5 Home windows 11 apps I uninstall for a cleaner, smoother expertise

Everybody personalizes their Windows PC in their very own manner, and I want to maintain mine as clear and minimal as attainable. I conceal all my desktop icons, so my desktop all the time seems to be tidy, and my taskbar solely has probably the most important apps pinned. Relating to apps, I solely preserve those I really use put in to maintain my PC as clutter-free as attainable.

That mentioned, for those who’ve simply gotten a brand new Home windows 11 PC, upgraded from Windows 10, or carried out a recent set up, there are numerous apps that Microsoft mechanically installs that you simply would possibly by no means use or just don’t desire. I would not go as far as to name them bloatware, however I believe it is truthful to say that not everybody wants a few of the default apps that include Home windows 11. In the event you’re not utilizing them, I like to recommend uninstalling them to save lots of cupboard space and assist preserve your PC clear. Listed here are 5 default Home windows 11 apps I all the time uninstall, which you’ll need to think about too.

Microsoft Copilot

I like my Home windows expertise AI-free

Over the previous 12 months, I’ve needed to arrange a number of new Home windows PCs, and one of many first issues I all the time do is uninstall Copilot, Microsoft’s AI chatbot. Whereas it could be useful relying in your workflow, I by no means discover myself utilizing it, because it simply takes up pointless house. Fortunately, Microsoft has made uninstalling Copilot surprisingly straightforward. All it’s a must to do is go to Settings > Apps > Copilot > then click on the three dots subsequent to Copilot and choose Uninstall. The identical uninstall course of applies to the remainder of the apps talked about on this story as properly.

Whenever you seek for Copilot in your app record, you might also discover one other model referred to as Microsoft 365 Copilot, which you can even uninstall if you’d like. That is basically a model of Copilot built-in with apps like Microsoft Phrase and Excel. If you wish to use AI in these apps, by all means, preserve it. Nevertheless, for those who do not use any Microsoft Workplace apps and as an alternative use alternate options like Google Docs and Google Sheets, it is price eliminating it. In the event you ever need to reinstall Copilot, you’ll be able to simply achieve this from the Microsoft Retailer.

Microsoft Groups

In the event you use another like Slack, you most likely do not want it

Microsoft Groups is a messaging and video conferencing app that many corporations use to deal with communication between staff. Personally, the corporate I work for does not use Microsoft Groups and depends on alternate options like Slack and Google Meet, so I’ve by no means had to make use of it.

Moreover, for private video calls and messaging with pals or household, I normally use different apps like Discord, WhatsApp, or FaceTime, so Groups is simply pointless. In the event you’re in an identical state of affairs and do not have a use case for Groups, uninstalling it’s a straightforward technique to unlock house and tidy up your PC’s app record.

The Xbox app

Sorry Microsoft, Steam is the house of PC gaming

I like taking part in video games on my PC in my free time, however the Xbox app is not the best way I do it. Like many PC players, I depend on Steam, which I have been utilizing for over a decade. I’ve solely ever used the Xbox app a couple of times, and that was when Microsoft was providing these $1 PC Recreation Go trials.

Since then, I have never had a compelling use case for it, and with the current increase in the cost of Xbox Recreation Go Final and PC Recreation Go, it does not appear to be I’ll within the close to future both. In the event you do not play video games in your PC or rely solely on different platforms like Steam and Epic Video games for all of your gaming wants, the Xbox app is one other straightforward uninstall.

Sound Recorder

Audacity is best and free

Sound Recorder is a pre-installed app in Home windows 11, and because the identify suggests, you need to use it to report audio in your PC, resembling for a podcast or voice-over. Nevertheless, I imagine that Sound Recorder has very restricted options for audio recording, and there are different apps that deal with each recording and modifying audio a lot better. Audacity is my private favourite, and it is free. With that in thoughts, uninstalling Sound Recorder was an apparent alternative for me, and it may be for you too, particularly for those who need not report your individual voice for something.

Outlook for Home windows

I want to examine my e-mail utilizing an internet browser

I examine my e-mail consistently whereas utilizing my PC, however I do not use the Outlook app for Home windows for that. The Outlook app for Home windows affords the identical inbox expertise you are accustomed to in your net browser, simply in a devoted app. When you’ve got an Outlook or an previous Hotmail e-mail, you would possibly discover it helpful. Nevertheless, I normally entry my e-mail on my telephone or by means of Google Chrome; due to this fact, I by no means felt the necessity to use the devoted Outlook app. In the event you’re in the identical boat, uninstalling Outlook may very well be worthwhile for you too.

Moreover, for those who put in Home windows 11 some time in the past, you may need one other mail app price eliminating. After I went to uninstall Outlook, I seen I additionally had an older Home windows e-mail app referred to as Mail and Calendar put in. Microsoft really discontinued this app final 12 months in favor of the Outlook for Home windows app, so you may have two mail apps to uninstall, not only one, relying on how lengthy you have been utilizing Home windows 11.