wasted space Archives

Winsage

July 14, 2026

Microsoft just decluttered Windows 11 Search after years of MSN tiles, ads, and trivia

Microsoft is rolling out significant enhancements to Windows Search, starting on July 13, aimed at creating a more streamlined and user-friendly experience for Insiders. The update eliminates clutter from the interface, removing web suggestions and ads, and replacing them with a clean home screen that displays recent searches. Each search result now includes clear labels indicating its source, and the layout has been improved for better organization. Sponsored product cards have been removed from web results, leading to direct answers without promotional content. Users can customize their experience with toggles to disable Bing web results or Microsoft Store suggestions. Local matches now take precedence over web results, improving search accuracy. File search has been enhanced to display results more quickly and include cloud files alongside local ones. Microsoft has also improved the reliability of Search, reducing crashes and loading issues. Users can enable the new features through the Feature flags page if they do not activate after a reboot. There is no official timeline for when these changes will be available to all Windows users.

Winsage

June 1, 2026

Hands-On: The New Windows 11 Start Menu

Microsoft is enhancing Windows 11 through significant updates in the Windows Insider Program, particularly focusing on the Start menu. The Start menu, which originated from the abandoned Windows 10X project, faced criticism at its launch in October 2021 for its simplistic design and lack of customization options. Initial updates introduced some layout options, but issues like wasted space persisted. The upcoming version 25H2 integrates the All apps section into the main Start UI and introduces responsive design features. In March, Microsoft President Pavan Davuluri promised improvements to the Start menu, including enhanced reliability, flexibility, and personalization, more consistent access to apps and files, a refined Recommended section, standardized search functionality, and performance improvements through WinUI 3. Recent updates in the Insider Program include rebranding the Recommended section to Recent, allowing users to toggle visibility of sections, simplified size options for the Start menu, the option to hide user account profiles, and a redesigned settings interface. These changes aim to enhance user experience by streamlining navigation and providing greater control over the Start menu's appearance.

AppWizard

April 3, 2026

Your Galaxy’s Weather app just got a facelift: Here is what’s new

Samsung has released an update to its Weather app, version 1.7.30.8, which includes new icons for the Pollen card representing Tree, Grass, and Ragweed. The Wind and Pressure cards have been redesigned with new graphics, and the Moon card now displays moonrise and moonset times side by side for better space efficiency. The Radar card has been improved with additional icons for easier access to specific views like the 6-hour forecast, radar, cloud, and temperature. Users are encouraged to refresh their Weather app via the Galaxy Store to access these updates.

BetaBeacon

April 1, 2026

5 of the best new Android apps you need to try this April

Adaptive Theme is a free app developed by xLexip that uses your phone's ambient light sensor to automatically trigger dark mode when conditions fall below a darkness threshold you set.

Winsage

June 23, 2024

Windows 11 KB5039307 tests new features and clutter-free UI for taskbar

The Windows date/time presentation on the Taskbar has a new hidden setting that shortens the area used to display the date/time, showing only the time in the top part and the month and date in the bottom. This layout removes the year part, reducing wasted space and providing a cleaner presentation.

AppWizard

June 4, 2024

Threads desktop app starts to look a lot like Instagram

Threads has updated its desktop UI to mirror Instagram, with the feed centered and other UI elements moved to the left side. The primary feed can be changed from "For You" to "Following" through a drop-down menu.