Summary
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New “Grab and Move”: ALT+left click to drag and ALT+click to resize windows, like Linux.
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The Power Display System Tray tool adds brightness, contrast, and color profile controls; This might not work with some external monitors.
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Tool Tweaks: Command Palette Calculation/Pinning, Manual Key Manager Remaps, ZoomIt Scroll Capture, Image Resizer WinUI3.
The latest PowerToys update (v0.99.0) adds a feature that Linux users will likely find very familiar.
The most exciting part of the update is a new “Grab and Move” feature that includes Linux-style controls. When you hold down the ALT key and left-click, you can now drag windows anywhere on the screen. The ALT key is also used to resize the window, eliminating the need to click on the title bar or window edge as you normally would in Windows 11. I’m not sure I’ll want to control individual windows like this, but it’s a nice addition to PowerToys nonetheless, and will be very familiar to Linux users.
There’s also a new system tray tool called Power Display that lets you easily adjust your monitor’s brightness, contrast, and color profiles directly in Windows 11, including custom profiles. This means you don’t need to press the brightness button on your laptop to adjust the screen brightness.
Image Resizer gets a makeover with Windows 11
Even with my Windows 11 desktop connected to an external display, Power Display works surprisingly well (meaning I’ll rarely need to touch the physical controls on my monitor now). That said, I’ve seen some reports that Power Display doesn’t work with all external monitors.
This update also includes changes to the Command Palette, Keyboard Manager, and ZoomIT. Command palette improvements include a persistent calculator and improved pinning options. With Keyboard Manager, the tool now supports manually adjusted key remapping. On the other hand, ZoomIt now includes scrolling screenshots, making it easier to capture a long page.
Finally, Image Resizer now features the WinUI 3 design, bringing it in line with the overall look and feel of Windows 11. A few weeks ago, Microsoft confirmed plans to migrate legacy Windows 11 features, such as the Control Panel, to WinUI 3. This is part of an overall plan to improve Windows 11 that Microsoft revealed a few weeks ago.
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