Windows 11 gets a new Volume Slider, Brightness slider in the latest Insider Preview

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The Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22533 is now available for testers who have opted into the Developer Channel. This release introduces a couple of new features, the first of which replaces the volume slider that is usually displayed in the top left corner of the screen.

Changes in Windows 11 Insider

Preview Build 22533New Volume Slider

The new Volume indicator is a horizontal slider that appears just over the centered taskbar, when you use the hardware keys on your keyboard to increase, decrease, mute or unmute the volume. The new style for the pop-up slider, also called an OSD (on-screen display), adheres to the Windows theme of your choice, unlike the previous design which only had a black background regardless of whether you were using the Light/Dark theme.

The new Windows 11 Volume indicator is missing one thing, the number that used to be displayed to show the audio's level, is no longer available. However, you can mouse over the slider, click and drag the bar to see the volume level. This also allows you to change the volume with the mouse.

In case you missed it, Windows 11 Insider Preview Builds already support changing the volume with the mouse wheel when you hover over the volume icon on the system tray.

Brightness Slider, Voice Typing and more

Windows 11 22533 replaces the old Brightness indicator, which is useful for laptop users, with a new slider that is similar to the new Volume indicator.Voice Typing is now available for all users in the Developer Channel, as are all the touch keyboard themes to IMEs. The flyout menu that pops up when you right-click on the Start button or use Win + X, no longer says Apps & Features. Microsoft has replaced the menu entry with the label "Installed Apps".

The Settings app has steadily been taking over the options from Control Panel, so the new shortcut name was probably done to reflect the recent changes. The Clock app in Windows 11 can now be uninstalled, if you don't like it. The app is not related to the Date/Clock that is displayed in the system tray.

New in-progress calls screen in the Your Phone app

The Your Phone app has a new in-progress calls screen with newer icons, fonts and a simple design.

Fixes in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22533

The new build fixes the error 0x8007012a that users may have come across while updating a driver or the firmware. The Photos app should now import photos from certain cameras and phones correctly. A bug that was causing the Wi-Fi icon to disappear has been fixed. Crashes related to Explorer have been fixed, including one that occurred while hovering over the Task View icon while the Ctrl key is held down. Likewise, users with multiple monitors should no longer experience an Explorer crash when right-clicking the Date/Time on the Taskbar.

An issue related to Mica's usage in the Settings app has been resolved, to improve the app's reliability. The app is also expected to be more stable as previous problems that were causing it to crash while accessing the Installed Apps, Startup Apps, and Default Apps, have been patched. The visibility of text color and buttons when custom themes are used has been improved.

You can check the Windows Insider Blog for a list of fixes and known issues in the current build.

Though the release notes does not mention it, the new Alt + Tab experience is available in this build. It's either that, or maybe I'm one of the lucky users who have been selected for A/B testing the feature.

I couldn't find a way to restore the old volume and brightness sliders. The new one looks better in my opinion, but I think the number should be displayed in the panel without clicking the bar. Media playback controls would be nice to have in the flyout, but it might ruin the minimalist look.

Which style do you prefer? The new Windows 11 Volume slider, or the vertical one that was introduced in Windows 8?
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