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The redesigned taskbar in Windows 11 has seen a number of improvements since it first debuted in October 2021, and now an upcoming update looks poised to give you the ability to ungroup apps and expand the area that displays the time so that seconds are also displayed .
Windows 11’s first major update tweaked the taskbar, but there were still complaints from users that it was too limited in features compared to the taskbar in Windows 10.
Analysis: Refinement is the goal here
Windows 11 is getting a “Never combine” taskbar item setting anyway. It no longer includes window titles as in Windows 10 and older releases, but retains the icon-by-window mechanism that some may still find useful. New in build 25246, hidden behind feature 29785186 ✨ pic.twitter.com/IyW5t2CZWQNovember 16, 2022
The feedback on the Windows 11 taskbar has been more divisive than even Microsoft could have predicted when redesigning it, and that may have to do with how big the change has been for some.
Instead of a Start icon on the left side of the taskbar, it’s in the center, with features like grouping apps and enabling the Task Manager absent since its debut.
Thanks to the first major update that debuted in September 2022, there’s a new way to manage an overabundance of apps on the taskbar, in addition to the ability to change how many apps show up in the Start menu, making both seem less cluttered , and should be an answer to some of the complaints Microsoft has received.
With major improvements still coming to the taskbar, it’s clear that Microsoft is far from done when it comes to listening to feedback and further refining the feature. Will it be enough to make people love the Windows 11 taskbar? I’m not so sure, but even small tweaks like this are welcome.