Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing

Windows 11 made a change to how default apps work — and people are upset

Dua Rashid
By

Microsoft is making it harder to set default apps on Windows 11. In the forthcoming version of Windows, if you don’t select the Always use this app box when opening a new app for the first time, Microsoft will never change the default.

In the current version of Windows, you can simply go on the Start Menu, type Default Apps, look for the drop-down menu and select the desired apps for all your browsing needs. However, this is not how it currently works in the upcoming Windows 11.

Complaint on Microsoft Insider feedback hub.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Since it’s very easy to forget to toggle the Always use this app option and simply launch the app, it’s disappointing to know that you will never see this option again if you miss your chance. Users who have tested Windows 11 are upset about this, as evidenced by the number of upvotes on a complaint published on the Windows Insider feedback hub.

Recommended Videos

On the upcoming Windows, default apps have to be set by file or link type instead of a single switch that can be toggled. For instance, in the case of Chrome, this involves changing the default file type for HTM, HTML, PDF, SHTML, SVG, WEBP, XHT, XHTML, FTP, HTTP, and HTTPS.

Related

It is a much more time-draining process as compared to Windows 10, which allows you to switch default email, maps, music, photos, videos, and web browser apps much faster. Microsoft Edge, which is the default browser that Microsoft often pushes people to use, is a good example of the company forcing apps on people.

Windows 11 brought with it quite a number of changes, some of which fans are anticipating and others that are more controversial. According to the more than 600 upvotes on the complaint filed in the Windows Insider feedback hub, these changes to default apps clearly fit into the latter category.

In a statement to The Verge, a Microsoft spokesperson says: “We’re constantly listening and learning, and welcome customer feedback that helps shape Windows. Windows 11 will continue to evolve over time; if we learn from user experience that there are ways to make improvements, we will do so.”

Windows 11 is currently in beta, where Microsoft is constantly testing changes that have been made. Let’s hope this is one change that doesn’t make it into the final version of Windows 11.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Dua Rashid
Dua Rashid
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Dua is a media studies graduate student at The New School. She has been hooked on technology since she was a kid and used to…
Beware! The latest Windows 11 update might crash your PC
A laptop running Windows 11.

Microsoft releases routine updates for Windows every month, and while the intent is to fix issues and occasionally add new features, the latest one is doing more harm than good. Some Windows 11 users have taken to social media to report that the latest KB5035853 update could be crashing their PCs, with the feared Blue Screen of Death (BSoD) appearing on startup.

Although Microsoft hasn't appeared to document any known issues with this update for Windows 11 22H2 and Windows 11 23H3, there's a Reddit thread on the matter. Frustrated Windows 11 users mention the problems they are experiencing after installing the update. One mentions that Explorer.exe shows an error during shutdown and another reports that the ribbon of the File Explorer is slow to load. Audio-related issues and PCs feeling laggy when gaming are among some of the other problems being reported.

Read more
The Windows 11 Android app dream is dead
A photo of the TikTok app running on a Windows 11 laptop

Microsoft first brought over the option to run Android apps natively in Windows 11 in 2021, but the dream is coming to an end after just a few years. Today, the company quietly updated its documentation for the Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA) to indicate that it will be ending support for the feature on March 5, 2025. Amazon has also published updated guidance for the same issue about its Amazon App Store on Windows 11, which powers the WSA.

What's causing this change is unknown, as Microsoft did not dive into specific details. Left to speculate, we can assume it's due to either lack of use or licensing issues, but until we hear more, it's left ambiguous.

Read more
Microsoft may fix the most frustrating thing about Windows updates
Windows 11 updates are moving to once a year.

Most Windows users will agree that one of the most annoying things about the operating system is the updates. While Windows Updates are necessary, they often tend to come up at the worst possible time, interrupting work and gaming sessions with persistent reminders that the system needs to reboot. Microsoft might be fixing that problem in the upcoming Windows 11 24H2 build, but it's still too early to bid farewell to those ill-timed reboots.

As spotted in the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26058, Microsoft is testing "hot patching" for some Windows 11 updates. Hot patching refers to a dynamic method of updating that often doesn't change the software version and may not even need a restart. In the context of Windows 11, it's pretty straightforward -- Windows will install the update, and you won't have to reboot your system.

Read more