Microsoft is testing a new feature with Xbox Insiders to make it easier to choose a custom background on Xbox consoles. With the latest update released in the Alpha-Skip Ahead ring yesterday, Insiders can now use Microsoft Edge to set any image found on the web as their custom background image on their console.
As explained by an engineer on the Xbox team, a new context menu has been added to Microsoft Edge to set any image as a background. Curiously, the feature wasn’t mentioned in the release notes for yesterday’s Xbox Insider update, which you can check on this page.
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/hvVrGj3Baa
— Eden Marie (@neonepiphany) December 6, 2021
Currently, Xbox owners have different options to set a custom background image on their console, including Achievement art, game screenshots, or using images coming from external storage. Microsoft also introduced a selection of dynamic backgrounds on Xbox Series X and Series S consoles, but being able to easily choose your own custom background image from web sources should be a welcome update.
We don’t know yet when this new Edge feature will go out of beta, but it could be a while. The Xbox Insider Alpha-Skip Ahead ring is the most advanced ring in the Xbox Insider program and it’s currently invite-only, but Microsoft seems ready to change that. Last week, the Xbox team launched a new survey in the Xbox Insider Hub to allow Xbox enthusiasts in the other Insider rings to join the Alpha-Skip Ahead ring and get early access to new features.
