Microsoft finally addresses outdated volume UI on Windows 11

The wait is finally over.

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What you need to know

What you need to know

It’s frankly shocking that Microsoft allowedWindows 11to ship with an outdated on-screen volume control to begin with, but we can finally put that behind us today as this week’sWindows 11 Dev Channel buildincludes a brand new, modern volume control that fits right in alongside the rest of the Windows 11 UI.

Today’s build is 22533, and while there are some other minor changes, I think it’s vital that we spend more time on this new volume UI, and how important it is on PCs with dedicated volume controls. If you hit a physical key to control your volume, the on-screen UI that pops up must be consistent with the rest of the OS. If it isn’t, that can cause user productivity to drop immensely.

Case in point, the shipping build of Windows 11 still uses the old volume UI, which was introduced all the way back in Windows 8. So, not only was it out of place, but it was old as well. So whenever I changed my volume using the dedicated keys, I’d see this old interface, be reminded of the horror that was Windows 8, and become 100% less productive as a result. I’d then need to get up and make a tea, so no work is being done now, and that’s all thanks to Microsoft not updating this volume control.

But now, we can put this issue to rest, as Microsoft has finally decided to get around to updating it, likely increasing productivity by 1000% whenever someone controls their volume using a physical button on their device. Unfortunately, unless Microsoft decides to backport this new UI to the shipping build of Windows 11, most normal people will have to continue being unproductive for another nine or so months until the next major Windows 11 update begins shipping.

Here’s the rest of the changelog:

Here’s the rest of the changelog:

Here’s the fixes:

As always, check out the Windows Blog for the complete changelog, including a list of known issues.

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Zac Bowden is a Senior Editor at Windows Central. Bringing you exclusive coverage into the world of Windows on PCs, tablets, phones, and more. Also an avid collector of rare Microsoft prototype devices! Keep in touch onTwitterandThreads