Microsoft's latest redesign of the Windows 11 Start menu has been met with a wave of negative feedback from users. A prominent Reddit discussion reveals widespread dissatisfaction, with the primary complaints focusing on the menu's excessive size, forced automated app categorization, and a severe lack of customization controls.
Desktop users, in particular, criticize the new layout as a "colossal waste of space," reminiscent of the unpopular Windows 8 start screen. The automatic sorting of apps into categories like "Productivity" and "Games" is reported to be inaccurate and cannot be manually edited, leading to frustration. Many users report that game launchers like Steam are scattered across multiple incorrect groups.
This frustration has led to increased interest in third-party customization tools like Start11 and Open Shell, which allow users to regain control. While some positive feedback highlights the ability to remove the "Recommended" section, it is overshadowed by the dominant issues. The overarching sentiment from the community is not resistance to change, but resistance to losing control over their operating system's core interface.