14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 11 is projected to come with all kinds of new features, and the build that got leaked to the web earlier today confirms several of them.
Including what Microsoft calls “widgets,” though as you’ll learn in a second, it’s not exactly what you expect this to be.
First and foremost, the last time Windows features something similar to widgets was in Windows 7 when the operating system came with support for gadgets. The feature was eventually dropped for security reasons, with Microsoft then sticking with a simplified desktop going forward.
Windows 8 introduced live tiles on the Start screen and Windows 10 brought them to the Start menu, with users hoping that at one point, these would be brought directly to the desktop.
As it turns out, Microsoft not only doesn’t plan to do this, but it also wants to give up on live tiles completely. The leaked Windows 11 build reveals the Start menu no longer features live tiles, instead using a Windows 10X-inspired approach with a more static design.
Windows 11 widgets
So what are widgets in Windows 11? An option in the Windows 11 settings screen allows users to “show widgets button” on the taskbar, though this time, Microsoft is actually referring to the news and interests experience that’s already available in Windows 10 and which will get an interface makeover when the next OS goes live.
“News and interests on the taskbar provides easy access to information that’s important to you, without the distraction of switching between apps, websites, and other devices. View your location’s current weather conditions directly on your taskbar and hover over the icon to see concise, scannable information from sports and stocks to local news and breaking headlines,” Microsoft explains.
Windows 11 will be announced on June 24, while the launch is projected to happen in the fall of the year.