Microsoft has released Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 23590 to the Dev Channel along with the respective ISOs. The flight has introduced previews for natural voices of 10 new locales that were launched in September 2023. The natural voices include Chinese, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Mexico), English (UK), French, Japanese, English (India), Korean, Portuguese, and German. You will be able to listen to the natural voices before downloading the voice model using the previews. The Natural Narrator voices make use of modern and on-device text-to-speech technology. They can be used without an active Internet connectivity.
Improved Imaging Experience
The Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 23590 introduces an enhanced image consumption experience in Narrator. After the installation of the update, you will be able to navigate between the images and graphics on a screen using new keyboard command. The flight has introduced a new keyboard command to navigate between the images/graphics on a screen/page.
You can now make use of the G or Shift+G keyboard shortcut to navigate forward or backwards between images in Scan mode. Moreover, the recognition of text in images including handwriting is improved in addition to image descriptions improvements. You can also navigate to the image and press Narrator + CTRL + D keyboard combination when the focus is centered on an image. You should note that this requires an active Internet connectivity. You should enable Image Descriptions in Narrator Settings.
Steps Recorder Removal
The Steps Recorder will not be updated after the installation of Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 23590. Microsoft revealed that the app will be removed in an upcoming Windows release. You will be prompted with alternatives if you open the app after installing this flight. There are alternatives such as Snipping Tool, Xbox Game, Microsoft Clipchamp, and much more.
Windows Share Update
The Windows Share window will only display apps under “Share using”, which are either tied to your Microsoft account or Microsoft Entra ID. You will view Microsoft Teams (free) if you logged in using your MSA. If you signed in using a Microsoft Entra ID, then you will view Microsoft Teams (work or school) contacts in the Windows share window.
The Narrator will reveal information about draft comment, resolved comment, bookmark, or the availability of accessibility suggestions in Microsoft Word. The flight has fixed an issue that causes File Explorer to crash on launch for some Windows Insiders if you are not using a non-default regional sorting option.
File Explorer Crash Update
The issue pertaining to explorer.exe crash while opening the desktop context menu and entering address bar paths has been resolved. The update resolved an issue related to combo boxes and Narrator. If the Narrator was revealing old dialog names even after you navigate to new dialog, then the issue has been resolved.
The latest update also resolved an issue in Magnifier settings page. The voice speed slider was not following the color contrast guidelines and this has been rectified. If the Experimental Features section of Narrator settings didn’t produce text, then the issue has been resolved. The update has resolved an issue that caused the share window to crash in the previous builds. Microsoft has reported that there is a known problem associated with the Copilot in Windows and the product team is working to resolve the problem.
