Windows 11 Taskbar Chat Ability: What's It Mean for Users?

Windows 11 Taskbar Chat Ability: What’s It Mean for Users?

Windows 11 users have the Teams Chat app pinned on the taskbar by default. The chat feature is integrated into the OS, and you can not remove it from the system. It is essentially a toned-down variant of Microsoft Teams with limited capabilities.

However, Microsoft now has a slight change of plans in how it wants to deliver Microsoft Teams to Windows 11 users.

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Microsoft Kills Integrated Teams Chat on Windows 11

Microsoft announced in a Windows Insider blog post that it removed the Integrated Teams Chat on Windows 11. This does mean that you can’t re-enable it via Settings like you can now; it’s gone forever.

At the time of writing, this update only affects Windows Dev and Canary channel Insiders running Windows 11 Build 23481 or higher. However, Microsoft is not opposed to bundling a chat feature with Windows 11 OS. Instead, the company wants to do things a bit differently.

How the Teams Chat Removal From the Taskbar Impacts You

Microsoft is simply replacing the “integrated” Teams Chat experience with a free Teams app. It means you can still quickly start chatting with friends and colleagues on Teams without needing to download the app, just like before. An app titled “Microsoft Teams - Free” will be pinned in the Windows 11 taskbar by default, and you can remove it just like any other app.

Microsoft has not clarified why it’s removing the integrated Teams Chat feature. But we guess that faster development is one of the reasons behind killing the chat option in the taskbar.

Since Teams Chat had an OS-level integration, Microsoft could not easily bring new features or improvements without updating the OS. Microsoft is simply removing this development barrier by replacing the integrated chat experience with a free version of the Teams app.

Microsoft has also confirmed that it will continue to introduce more new features and enhancements to the free version of Teams in the future. Simply put, the Microsoft Teams Free app on Windows 11 will give you quick access to new features and improvements.

Microsoft Teams Free Will Be More Feature-Rich

If you’re a huge fan of Microsoft Teams, or your workflow relies on it heavily, don’t fret. While the Microsoft Teams Chat implementation is going away, the Redmond giant is replacing it with a better alternative for you to use.