window management easier.
- The update allows users in the Beta channel to leave without performing a clean install, offering an in-place upgrade to the stable version of Windows 11.
- Alongside these changes, the Beta build also includes fixes for known issues and re-enables a new settings experience for Widgets. Insights in the Dev channel received a minor update with only fixes.
Snap Layouts is one of the best features in Windows 11, and it makes managing your windows that much easier. But if the time it takes to select an app for each slot in a snap layout is too much of a problem for you, the latest feature to make it to the Beta channel of the Insider program may be exactly what you've been waiting for.
Microsoft has just released Windows 11 build 22635.3130 in the Beta channel, and it brings over a feature that suggests which apps you might want to pin next to each other when you hover over the maximize/restore button on an app window. When you click one of these suggestions, not only will the current app be snapped, but the suggested apps will show up right alongside it, so you don't have to manually choose the app for each space anymore.
The feature is rolling out gradually to Insiders in the Beta channel who have turned on the toggle labeled Get the latest updates as soon as they're available in Windows Update, so not everyone will see it yet. Plus, if you're not seeing it, keep in mind you need to have a few apps open for suggestions to work. Other channels of the Insider program have had this feature in preview for months now, but it's good to see it finally widely available.
You can now leave the Beta channel without resetting your PC
Otherwise, today's Beta channel release is also notorious because Microsoft is finally making it possible to leave the Beta channel without having to perform a clean install of Windows. Typically, this is required because you're on a version of Windows 11 that has more features, but now, if you've enabled the toggle to opt out of preview builds, you'll be offered an in-place upgrade to the latest stable version of Windows 11, so you don't need to worry about losing data.
Of course, taking this upgrade means you may lose access to some features you currently have in the Beta channel, but that would be the case either way. This change is available to everyone in the Beta channel with this build, though it's rolling out gradually.
Smaller changes and fixes
Aside from those two changes, this Beta build is fairly uneventful. Microsoft is re-enabling a new settings experience for Widgets that was initially rolled out in December but later pulled due to some issues. Otherwise, it's just fixes for known issues, and there's a long list of them. This usually happens closer to a Windows 11 feature drop, which has been rumored recently, so this may be in preparation for that.
Insiders in the Dev channel have also received Windows 11 build 26320 today, which is only one build up from the previous release, and it only includes fixes.