Windows 11 has received some useful tweaks to allow laptop owners to get more battery life, although these changes are still in testing at the moment.
Microsoft implemented a couple of measures in the latest preview build (27686) in the Canary channel (the oldest testing channel).
The biggest change is actually under the hood, and in its blog post for build 27686, Microsoft says it has implemented several “optimizations to improve battery life” without going into detail about exactly what has been done.
More recently, as spotted by Tom's Hardware, Microsoft made another change with this build, as the company explains: “We’re starting to roll out improvements to Settings > System > Power & battery, including the ability to configure your Power mode for both when your PC is plugged in. [and] when on battery along with some other page UI improvements.”
In fact, the ability to change your power preferences depending on whether your laptop is plugged in or running on battery power has always been possible with Windows 11—you just had to dig into the OS settings to change these options.
Now, Microsoft is putting them in a more accessible place where Windows 11 users will be able to easily see and change these options, right there in the Power & Battery panel.
Analysis: At the forefront of testing
Clearly making the settings for changing the power mode in Windows 11 much easier to see and adjust is a good thing. We don't think this change won't make it through the various testing channels and into the release version of Windows 11 before long.
The other step in the battery life optimizations is a little different. Microsoft seems less sure of the impact it will have in this case, as when asking for feedback on the change, the software giant notes: “Let us know what you think, and if you're not seeing the battery life on your PC that you expect, let us know via the Feedback Hub.”
As we mentioned before, the Canary channel is the earliest testing avenue and therefore the riskiest bet – this is the port of call for testers who want to be ahead of the curve, where the dangers are greater than with other builds.
In other words, this initial work on the power-saving changes could backfire and battery life could be reduced rather than extended. At least until the issues are fixed, and we hope that will happen over time, if there are any major issues.
Microsoft is being pretty vague about this change, but hopefully it will help Windows 11 laptops get more battery life, and showing off the ability to adjust power modes, making it more visible to everyday users, won't hurt either.
