Microsoft shows us discarded Windows 11 Start menu designs and Im so glad they were chucked in the bin in favor of the revamp were getting

Date:
Tue, 13 May 2025 11:19:53 +0000

Description:
Are you happy with Windows 11s major Start menu redesign? Microsoft has shown off other concepts that were abandoned, and theyre a love or hate thing.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Windows 11 has a redesign of the Start menu incoming Microsoft has shared info on the process of that revamp and how it took in a wide range of feedback We also
get to see some of the abandoned designs for the Start menu

Windows 11 is getting a major revamp for the Start menu and in an interesting move, Microsoft has shared the feedback which drove that redesign, as well as some of the concepts that fell by the wayside.

In case you overlooked the emergence of that Start menu overhaul, Microsoft gave us a first look at it recently . Essentially, it changes the menu into
a single scrollable panel (rather than two separate efforts) and applies some other useful tweaks.

Broadly speaking, Im a fan and I think its a clear step forward (more so now that a point of doubt has apparently been clarified, and Ill come back to
that momentarily).

Windows Central picked up on the blog post Microsoft published about the process of redesigning the Start menu, explaining why the new layout was chosen, and also looking at other treatments that were discarded based on
user feedback.

Indeed, Microsoft says it combed through a whole lot of notes on the Feedback Hub (where testers and enthusiasts give their opinions on Windows 11) as well as conducting thousands of remote interviews in order to get the redesign of this part of the interface right. On top of that, were told: Over 300 Windows 11 fans joined unmoderated studies and dozens more hopped into live co-creation calls.

Apparently, from all this, a key message repeatedly came through from those people: Help me find my apps faster. Let me bend Start to fit the way I work. And please keep the magic, dont lose the soul.

Yes, Im guessing the final part of that quote was never something Microsoft heard it sounds more like something Freddie Mercury sang in a Queen song
back in the eighties but the first two points fully make sense. Windows 11 users want the Start menu to be, most of all, the place where they find and fire up their apps, and a part of the interface that they can customize.

I think the latter is a particularly crucial factor, and elsewhere in the post, Microsoft talks about the Start menu providing: Recommendations made just for you that learn in real time and a way to hide them if you dont find them helpful.

Regarding the second half of that sentence, I take this as confirmation that Microsoft is indeed incorporating a switch to remove the recommendations
panel from the Start menu entirely, for those who dont want it.

I dont, and I know Im not alone in that, and this option was spotted in testing with the Start menu revamp . So, this comment about giving users a
way to hide recommendations surely refers to turning them off. For me, this represents indirect confirmation that a key part of the redesign is indeed coming. Analysis: What about the Start menu concepts that didnt make the cut?

Its also good to see Microsoft becoming more transparent here, and showing
off the discarded Start menu concepts, too. Are any of them any good? Obviously, this is a subjective matter to an extent, but for me, some of them definitely deserved to be chucked in the bin, while others seem sensible enough.

Lets take a look at the candidates which stand out from the efforts that
ended up being dumped. (Image credit: Microsoft)

This is a more tablet-focused take on the Start menu (where the background is blurred out), although thats not going to be ideal for traditional desktop
PCs (obviously). I dont like that it takes a step back in terms of still having the All apps list as an entirely separate panel. Its quite a clean layout to be fair, but there is some suggestion-related stuff here that Im
not so keen on. Pass. (Image credit: Microsoft)

Essentially, this is the Start menu from Windows 10 ported to Windows 11, although the design elements kind of clash for me (the category lists for apps, bottom-left, feel particularly out of place). Despite it all feeling shoehorned into Windows 11, I dont mind the idea of just having the Windows
10 Start menu back in some ways. Im surprised Microsoft even considered the idea, though. (Image credit: Microsoft)

Erk, what is this? It looks like someones lobbed a hand grenade into the guts of Windows 11s Start menu, and this is the aftermath of the almighty
explosion bits of interface all over the place. Its too busy, suggestion-heavy, and again like the first concept above, it grows limbs and splits off other sections into separate panels. No thanks. (Image credit: Microsoft)

This one I quite like it keeps things simple, and its mainly focused on the apps, with some recommendations and reminders in the left panel. Note that Copilot has crept into the reminders, bottom-left, but overall, I think this is my favorite of the abandoned designs.

However, the Start menu redesign Microsoft has chosen is the winner for me, although you may well have a different opinion (Windows Central certainly does). Why? Because it keeps things simple, with everything on one panel, and the new category view for the full list of apps ensures thats more tamed
plus you can (hopefully) drop the recommendations panel to make more space, too. ( Worries about Phone Link have been swerved as well , with a simple button to retract the panel, for those who use this app).

Is Microsofts chosen revamp too boring? Well, yeah, maybe. I guess it is the safe, not overly adventurous option, but it works for me. I dont want a fancied-up Start menu. I want a functional one, a streamlined system, and
yes, that crucial ability to customize and further trim anything I dont need (while those who like recommendations can have them). You might also like... Been hiding from Windows 11 24H2 due to the fuss about all the bugs? Theres nowhere to run now as Microsofts made the update compulsory Microsoft could
be working on the next update for Windows 11 but 25H2 could end up being a disappointment Windows 11 fully streamlined in just two clicks? Talon utility promises to rip all the bloatware out of Microsofts OS in a hassle-free way



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/windows/microsoft-shows-us-discarded-windo ws-11-start-menu-designs-and-im-so-glad-they-were-chucked-in-the-bin-in-favor- of-the-revamp-were-getting


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