taskbar customization

On May 15, 2026, Microsoft said Windows 11 Insiders in the Experimental channel would begin receiving taskbar and Start menu personalization changes, including the ability to place the taskbar on any screen edge and choose smaller taskbar buttons and Start menu layouts. The move is not just a...

Microsoft is testing Windows 11 changes that would let users place the taskbar differently on each monitor, move it with drag and drop, resize taskbar elements, and gain new Start menu controls, according to Windows Latest reporting published on May 18, 2026. That is not a cosmetic footnote; it...

Microsoft began testing a movable and smaller Windows 11 taskbar on May 15, 2026, in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26300.8493 for the Experimental channel, restoring customization options that Windows users lost when Windows 11 replaced the old taskbar in 2021. The change is not merely...

Microsoft began testing a movable and smaller Windows 11 taskbar on May 15, 2026, in Experimental Preview Build 26300.8493, giving Windows Insiders controls to place the taskbar on the bottom, top, left, or right edge of the screen. That sentence sounds almost absurdly modest for a feature...

Microsoft began testing new Windows 11 personalization controls on May 15, 2026, giving Windows Insiders in the Experimental channel the ability to move the taskbar to any screen edge, shrink its height, and reshape the Start menu with new layout toggles. The timing is not accidental. After...

Microsoft released Windows 11 Build 26300.8493 to the Experimental channel on May 15, 2026, restoring official taskbar placement options, adding a smaller taskbar mode, expanding Fluid Dictation to Spanish and French, and polishing several Windows shell behaviors. The build is not a...

Microsoft began testing new Windows 11 personalization controls on May 15, 2026, giving Windows Insiders in the Experimental channel options to resize the Start menu, hide major Start sections, adjust file recommendations, obscure account identity in Start, and move the taskbar to any screen...

Microsoft began rolling out Windows 11 Experimental Preview Build 26300.8493 on May 15, 2026, giving Windows Insiders an official way to move the taskbar to the top, left, right, or bottom of the screen. The change sounds almost comically small until you remember that Windows 11 launched in 2021...

Microsoft began rolling out Windows 11 Experimental Preview Build 26300.8493 on May 15, 2026, giving Windows Insiders the ability to place the taskbar at the bottom, top, left, or right edge of the screen and to enable a genuinely smaller taskbar. That sounds like a small settings change until...

Microsoft began testing a Windows 11 taskbar and Start menu overhaul on May 15, 2026, in the Windows Insider Experimental channel, adding options to move the taskbar to the top, left, or right of the screen and to use a smaller taskbar layout. That is the factual fix; the larger story is...

Microsoft is testing early code for a Windows 10-style smaller Windows 11 taskbar in preview build 26300.8346, restoring a customization path it removed when Windows 11 launched in 2021. The feature is unfinished and hidden, but its appearance matters because the taskbar has become the symbol of...

Microsoft is testing quieter default settings for the Windows 11 Widgets board in Insider Experimental builds released May 1, 2026, disabling hover activation, taskbar badging, and first-launch feed exposure while saying broader taskbar customization is still “coming soon” for users who miss...

Neowin’s look at Raditya Aryaputra’s latest Windows 11 redesign concept lands at a moment when Microsoft’s desktop is carrying more ambition, more AI, and more promotional surface area than many longtime users would like. The concept imagines a cleaner, more customizable Windows 11 that strips...

Microsoft is quietly recalibrating one of Windows 11’s most visible AI experiments: the Copilot push inside everyday apps. Instead of spreading the assistant across every corner of the desktop, the company now appears to be trimming back some of those entry points, especially in Notepad, Photos...

Microsoft is preparing one of the most consequential Windows 11 course corrections since launch: a broader redesign that pushes the OS toward a more consistent, more flexible, and less intrusive desktop experience. The Control Panel is not vanishing overnight, but the direction is now...

Microsoft is beginning to walk back one of the most visible complaints about Windows 11: that the operating system has been steadily turning simple desktop workflows into AI showcases. In a new round of Insider-facing changes, Microsoft says it will reduce unnecessary Copilot entry points in...

It took almost five years, but Microsoft is finally moving to undo one of Windows 11’s most unpopular design choices: the locked taskbar. Reports indicate that the company is preparing support for moving the taskbar to the top, left, or right of the screen, while also exploring a smaller, more...

Windows 11 is entering a rare and welcome phase: Microsoft appears to be reversing course on several decisions that frustrated power users, IT admins, and longtime Windows fans. In March 2026, the company said it is reducing unnecessary Copilot entry points, restoring more taskbar customization...

Microsoft is trying to do something it has struggled with for years: make Windows 11 feel like a platform that listens before it ships. The return of Windows Insider meetups is more than a feel-good community gesture; it is a visible sign that Microsoft knows it has to rebuild trust with...

Windows 11 remains a study in tension: it is the only broadly supported Microsoft desktop platform now that Windows 10’s regular security updates have ended, yet it still frustrates a large slice of power users with defaults that feel more opinionated than optional. The good news is that many of...