Windows Weekly (Audio)

Microsoft's latest round of layoffs and game studio shakeups reveal deep cracks in the XBOX business, as years of unprofitability and missed expectations force the company into tough decisions. Are industry icons like Game Pass and big-name studios on borrowed time? Also, Paul's made major progress on the Windows 11 Field Guide updates! Plus, a desktop and mobile web browser that now blocks YouTube ads by default.

Layoffs

Microsoft announces 4800 layoffs, 3200 at XBOX

Analysis: What Sharma said and didn't say. Many interesting details revealed here. Many questions unanswered

Great outcomes for four studios, id Software reportedly laid off half its staff

Interesting alternative analysis: The Game Pass thesis, XBOX can't do everything

Windows

Four new builds yesterday, one major new feature: Cloud restore

Microsoft Edge is adding support for Google account sign-ins

Opera One adds clipboard attack prevention

Google and Samsung have announced new hardware launches, both with new foldables on the way - Apple's first foldable expected in January

AI

Microsoft is reportedly transitioning to its in-house MAI models where possible

Latest Corey Doctorow book takes on the future of AI and is surprisingly middle-of-the-road. Unlike his last book, he explains how he handles this and has some ideas for doing so yourself

XBOX and gaming

Gears of War Reloaded, more head to Game Pass

The oldest rumor in XBOX history is back, with Microsoft working (again, or as always) on a disc-to-digital program in the wake of the Sony PS5+ physical media announcement

Nintendo to end OG Switch sales, make Switch 2 changes in the EU

You can play Half-Life 2 in a web browser now

Tips and picks

Tip of the week: All Mint Mobile Plans Are Now Just $15 Per Month

App pick of the week: DuckDuckGo browser

RunAs Radio this week: Implementing Azure Policies with Barbara Forbes

Brown liquor pick of the week: Shenk's Homestead Sour Mash Whiskey

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

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Windows 10's Extended Security Update program quietly gets extended for another year for consumers. Microsoft reportedly kills Surface Go products & is now selling 8 GB Surface Pro & Laptop models. And Xbox Series X & S prices are going to go up again.

Windows

Microsoft quietly extends the Windows 10 Extended Security Update program one year to October 2027 for consumers

Windows Insider

Windows Update is transitioning to the new Windows Insider experience by default

Plus, five new builds across Beta, Experimental, Beta (26H1), Experimental (26H1), and Experimental (Future Platforms) — new Taskbar size setting is the much-needed new feature

Hardware

Apple raises prices on Macs, iPads, and more, easing pressure on PC makers

Microsoft quietly begins selling 8 GB Surface Pro/Laptop models

Microsoft reportedly kills Surface Go products right when we need them the most

The ASUS Zenbook A16 is nearly perfect, but it's unclear what you get with an X2 Elite Extreme chip

AI

HP partners with OpenAI for its agentic makeover

Anthropic seizes on the "good enough" AI movement with Sonnet 5

Proton Lumo 2.0 is here

Gemini personalized image creator is available for free in the US

Notion blames agentic AI for it killing Notion Mail

Xbox and Gaming

The 2026 Doom and Gloom Watch

Xbox Series X|S prices to go up again, by $150, on August 1 - and the 2 TB X is going away

Undead Labs and Arkane Lyon possible victims of pending closures

Latest rumor: Microsoft to layoff 2.5 percent of workforce next week - that's 5,500 people, less than expected, but that's because of the earlier voluntary buyouts, which apparently met internal expectations

Minecraft Bedrock edition gets closed captions

Sony will stop selling PS physical media in 2028

Tips and Picks

Tip of the week: Help or get out of the way

People who just complain aren't solving problems, they're just making noise and distracting us from the real problems.

App Pick of the Week: Snapdragon Control Panel

If you have a Windows 11 on Arm PC on Snapdragon X or X2, you need this app to make games run as well as possible.

Plus - Settings > System > Display > Graphics for Auto SR and other settings and whatever is in each game

RunAs Radio this week: AI-Accelerated Supply Chain Attacks with Mackenzie Duncan

Brown liquor pick of the week: Rupert's Exceptional Canadian Whisky

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

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Windows 12 is stalled and the real reasons go far beyond software. The conversation unpacks how soaring hardware prices, AI chaos, and market confusion have Microsoft in a holding pattern. Also, Paul finally took a sledgehammer to the subscription services he pays for, and more is on the way. Plus, one of Paul's favorite Markdown editors supports authorship on Windows now and an integrated Search/Outline view on Mac, iPad, and iPad.Windows

Week D is here with a preview of July's Patch Tuesday

Point-in-time restore is now generally available in Windows 11, sort of

Quieter widgets, which is nice! Plus, Screen tint, Windows Update improvements, more

Tied to this, sort of, something wonderful is happening to the Windows 11 Field Guide

Five new builds, plus some 26H2 news (and still no news about what 26H1 becomes, see below...)

Mostly minor fit-and-finish improvements

So... what about Windows 12? The history is interesting, and Copilot+ PC was what Paul originally thought Windows 12 would be. But now we're talking agentic capabilities that will handle local/cloud/hybrid orchestration per last week's discussion, and maybe that will be it.

We knew that Surface Laptop and Surface Pro would come in 8 GB configurations. But they're available now with just 256 GB of storage and the prices are $950 and $850 and up, respectively. Plus all the usual Surface limitations, like one color choice. (16 GB is $1150 and $1050, respectively, so $300 more.)

Once again, it's time to just get a Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5x for $850. It has 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage and is awesome.

Tim Cook just admitted that Apple will raise hardware prices because of the component crisis. If this is hitting Apple hard, the rest of the industry is screwed.

AI

Cory Doctorow's new book is out and let's just say his new neologism isn't as catchy as enshittification

Reverse centaur (groan)

Surprisingly centrist view on the pros and cons of AI

Highlights the Microsoft financial shenanigans I point out every quarter: Microsoft "invests" $10 billion of "tokens" in OpenAI, but there's no volume discount and Microsoft books the transaction as $10 billion in AI revenues as OpenAI simply uses its infrastructure. It gave $10 billion to OpenAI so that it could spend $10 billion on Azure.

Google Home Speaker is the Gemini speaker and it's now shipping to first customers as Google discontinues Nest Audio and Nest Mini speakers. Can we trust this company with hardware? And why are there no Apple or Google home theater setups?

Adobe brings its creative agent to Firefly and the biggest apps in Creative Cloud

XBOX & gaming

No movement yet on the massive changes we expect in XBOX soon

Microsoft has "dozens" of gaming IP-based movies and TV shows in the works

XBOX Insiders can now test updates to Gamertags, Game Hub, and Wish List

Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and 2 are being ported to modern PS consoles. Sadly, not remakes or remasters.

GTA VI will cost $79.99 and up - Arrives in November, can preorder on June 25

Steam Machine to cost $1049 and up, and that's with no controller

Tips & picks

Tip of the week: How to save $100 a month

App pick of the week: iA Writer

RunAs Radio this week: Securing Developers with Tanya Janca

Brown liquor pick of the week: Glen Breton Rare 10


These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/989
Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell


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With major leadership shakeups and rumors of studio closures, the future of XBOX inside Microsoft suddenly looks uncertain. Is this the beginning of a Game Pass overhaul, or could XBOX face an outright split from the company? Plus, PowerToys 0.100 (yes, point one hundred) arrives with so many improvements. And the Windows Insider program is leaving even seasoned users scratching their heads over Microsoft's so-called "simplification."

Windows

Windows Insider Program: Microsoft releases a record 7 builds to the allegedly simpler Insider Program

You can't tell the players without a program

Experimental: Less disruptive Windows Update, Windows Search improvements

Beta 26H1: Screen tint

Beta 25H2: Screen tint, quieter Widgets, Magnifier zoom controls

Release Preview 25H2: Screen tint, quieter Widgets, Magnifier zoom controls, Bluetooth connectivity improvements

All (?) get Voice access and Voice typing improvements, and new right-click Touchpad settings

Good God, Microsoft

Hardware

Microsoft announces Snapdragon X2-based Surface Laptop 8 and Surface Laptop 13 and the prices are eye-watering

Samsung announces Snapdragon X2-based Galaxy Book6 Edge and, yes, the prices are eye-watering

The component crisis is a disaster but limitations are driving innovation, as they always have

Google releases Android 17 alongside a new Pixel Drop, setting the stage for Googlebooks

Software

Microsoft Edge to follow Chrome to a two-week development schedule because we all love updating our web browsers

Mozilla releases Firefox 152 and a new roadmap for the browser

AI

FINALLY AN AI-FREE WEEK

XBOX and gaming

Fear & loathing at XBOX! The Microsoft fiscal year ends in two weeks, and big changes are coming

XBOX leadership set to reveal "hard truths" that will absolutely include layoffs and studio and game closures

Microsoft is looking at all options for XBOX, including a spin-off

XBOX Studios CEO and chief of staff announce their departures ahead of expected layoffs

XBOX reportedly closing Ninja Theory, makers of the Hellblade games

Compulsion Games is likely on the chopping block too

XBOX is coming to Gamescon this year

Xbox June Update arrives with new boot animation, more while Microsoft continues testing minor UX changes in the Insider Program

COD: Vanguard, EA Sports FC 26 and more coming to Game Pass in the second half of June

Rockstar Games is giving free GTA V upgrades to Xbox One and PS4 players

Tips and picks

Tip of the week: Don't doomscroll, learnscroll instead

App pick of the week: PowerToys 0.100

RunAs Radio this week: 47 Day Certificates with Todd Gardner

Brown liquor pick of the week: Thornæs Kagerup

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

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If you think code is safe from automation, think again. This week's discussion tackles why the rise of vibe coding and AI-powered tools could upend long-held beliefs about software development, with even seasoned pros rethinking their roles. Also, a new C++ documentary is worth watching!

Windows

After a weekend of Build session viewing, two big takeaways!

Vibe coding native Windows apps and a new reactive dev model for WinUI will help to make modern app dev easier for everyone

A new theory emerges: The real reason Microsoft is fixing Windows 11 is that it needs this foundation for a future of hybrid AI agents. And hybrid means more than just local + cloud.

Patch Tuesday is here! As promised, Microsoft fixed a record number of security issues thanks to AI

24H2/25H2: Shared audio, more NPU in Task Manager, multi-app camera support, user folder name choice in OOBE, more

26H1: Xbox Mode, Drop tray, etc.

Windows Insider Program: New 26H1 Beta channel added for some reason

Dell now sells a Windows Hello ESS-compatible wired mouse

AI

WWDC 2026: Apple announced vibe-coding advances for normal users (Safari extensions) and developers (Xcode). Paul used Xcode and Claude Code to create a full-featured Markdown editor app in about 12-15 minutes.

Google drops the price of AI Plus plan to $4.99 per month, raises storage to 400 GB and announces new NotebookLM capabilities

Proton Drive is coming to Linux, has a new SDK, and now has a new CLI too. We're going to need a CLI section in the show notes.

XBOX and gaming

Microsoft Games Showcase: It needed to be a big day for Xbox and it was

Microsoft showed off Halo: Campaign Evolved, Gears of War E-Day, Fable, and a lot more

Some games will be console-exclusive in the future, starting with the new Gears

Microsoft will sell a limited edition Xbox Series X25 later this year

Xbox leadership is exploring new business models for the next console - Game Pass lost "millions" of subscribers after last year's price hikes

Xbox Insider update adds a new way to discover mutual friends, more

Valve says the Steam Machine and Steam Frame will ship this summer

Tips and picks

Tip of the week: Windows 11 Field Guide is being updated to 2026 edition

App pick of the week: Brave Origin

RunAs Radio this week: How Machine Learning Fails with Megan Robertson

Brown liquor pick of the week: Thy Bøg

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts!

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