Windows 11 Start Menu will have widget panel, leak indicates

According to a leak, Windows 11 may gain support for widgets in a floating panel next to the Start menu

The Windows 11 Start menu may be supplemented with widgets in a future update. Information found in build 26212 of the operating system on the Canary channel indicates the arrival of the feature among the PC customization options.

The news was shared by the profile @thebookisclosed on X (formerly Twitter) and consists of the following: a floating side panel in the Start menu that would be filled with widgets for temperature, financial results and other system options. Furthermore, the user could choose which side the bar would be positioned on.

Microsoft did not mention the feature in the update notes, which could be a sign of a tool still in development. It is not yet possible to determine whether the function would also support third-party application components nor whether the system’s traditional widget panel would be retired.

Greater customization in Windows 11

According to the images published by the account, the widgets are similar to those on the taskbar — they are not very interactive options, but they provide some interesting data on a daily basis.

The news would be welcomed by the community that is waiting for more customization options in the operating system: widgets already appeared in Windows 7, but lost space in subsequent versions. Meanwhile, rival macOS stands out for having a customizable sidebar, and Microsoft could be inspired by the interface.

Recently, Microsoft was the subject of controversy for inserting ads into the Start menu, but there is a trick to disabling the option in the settings.

Still in development

Anyone who wants to try the feature on Windows still needs to wait a little: the tool is not even being tested on the Canary channel and had to be activated manually by the profile that published the images. Therefore, it is still necessary to wait for distribution to those enrolled in the Windows Insider program before seeing the widgets in the final version.

There is no confirmation yet, but the visual adjustment could be one of the new features of Windows 11 24H2, Microsoft’s major annual system update, scheduled for release in the second half of the year.

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