What you need to know
- The latest Windows 11 preview builds include a hidden new snap assist feature.
- The new feature adds smart app suggestions to the snap layouts interface.
- The feature is designed to let you restore commonly used layouts more quickly.
Earlier this year, I reported that Microsoft was working on new smart snapping capabilities for Windows 11 that would make snapping multiple apps in commonly used layouts quicker. Now, the feature has started showing up in code in the latest Windows 11 preview builds, and an early version of it is now functional.
The feature ties into the snap layouts interface that appears when you hover over an app windows' maximize button, or when you drag an app window to the top of your screen. In addition to the usual static snap layouts that are presented, a new row of smart layouts is presented alongside them.
These smart layouts include additional apps that Windows thinks you might want to have snapped together, based on previous usage and layouts that you commonly organize your apps in. So instead of manually snapping one app, then hunting to find the other apps you want snapped, Windows will do its best to one-click snap all the apps it thinks you might want snapped via the snap layouts interface.
👀 Signs of the smart(?) snap assist suggestions feature are starting to pop up in Insider builds! 23435 includes a somewhat functional version of the feature in both the snap bar and regular snap flyout. Seems to (kinda) work.vivetool /enable /id:41863571,42589465 https://t.co/92hasb7g01 pic.twitter.com/0sINMA5gwtApril 14, 2023
PhantomOcean on Twitter was able to get an early version of the feature working, and a quick video demo shows that the feature is already working as intended. This is just one of many productivity enhancing features that the company is currently working on.
The feature is currently hidden in the latest Windows 11 Dev and Canary builds, but it's likely to show up officially over the next weeks, and begin shipping in a future Windows 11 update over the summer and into the fall. You can expect to see more smart and AI features for Windows 11 (and Windows 12) show up in testing over the next several months.
