widget Archives

Winsage

February 22, 2025

4 Windows 11 features that make me regret upgrading

Windows 11 has become popular among users, but some experience frustrations with its features. The Copilot feature is heavily integrated, prompting users to engage with it frequently, which many find intrusive. The redesigned Start Menu is seen as cluttered and less user-friendly compared to Windows 10, requiring customization for better usability. The Widgets button on the taskbar has become a distraction, leading many to disable it for improved focus. Windows 11 frequently upsells Microsoft services, requiring a Microsoft account and inundating users with promotional notifications. Overall, users feel that navigating Windows 11 has become adversarial, prioritizing notifications over user experience and complicating basic usability.

AppWizard

February 20, 2025

The least used app on my Android phone is… the Google app?!

The Google app, launched over 15 years ago, enhances mobile search capabilities on Android devices and serves multiple essential functions, including powering the search widget, the Discover feed, Circle to Search, Google Lens, the Saved tab, and ad personalization options. A poll indicates that 34% of users utilize the app daily, 9% use it often, 16% rarely, and 41% never use it. Despite its perceived redundancy, the app is an uninstallable system app, crucial for maintaining various Android features and functionalities.

BetaBeacon

February 16, 2025

Download These Free Android & iOS Apps for This Weekend

- Android apps and games are available for free for a limited time. - Top free Android apps for productivity and lifestyle include Net Signal Pro, Illuminance - Lux Light Pro, Who Uses My WiFi Pro, Countdown Widget - Time Until, and Print Photo: Print to Size. - Free Android games include Legacy 4: Tomb of Secrets, Empire Warriors: Tower Defense, Fortress 2, Word Search Game: Offline, and Neo Monsters.

AppWizard

February 11, 2025

WhatsApp could be among the first to support Google’s ‘Pixel Besties’ feature

Google is developing a feature called "Pixel Besties" to consolidate conversations from various messaging applications into a single interface. It is expected to debut with the upcoming Pixel QPR update, with WhatsApp likely being the first third-party app to participate. The feature may be part of a dedicated application called "Pixel Relationship," which could include a home screen widget for easy access. Users will be able to curate a list of important contacts, and all interactions with designated "Pixel Besties" will be aggregated in one space. The latest beta version of WhatsApp suggests a central hub for this feature, supported by a new API for communication between apps. Initially, it will integrate data from Google Messages and WhatsApp, with potential future additions from other platforms like Messenger.

AppWizard

February 5, 2025

Ukrainian competitor to Telegram: Bridge messenger with «panic button» and encryption

Discussions about potentially blocking Telegram in Ukraine led to the development of a domestic alternative called Bridge messenger, created by a team of four IT specialists from Lviv. Bridge is designed to compete with messaging apps like Telegram, WhatsApp, and Signal, featuring efficient data compression for low Internet conditions, a recommendation feed, and a user-friendly interface tailored for Ukrainians. Notable features include a panic button for data deletion, end-to-end encryption, temporary accounts for anonymity, and advanced automation for business processes. The project has consumed over 2,000 hours and nearly 0,000 in personal funding. Bridge's concept originated in summer 2024 due to power outages and communication issues, with its beta version launched on October 29, attracting over 5,000 testers. The full release is expected in the second quarter of 2025.

Winsage

February 5, 2025

Microsoft finally allows customizing Windows 11 lock screen widgets, here is how to do that

Microsoft has released a new preview build of Windows 11, designated as 22635.4870 (KB5050087), in the Beta Channel. This build introduces the ability to customize lock screen widgets, allowing users to select which widgets are displayed when their PC is locked. The customizable feature is currently being rolled out to Windows Insiders using this build. To enable it manually, users need to download ViVeTool, run specific commands in Command Prompt, and restart their computer. The customization requires an activated Windows installation.

AppWizard

February 4, 2025

Google Search widget now lets you set a custom shortcut on Android

The Google app has introduced a feature for Android users that allows customization of shortcuts within the Search widget. Users can access this by going to the Google app settings and selecting "Customize Search widget," where they can adjust the theme and transparency settings. The new “Shortcuts” feature offers nine options: None, Translate (text), Song Search, Weather, Translate (camera), Sports, Dictionary, Homework, and Finance. The shortcut icon appears to the left of the microphone and camera icons in a 3×1 layout, and in a compact 2×1 view, it shows only the ‘G’ icon. This update is available for non-Pixel devices as well as Google phones and tablets, and it is part of version 16.3.34 of the Google app, which was rolled out in the stable channel.

Winsage

February 3, 2025

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4870 (Beta Channel)

Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.4870 (KB5050087) has been released to the Beta Channel, available only to users who have not transitioned to updates based on Windows 11, version 24H2. New features include the rollout of lock screen widgets for Insiders in the European Economic Area (EEA), allowing customization of widgets like Weather, Watchlist, Sports, and Traffic. A new group policy, "Disable Widgets On Lock Screen," is also introduced for IT administrators in the EEA. Changes and improvements include the addition of people icons in File Explorer for users signed in with a work or school account, showing Live Persona Cards from Microsoft 365. Fixes include resolving Start menu crashes, color discrepancies in the account manager flyout, and issues with File Explorer rendering and reliability. Known issues involve slow closing of File Explorer and crashes on the Settings Home page. Insiders in the Beta Channel will receive updates based on Windows 11, version 23H2, with features rolled out gradually. Features may evolve or be removed based on feedback, and localization will occur over time.

Winsage

February 3, 2025

Windows 11 KB5050087 beta improves Lock Screen widgets, File Explorer, fixes USB issues

Microsoft has released Windows 11 Beta build 22635.4870 (KB5050087), enhancing the Lock screen widget experience, refining File Explorer, and addressing USB-related issues. This build is part of the 23H2 version, following build 26120.3073 (KB5050090) from version 24H2. The update introduces customizable lock screen widgets for users in the European Economic Area (EEA), allowing personalization of widgets like Weather and Sports. A new group policy, "Disable Widgets On Lock Screen," is also available for IT administrators in EEA regions. File Explorer enhancements include displaying people icons in the "Activity" column for users with work or school accounts, showing Live Persona Cards from Microsoft 365. Fixes include resolving Start menu crashes, color discrepancies in the account manager flyout, rendering issues in File Explorer, and USB device recognition problems. Known issues involve slow closing times for File Explorer, potential crashes in the Settings Home page, and enterprise-specific information appearing on non-managed PCs.

Winsage

February 3, 2025

My favorite Windows 11 File Explorer alternative just got its biggest update in years

Windows 11's third-party application "Files" has been updated to version 3.9, introducing several enhancements: - The Update Files button has a new design with a vibrant icon for easier updates. - Icons and thumbnails are now DPI aware for clarity on all display types, and a Tags Widget allows for easy tagging by dragging files onto tags. - Users can rotate JPEG-XR images and set them as desktop or lock screen backgrounds directly from the application. - A new setting allows automatic focus on newly created tabs. - The Properties Window has been improved to browse for .icl files and modify the ‘compress contents’ attribute. - Individual launch protocols for each branch of Files have been implemented. - Performance improvements include immediate loading of breadcrumb flyouts and reduced load times for thumbnails. - Drag-and-drop functionality has been refined, allowing background operation when dragging items to other applications. - Files now supports .gz archives as the default for compressed files, with updates to 7zip dependencies. - Users can toggle columns in Details View settings, with changes reflecting across all tabs. - The Home Page has been streamlined for a cleaner appearance. - Keyboard navigation enhancements allow opening breadcrumb flyouts with Space and Enter keys. - The Windows Taskbar no longer displays the number of open tabs. - Support for Lucid Link v3 has been added for cloud drive capabilities. Fixes in version 3.9 include resolving crashes, improving keyboard navigation, fixing issues with drag-and-drop support, and addressing various problems with cloud drives, columns view, and tags.