These 5 apps are my secret to a better Windows 11 experience

Summary

For as great as Windows 11 is, there are more than a few sore points to be found in Microsoft’s flagship OS.
There are countless third-party apps that seek to enhance the Windows 11 experience.
These are some of my favorites, addressing key omissions and adding in much-needed functionalities.

Windows 11, first released back in 2021, is a solid evolution of Microsoft’s storied desktop operating system. The OS brought with it a fresh coat of paint, a modernized design language, a reworked Start Menu, among other notable tweaks and enhancements.

Some of these changes have been welcomed with open arms, while others — particularly the remade taskbar — have been subject to much criticism. While Microsoft is busy improving Windows 11, including via the 2024 feature update released this month, third-party developers have also been hard at work.

There are a number of excellent third-party apps that elevate Windows 11 as a whole, introducing quality of life features that make using the operating system a more pleasant day-to-day experience. Here are 5 apps in particular that I always download on any fresh PC install.

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1 Battery Percentage – Pure Battery add-on

For displaying your current battery percentage directly on your taskbar

Battery Percentage - Pure Battery add-on screenshot

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Battery Percentage – Pure Battery add-on

A simple app that enables a battery percentage icon on your Windows 11 taskbar.

One of the strangest omissions in the modern Windows OS, is the lack of an option to display a dedicated battery percentage icon on the taskbar. By default, to access this vital bit of system information, you need to click or tap on the quick settings button, where the percentage is displayed alongside your quick settings tiles.

This simple app solves the inconvenience once and for all.

Battery Percentage – Pure Battery add-on is a simple app that solves this inconvenience once and for all. It offers a simple user interface with options to adjust the size, color, and styling of the icon itself. Until Microsoft gets the message and integrates this feature natively into Windows, this free third-party app remains a necessity in my opinion.

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2 Auto Dark Mode

Keep your eyes comfortable after sunset with this indispensable dark mode tool

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Auto Dark Mode

A useful app that switches your Windows mode from light to dark automatically.

Another strange oddity within Windows is the lack of a scheduling option for switching between light and dark modes. Microsoft has included a native dark mode in Windows for years now, albeit in an inconsistently implemented fashion. The ability to switch to dark mode when the sun sets, is an operating system mainstay that’s sorely lacking in Windows.

There’s also an option to have your wallpaper switch alongside the color mode itself.

Fortunately, the free third-party Auto Dark Mode app is available on the Microsoft Store, which integrates precisely this functionality. The app is fairly simple to get started with, offering a few advanced options for scheduling the switch based on time, location, and more. There’s also an option to have your wallpaper switch alongside the color mode itself. If you’re tired of having to manually turn on dark mode in the evenings to protect your eyes, then Auto Dark Mode is a near-perfect tool.

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Rectifying a major Windows 11 oversight

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Calendar Flyout

A native-feeling Windows 11 app that brings digital calendar integration into the taskbar flyout.

When Microsoft rebuilt the taskbar from scratch using modern code in Windows 11, a number of useful features regrettably didn’t survive the transition. One such feature is the ability to integrate your cloud calendar events into the built-in calendar flyout. As it currently stands, the native flyout lacks any calendar service integration, which is a real shame considering Microsoft’s Outlook and Office software pedigree.

As it currently stands, the native flyout lacks any calendar service integration.

The free third-party Calendar Flyout introduces this basic functionality into the Windows Shell, and does so in a way that feels perfectly at home. This app is well executed, and works exactly how I’d envision a built-in solution to operate. There are a few additional settings found within the app, relating to personalization and account management.

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4 Twinkle Tray: Brightness Slider

A must-have tool if you run a multiple monitor PC setup

Twinkle Tray Brightness Slider screenshot

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Twinkle Tray: Brightness Slider

A useful tool that lets you adjust brightness on any multi-monitor PC setup.

Twinkle Tray is a simple and lightweight app that introduces a dedicated flyout in the Windows 11 system tray. It’s specifically designed for the purpose of managing the brightness levels of a multiple monitor setup. There are some more advanced settings within the main app interface, but the flyout keeps things nice and clean by default.

If your PC setup involves using more than a single monitor, then the free Twinkle Tray app is a must-download.

If your PC setup involves using more than a single monitor, then the free Twinkle Tray app is a must-download. It’s a convenient tool and a genuine time saver. And, as a bonus, it looks and feels native to the system, taking advantage of Microsoft’s Fluent Design system.

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5 Fire Flyouts

Take back control of your PC’s performance mode

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Fire Flyouts

A helpful battery flyout for Windows 11 that reintroduces the power mode slider from Windows 10.

Fire Flyouts, previously known as Fluent Flyouts, is another lightweight app that integrates a basic flyout into the taskbar’s system tray area. This flyout provides some extremely useful battery-related metrics, including remaining WH capacity, discharge rate, and an estimated remaining use time. Similar to Twinkle Tray, Fire Flyouts leans into Windows 11 design principles for a native look and feel.

The developer plans on introducing additional system flyouts via future updates.

The app also brings back a beloved Windows 10 feature: a slider interface for adjusting your power mode on the fly. Fire Flyouts is a free download, and the developer plans on introducing additional system flyouts via future updates. The ability to swap between high efficiency and high performance modes without the need to dig into settings, is reason alone to make this app worth it, in my opinion.