You Can Try Notepad’s New AI Summarizer in Windows 11 Now (If You Pay)

Microsoft is adding new AI features to Notepad and Snipping Tool in Windows 11, but there's a catch: Some of these are locked behind a paywall. The company is rolling out an AI feature for Notepad that can summarize articles for you, while the Snipping Tool will let you draw shapes with ease. All of these updates are available via the Windows Insider program for those who want to try beta software to test new features before they're released to the general public.

Notepad's new AI feature

Following other upgrades in Windows 11, Notepad now lets testers quickly summarize text in the app. You can paste text in Notepad and use the Copilot menu to try the Summarize feature, or press Ctrl-M after selecting text, and the summary will appear in a popover. However, you may not be able to use the summarize feature, as you'll need a Microsoft 365 subscription and Copilot Pro AI credits to access it. Separately, PCWorld reports that Windows will lock all Notepad AI features behind the Microsoft 365 subscription.

With this same update, Microsoft said it's also introducing the ability to view recent files to Notepad. This is, in my opinion, a bare minimum feature for an app like Notepad, so it makes sense that Microsoft says it's a much-requested feature. If you're on the right Windows 11 beta, you can go to File > Recent in Notepad to access recently opened files. You can select the Clear list option in the same menu to remove recent files from this menu. You can try all these Notepad features in the app's 11.2501.29.0 version.

Snipping Tool gets better shape creation

Credit: Microsoft

The Snipping Tool is Windows 11's built-in screenshot app, with a built-in tool for annotating these images. With the newest beta, it's now much easier to draw shapes on your screenshots. If you draw something that looks roughly like an arrow, Snipping Tool will automatically turn it into a straight line with a pointer at one end. While the app has always offered users the ability to draw various shapes on a screenshot, this new tool should save some time by eliminating the need to select the right shape. Simply start drawing the shape you need and Snipping Tool should take care of the rest. This update is available with Snipping Tool version 11.2502.18.0.

How to access the newest Windows 11 features

If you want to try these new features, you'll need to join the Windows Insider program. If you choose to do so, you'll be running unstable builds of Windows 11 on your PC, so be sure to take a full backup of your machine, and be ready for crashes, the occasional system freeze, and compatibility issues while using your computer. Go to the Microsoft website on your Windows 11 PC, and click the Register button to sign up for Windows Insider. Then, go to Settings > Windows Update > Windows Insider Program on your PC and follow the on-screen prompts to join the program. You need to be on the Dev or Canary channels of the Windows 11 Insider program to receive the updates mentioned in this article.

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