Like File Explorer’s preview pane, Quick Look is a feature in macOS for quickly previewing files, such as photos or text. While File Explorer's preview pane works like a charm after the latest PowerToys update and supports advanced files, people find macOS's Quick Look more appealing as it lets you just press the spacebar Preview the file.
Microsoft is now considering similar functionality for Windows 11 and Windows 10. This feature is called "Peek" and will be available through PowerToys. It implements the exact same convenient quick spacebar preview when you're working on files on Windows 11 and Windows 10.
This feature was apparently developed during Microsoft's Hack Week and it is supposed to be an internal prototype/experiment. The company liked the idea of a lightning-fast file preview feature and integrated it into the in-house build of Microsoft PowerToys.
Just like macOS Quick Look, you can preview the contents of the file simply by selecting or highlighting the file in File Explorer or on the Desktop, then pressing the Shift Spacebar . For example, if it's an image, you can hit the Shift-Space bar to open a quick preview of the media in a small pop-up window.
You need to tap the key again to turn it off - or you can press Enter. Unlike third-party tools, the PowerToys Peek feature uses the Microsoft Photos application to render media previews. You can also zoom in or out on the preview image and edit it in the Microsoft Photos app.
The Shift spacebar shortcut triggers the handy PowerToys Peek feature on Windows, which only works when the app is running in the background and performs much better than third-party apps due to Photos app integration.
This feature is especially useful when you are browsing a folder containing media files and want to make sure an image is what you think it is before you delete it or perform other actions.
PowerToys Peek is definitely a smart little utility software for Windows, and it’s completely free and ad-free. It's worth noting that this feature is still a prototype and not yet ready for consumers.
If you can’t wait for an update from Microsoft and want to see what a file contains without opening any application on your desktop, you can download a free tool called “QuickView” from the Microsoft Store.
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