Recall, Microsoft’s so-called photographic memory search tool for the newest Copilot+ PCs, was made available for testing on Friday. According to a preliminary assessment, it is not flawless.
TakeAway Points:
- Microsoft began allowing users to test Recall, a so-called photographic memory search tool for the newest Copilot+ PCs, on Friday after months of delay.
- You can search for phrases and images you have seen by using Recall, which captures screenshots of your computer activity. Copilot+ PCs equipped with Qualcomm artificial intelligence technology can access it.
- Early testing shows that the feature is not flawless, but Microsoft took the effort to improve its security when users complained about certain features of the initial design.
Recall, photographic memory test run
It’s also a long time coming. Microsoft first touted Recall in May as a prominent feature that would only be available for cutting-edge Copilot+ PCs running the Windows 11 operating system, like the latest Surface Pro. Executives said Recall would use artificial intelligence to take screenshots of your computer screen as you use it, so you can later use keywords to search for words or objects that are present in images you’ve previously seen.
A backlash from cybersecurity experts about the potential risks of Recall, however, led Microsoft to revamp it. The company encrypted Recall’s underlying database and set the feature to be turned off by default. In August, Microsoft said Recall would reach testers in October.
Available for Copilot+ users
Now the feature is available for certain Copilot+ users. Those whose computers contain Qualcomm Snapdragon chips and neural processing units for AI tasks can download and install a build that comes with Recall. PCs must be enrolled in the dev channel of the Windows Insider Program to be eligible. Copilot+ PCs with AMD or Intel chips are out of luck for now.
Microsoft issues pre-release software like this to let early adopters try things out, so it can address shortcomings before they get to the general public. Recall won’t work with some accessibility programs, and if you specify that Recall shouldn’t save content from a given website, it might get captured anyway while using the built-in Edge browser, according to a blog post.
Identified problems
Once you have activated Recall, you might think that your computer will be capturing everything you see, but it might take snapshots for many minutes at a time, leaving gaps in the timeline.
You may use recall to stop screenshots from taking while you are using particular apps. However, the list does not include some of the programs that I have installed on my Surface Pro.
Incomplete or inaccurate results may appear when you type a search string to find terms. Only one of the two screen shots in Recall that explicitly mentioned “Yankees” appeared as a text match when I entered that term into the search bar. Recall only returned two text matches when I entered my last name, which was present in eight photos.
Recall took a screenshot of a street scene in New York when I was browsing the posts on the social media platform BlueSky. Street signs, a smokestack, and a stoplight are seen. Recall did not return any results when I entered each of those inside the search box. Despite experimenting with slightly different phrases, such as “light” or “sign,” Recall was still unable to provide me with the information I was seeking. But when I typed “one way,” Recall did display the screenshot.
While searching is quick, looking through Recall’s photos is not. When you swipe between screenshots, it may take a few seconds for them to load.
Despite the early issues, Recall can be helpful and interesting when it does turn up positive results. And when you’d like to get back to the app or web link you were viewing at the time of the screenshot, clicking a button below the image will take you right back to that moment in time.
