How to Remove News and Weather from the Windows 10 Taskbar
Because it’s blurry, slow, and ugly
The News and Interests widget (a.k.a. the News and Weather widget) in Windows 10 allows you to check the current weather with a quick glance at the taskbar. It also revealsadditional weather-related informationand tailored news updates whenever you move the cursor over the widget icon. But while the News and Interests widget is a decent concept, it’s poorly executed with terrible design choices.
For starters, not only does the text on the News and Interests widget look blurry on most displays, but the various “cards” inside it load slowly and react sluggishly. It also opens everything inMicrosoft Edge, even if you’ve set up a different browser as the default on your PC.
If you likekeeping things minimalisticand hate the fuzzy text or the in-your-face news feed, you can remove the News and Interests widget entirely from thetaskbar in Windows 10. Or, you can choose to make things more bearable by customizing it.
Remove News and Interests Widget from Taskbar
The News and Interests widget in Windows 10 shows up right next to the system tray on the taskbar. If it looks blurry, out of place, or distracts you from your work, you can choose to get rid of it. Here’s how:
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Right-click theNews and Interestswidget icon or a vacant area of the taskbar.
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Point toNews and interests.
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SelectTurn off.
That should remove the News and Interests widget from view immediately. Should you want to re-enable it, just right-click the taskbar, point toNews and interests, and selectShow icon and text.
Change Appearance of News and Interests Widget
If you find the News and Interests widget useful but distracting, you can make it less of an issue by changing the icon’s appearance and the way it works by default.
Start by right-clicking the taskbar. Then, point toNews and interestsand selectShow icon onlyto remove the text and display the weather as a status icon only.
Additionally, deselect theOpen on hoveroption to stop the News and Interests widget from opening whenever you move the cursor over it. Also, selectReduce taskbar updatesto reduce the frequency of the widget icon updates on the taskbar.
Customize Cards in News and Interests Widget
In addition to the news feed, the News and Interests widget displays a handful of cards dubbed Weather, Finance, Sports, and Traffic. However, they aren’t static and you can customize them to display the information you want relatively quickly.
For example, to change the location in Weather, select theMore optionsicon (three dots) to the top-right of the card and selectEdit location. Then, specify your location and selectSave.
The same goes for the Finance card. Just open theMore optionsmenu and selectAdd symbolto add different ticker symbols.
Remove Cards in News and Interests Widget
You can also hide the Weather, Finance, Sports, and Traffic cards within the News and Interests widget to reduce the clutter inside whenever you want. To do that, select theMore infoicon on the relevant card and chooseHide this card.
Note:Hiding the Weather card will also cause all weather-related info to disappear from the News and Interests card on the taskbar. You’ll see a newspaper-shaped icon in place instead.
To reactivate any hidden cards, select theSettingsicon (three dots) on the top-left of the News and Interests widget and chooseLanguage & content.
That should load yourExperience Settingsin Microsoft Edge. Follow by turning on the switches next to the cards you want.
Remove News Feed Stories in News and Interests Widget
Unlike the Weather, Finance, Sports, and Traffic cards, you can’t remove any items that are part of your news feed. However, you can remove stories you don’t like by selecting theX-shaped icon on a card’s top right. It should then be replaced by another story automatically, but you can selectNot interested in this storyorDon’t like the sourcebefore that happens as a way to relay your preferences.
Additionally, you can select theMore optionsicon (three dots) to the lower-right corner of a news feed story and select options such asFewer stories like thisorMore stories like thisto train the widget’s algorithm about your interests.
You can also tune the headlines within the Top Stories card (which appears to the very top of the News and Interests widget) this way.
Manage Your Interests in News and Interests Widget
The News and Interests widget lets you customize the news feed itself directly. Select theManage Interestsicon at the top of the widget to load theMy Interestssettings in Microsoft Edge. Then, it’s a simple matter of picking your preferences. Select thePlusicon next to a topic that interests you or select it again to remove it.
Furthermore, you can pick news publishers and sources that you like by selecting theTune your feedoption on the sidebar.
Keep It Hidden or Start Customizing
The News and Interests widget isn’t Microsoft’s best effort to date. It looks out of sync with the rest of the user interface, lacks the usual snappiness in Windows 10, and detracts from the experience by launching Microsoft Edge for just about everything.
Still, you can customize it to your liking with some effort if you want, and it’s likely to get better in subsequent updates. So don’t forget tokeep Windows 10 up-to-date.
Dilum Senevirathne is a freelance tech writer and blogger with three years of experience writing for online technology publications. He specializes in topics related to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and Google web apps. When he isn’t hammering away at his Magic Keyboard, you can catch him binge-watching productivity hacks on YouTube.Read Dilum’s Full Bio
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