What you need to know
- The Xbox Insider Program is for testing upcoming Xbox builds and features.
- Lead Engineer Eden Marie just shared this nifty update, which lets users set an Xbox dashboard background using a Microsoft Edge picture.
- It should hit general availability in the coming weeks, but it's already live if you're on the Xbox Insider Program.
The Xbox Insider Program gives testers the ability to dive in and experience unreleased (and potentially buggy) Xbox OS builds, ahead of their availability to the general public. Rolling out soon to insiders as part of the Alpha Skip Ahead ring is a shiny new feature that will make choosing a new Xbox dashboard background a whole lot easier.
Shared by Xbox's Engineering Lead on Twitter, the new update allows users on Xbox to customize their Xbox dashboard background using the built-in Microsoft Edge browser, which also grabs an update in support of this feature.
Xbox Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders: today's release should include a new feature in Edge's context menu for images that lets you set a custom background in Home. Let me know if you try it! pic.twitter.com/hvVrGj3BaaXbox Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders: today's release should include a new feature in Edge's context menu for images that lets you set a custom background in Home. Let me know if you try it! pic.twitter.com/hvVrGj3Baa— Eden Marie (@neonepiphany) December 6, 2021December 6, 2021
You'll be able to quickly and easily select an image from your browser, and then instantly set it as a wallpaper background. Not even Microsoft Edge on desktop has this capability (but it totally should).
I just updated my Xbox to the latest build, and it should be included if your Xbox OS version number includes (xb_flt_2202co.21203-2200). Accessing the feature is pretty easy.
- Open Microsoft Edge, and update it via the store if needs be.
- Press Y to enter an address. We recommend checking out WallpaperHub.app for that.
- Find an image you like, then hit the Start Button on your controller (looks like three lines) to open a context menu.
- Select Set as background using the A button, and voila.
Recently, Microsoft also added a variety of new animated backgrounds to the dashboard users can play with, including a fiery scene from Wasteland 3's nuclear Cult of the Holy Detonation expansion, a Halo Infinite vista, and an Xbox 360-inspired concentric rings background. With this latest addition, it'll become even easier to pull whatever you want from the web and make it your very own background.
