One of the biggest improvements of Windows 11 compared to Windows 10 was the removal of app ads in the Start menu. Okay, maybe it wasn’t one of the “biggest improvements” of the operating system, but it was definitely one of the features that users of Windows liked the most (including myself), as we are already accustomed to a digital world where advertising is practically everywhere (I apologize for my part in it).
But if there is something certain in this world, it is that all good things come to an end sooner or later. And last week, Microsoft started testing ads within the Start menu in Windows 11. The Redmond company will once again use the Recommended section of the Start menu, which usually displays file recommendations, to suggest apps from the Microsoft Store.
“This will only appear to Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel in the United States and will not apply to commercial devices (devices managed by organizations),” Microsoft says in a blog post.
App ads can be disabled in the Windows 11 Settings section, but they will be enabled by default. Microsoft is seeking feedback on the changes, so the company may end up getting rid of the ads in the Windows 11 development versions if there are enough reports expressing dissatisfaction with this addition.
And it wouldn’t be the first time something like this happens; Microsoft started testing ads within the Windows 11 File Explorer in 2022 before disabling the experiment in the Windows 11 beta versions.
The tech giant has been experimenting with ads within Windows for over 10 years, including ads in the Start menu and the Windows 10 lock screen, so it wouldn’t be entirely surprising to see them appear in Windows 11 as well.
