Microsoft turns off one the best features in Windows 11 23H2 for tablet users

Microsoft plans to release a big update for Windows 11 later this year, bringing customers a solid chunk of new features and improvements. One of the changes is similar to the Apple Scribble feature from iPadOS, which lets you input handwritten text into any edit field using your Surface Pen or any other compatible stylus, delete words with new gestures, and more.

Although most Windows 11 23H2 features are already available for testing in the Beta Channel, the improved Windows Ink experience appears to be delayed.

Release notes for the latest Beta Channel build (22631.2271) claim Microsoft has turned off Windows Ink improvements to resolve bugs "impacting the usability."

Windows Ink

The Windows Ink improvements introduced with Build 22631.2050 that enabled inking directly onto edit fields is being temporarily disabled for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel while we fix some bugs impacting the usability of this experience.

Microsoft has not provided more information about the change, so we can only guess when the company will turn the feature back on.

Hopefully, it will make it to the release alongside other features, such as Windows Copilot, a new volume mixer, reworked File Explorer, more archive formats support (RAR, TAR, 7Z, and more), taskbar improvements, the Windows Backup app, new settings, etc. To learn more about the update, check out our review covering everything new in Windows 11 23H2.

As a reminder, Microsoft is hosting a Surface event in the second half of this month. On September 21, 2023, we expect the company to unveil refreshed Surface PCs with newer internals (you probably should not expect major hardware announcements) and discuss future Windows 11 updates with new capabilities powered by the almighty AI.

Rumors claim Microsoft wants to add optical character recognition to the Snipping Tool app, supercharge Paint with generative AI, and more.