There is a new feature coming to the Windows 11 taskbar, but it’s not the one you were hoping for. Microsoft is now looking into support for a search bar similar to Windows 10 even though functions like the ability to move the taskbar or ungroup icons are still lacking. Microsoft is also developing fresh design themes for the taskbar’s search functionality.
Microsoft has been testing a new “search” box that would show up on the taskbar’s left side, as we recently revealed. This new search bar resembles the one on the Windows 10 taskbar, unlike the current search feature, which is an icon, but it blends in with Windows 11’s contemporary design.
In our tests, we found that the search bar operates similarly and that the search experience has not changed. It is still available for searching the web, documents, photographs, apps, games, and other media.
Later this year, the search bar is anticipated to be included in the OS and is now being tested with users in the Dev Channel.
Windows 11 taskbar requires significant upgrades
It’s undeniable that the Windows 11 taskbar is a mess, and a significant upgrade that would include the missing functions has been overdue. While the ability to drag and drop files onto a taskbar-pinned app will return later this year, there are many other improvements that users have been requesting since Windows 11’s release.
Not one of the requested features is the search bar. In fact, many users simply open the Start menu instead of using the built-in search box in Windows 10.
Sadly, several of the most popular user features won’t be accessible very soon.
For those who are unaware, Microsoft completely rebuilt the taskbar in order to revamp it. One of the most obvious features, the “full-fledged right-click” menu, is no longer present in the new taskbar, which lacks capabilities included in Windows 10.
The option to move the taskbar has also been blocked by Microsoft, with “workflow” listed as one of the reasons.
The business unambiguously stated in a recent Windows Insider Webinar that more features won’t be arriving anytime soon. Though some taskbar upgrades are scheduled for 2022, they can show up in the future preview builds.
