Microsoft has announced an array of artificial intelligence-powered features for Windows that will be available with the new line of Copilot+ PCs. One of the features that caught attention is Recall. According to Microsoft, Recall will allow users to search anything that has been on the device’s display. The feature will, Microsoft said, leverage the Neural Processing Unit (NPU) of the ARM architecture-based Qualcomm Snapdragon X-series chips. So what is it and how will it work? Let us find out:

What is Recall

Recall is a new AI-powered feature, exclusive to Windows on ARM. It works essentially like a photographic memory, presenting the user with what they have previously seen or done on the PC. There is a timeline of events that Recall presents, but users can also describe what they are looking for and the options are displayed on a timeline that the PC creates across any application, website, document, or more to find a specific thing. The timeline is essentially a sequence of snapshots, with each snapshot depicting what was on the screen at that point in time.

How Recall works

The Recall feature on a Copilot+ PC takes an image of the active display every few seconds and stores it within the device’s storage with encryption. Users can use the feature to locate the content they have viewed on their PC using search or by the timeline bar. Once the user selects a specific snapshot in Recall, it is then analysed and the user is presented with options to interact with the content of the snapshot.

The Recall will also enable the user to open the snapshot in the application it was created in or can open the actual source document, website, or email in a screenshot. Microsoft said that this feature will get refined over time as the user gets more accustomed to the feature.

Microsoft said that Recall will store the snapshots locally on the PC for privacy and allow users to delete individual snapshots as well as the entire timeline. Users can also adjust the range and time for the timeline or pause at any point to access a specific snapshot.

How long can be the timeline for Recall

The storage size on the PC determines the number of snapshots Recall can take and store. Microsoft has stated that a minimum 256GB on-board storage is necessary on the device with 50GB empty storage available for the feature to run smoothly. However, by default on a device with 256GB storage, only 25GB is allocated to the feature which can store up to three months of snapshots within this space. Users can also increase the memory allocated to the Recall feature and the oldest snapshots get auto-deleted once the allocated storage is full to make way for new ones.  

When will it be available

The Recall is currently in preview phase and is being optimised for select languages, including English, Chinese, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish languages. This essentially means that in the current state, Recall will only be able to retrieve snapshots based on searches in these languages.

The feature is also exclusive to devices based on Microsoft’s Copilot+ platform, running on Qualcomm’s X Series chipsets. Microsoft’s new Surface Pro and Surface Laptops are the first devices based on this platform while more will be launching next month from the likes of Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung.

What about privacy and security

Microsoft said Recall will be available with enhanced privacy controls, which will let users decide which information Recall can capture. Moreover, Microsoft said, Copilot+ PCs are designed so that even the AI running on your device cannot access your private content. On commercial PCs, Microsoft said, IT admins can use Microsoft Intune to disable Recall from saving any snapshots. Microsoft will add new policies to enable IT to centrally filter specific apps and websites.

First Published: May 21 2024 | 3:41 PM IST