Microsoft wants to bridge the gap between Microsoft/Office
account and Windows 11 by integrating the Microsoft account
directly into the system settings. This move comes after the
company made Microsoft account mandatory on Windows 11 Pro for
personal or home use.
Windows 11 22H2 introduces Microsoft 365 subscription in
Settings and Microsoft says it plans to further improve the
experience via future updates delivered using Online Service
Experience Packs. As part of the update, Microsoft is
introducing “payment details” within the subscription card
experience.
As you can see in the below screenshot, the Settings app now
lets you view and manage payment information, and you can even
receive notifications when your payment method requires an
update. The purpose of integrating the Microsoft account’s
payment feature into the settings app is to help you continue
your subscriptions without any disruptions.
At the moment, Microsoft account integration is limited to
payment details, but this will change in a future update.
Microsoft is now testing a series of changes to better reflect
the features associated with Microsoft accounts within the
Settings app. This includes products like Office 2021 or Office
2019.
For example, if you have an Office 2021 or Office 2019
subscription linked to the Microsoft account, you can view and
manage supported Office perpetual products within Settings >
Accounts.
You can learn more about your subscriptions and even install
the Office product. Previously, users were required to manually
log in to their account in a browser in order to install the
Office product.
Windows 11’s Microsoft account integration is still in the
early days of development and it’s rolling out to testers in
the Dev Channel. Microsoft is planning to collect more feedback
before releasing it in the production channel via an Online
Service Experience Pack.
There’s a chance it would begin rolling out to consumers by the
end of this year as the integration doesn’t require a feature
update.
Improvements coming to Windows Settings
Microsoft has announced a series of improvements for the
Settings app in Windows 11 22H2.
For example, Microsoft is updating the default values for
“Sleep and Screen off” to reduce energy consumption, and carbon
emissions, particularly when PCs are idle. However, this change
will be rolled out to only those who clean install the
operating system with version 22H2 or newer.
Microsoft is also improving the search bar experience within
the app and the company is hoping to further improve the
Settings with Sun Valley 3.
