ARTICLE: Microsoft is changing Windows 11 to help you save money on power bills.

Another preview build of Windows 11 has been released in the Dev channel, and it includes a number of improvements and enhancements, including a feature that should make your computer use a little less power.

That would be Content Adaptive Brightness Control (CABC), which as of preview build 23424, works with both desktop PCs and laptops that are plugged in as well as laptops that are powered by batteries.

Depending on the material being displayed, CABC automatically dims (or lights up) specific areas of the screen. The goal is to reduce power consumption without compromising the “visual experience.”

In other words, the adjustments made to the dimming front should not significantly alter the image you are viewing on the screen while also allowing you to conserve some power (and therefore cash, over time).

The feature can be set to be always on, or it can be disabled, or alternatively you can choose to have CABC kick in only if you’re on battery power (on a laptop of course).

(Image credit: Microsoft)

Analysis: Small savings that could add up (we hope)

It may seem a little silly to add adaptive brightness adjustment to a desktop computer when you consider that it’s really more of a battery-saving feature for laptops. Yet, small power savings will build up over the course of the year if, like us, you use your PC for 60 to 70 hours a week, especially given the current state of energy prices (sky-high where we are).

We therefore believe that this is a good addition, provided that, as Microsoft claims, the display image quality is not noticeably diminished when the feature is used. Naturally, you are under no obligation to turn it on if you choose not to.

Also appearing to move quickly is Microsoft’s work on widgets. About one week ago, the more extensive widget board was first observed during limited testing in the Canary channel, the first test channel. It’s currently being more broadly rolled out and is already in the Dev channel.

Theoretically, there are other modifications linked to widgets that we could observe soon. That includes Microsoft’s experiments with animated widget icons (which, we must admit, look pretty cool), and the speculated potential that users may one day be able to drop widgets onto the desktop has been floated. Widgets appear to be a significant focus for Microsoft, so future versions of Windows 11 should include more of them.

Source: https://www.techradar.com/news/microsoft-is-changing-windows-11-to-help-you-save-money-on-power-bills