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ZDNET Highlights
- The latest Windows 11 Insider update attempts to improve the Start menu.
- The menu shows a screen for all apps and your phone on the main page.
- The update also enhances File Explorer with a Recommended Files section.
I don’t like the Windows 11 Start Menu. I think it’s clumsy, inflexible and just plain stupid. That’s why I use a Start menu replacement, specifically Stardock’s Start11, on my main PC.
But I still turn to the Start menu in my Windows 11 virtual machines. For those sake, I’m hoping that Microsoft will try to fix some of the glitches and quirks in the built-in menus. And that seems to be the goal behind the new update.
Now slowly being rolled out to Windows 11 Insiders, the latest update finally attempts to bring a redesigned Start menu into the mix. one in tuesday blog postMicrosoft said the new menu will help you access your apps more quickly and easily, so you can find what you want more easily. It also introduced changes to the file explorer and taskbar. Here’s what to expect.
start menu
First, the All section appears directly on the main page of the Start menu and not as a separate area that you have to select to access. The All section is also scrollable, so you can simply move the screen down to see all your apps.
Instead of limiting you to an alphabetical list of installed apps, the new menu lets you switch between category view and grid view. With Category view, your apps are placed in folders that attempt to organize them by type. With Grid view, your apps are back listed alphabetically, but with more horizontal space, so you can see them better. Choose one or the other view, and the Start menu will remember your choice.
Also: Microsoft said my PC couldn’t run Windows 11, but I upgraded in 5 minutes anyway – here’s how
The overhauled menu also adapts to your screen size. On larger displays, you’ll be able to see more pinned apps, recommended apps, and categories. You can also expand or collapse the Pinned and Recommended sections depending on what you want to see.
Additionally, a new pane for Phone Link lets you access calls and messages on your connected iPhone or Android phone. If this doesn’t interest you, you can simply hide the pane.
Microsoft has gradually rolled out some of these changes to Windows Insiders in the past. But it’s hit or miss. Hopefully, the new update will apply these to everyone in the Insiders program.
file Explorer
Apart from the Start menu, File Explorer also gets some changes courtesy of this latest Insider build.
The home page of File Explorer will now display recommended files for both Microsoft accounts and local accounts. If enabled, this area will show files you frequently use, files you recently downloaded, or files you added to the File Explorer gallery. If you don’t want to see it, you can easily turn it off.
Hovering over a file in File Explorer will show you commands like “Open file location” and “Ask CoPilot.” Initially, it will only be available with personal Microsoft accounts, but will be expanded to work and school accounts in the future.
taskbar
The Windows taskbar is the next recipient of some changes.
The battery icon in the system tray will now display different colors to indicate charging status. The green icon means that your PC is in charging mode and in good condition. A yellow icon tells you that the battery is at 20% or less. Additionally, you can enable an option to view your battery percentage in the system tray.
Hovering over an open app’s icon on the taskbar will display a new “Share with CoPilot” button. Selecting this triggers CoPilot Vision, which can analyze and answer questions about the content in the file. Don’t want to see this? You can easily turn it off through taskbar settings.
Also: Running Windows 11? Install this emergency patch before using recovery mode – here’s why
With the latest update, Microsoft has made it even more difficult to choose a local account during Windows 11 setup. But at least now you can name your default user folder. In the past, Windows would automatically choose a folder name based on your username, which wasn’t always ideal.
The process of naming your user folder is cumbersome, as you have to open a prompt and run some commands manually. Hopefully, Microsoft will improve this at some point.
The new update also replaces the Click to Do option on CoPilot+PC, Windows Voice Access, and Microsoft 365 CoPilot. You’ll also find a variety of bug fixes for various Windows features.
The most important changes are still in the Start menu. Although I’ll probably keep using Start11, at least Microsoft is trying to fix some of the quirks of the current menu.
