Microsoft has been working to add a new and dynamic ‘News and Weather’ widget that would sit on the Taskbar of Windows 10 OS. New details suggest the feed will most likely rely on Windows Search, and not Bing Search or Edge browser, for content.
Windows Insider program participants have access to the new Windows 10 ‘News and Weather’ Taskbar Feed. The feature appears quite similar to Google Discover.
Windows 10 ‘News and Weather’ Taskbar Feed pulls data from Windows Search:
Officially called “News and interests”, the feed resides on Taskbar. It uses the MSN feed to offer quick access to dynamic content such as headlines, sports, finance, and weather.
The News and Weather Taskbar Feed is clearly an attempt by Microsoft to offer a quick and easy way to access headlines, finance information, and weather forecast. Since the Windows 10 Taskbar is omnipresent on nearly all Windows 10 PCs, the widget sits on the same for quick access or glance.
The recently released Windows 10 Preview Builds suggests the News and Weather Taskbar Feed is based on Windows Search. Previous reports suggested it was pulling in data from Chromium-based Edge browser or even Microsoft’s own Bing Search.
Analysis of the “Processes” that drive the News and Weather widget interface with “Microsoft.Windows.Search”. This platform is located inside the Windows > SystemApps folder. It is also responsible for the default Windows Search experience.
How much RAM and CPU will the new Windows 10 ‘News and Weather’ Taskbar Feed need?
Windows Search is always on and accessible in Windows 10. The News and Weather widget’s newsfeed is based on Windows Search. However, it will still run as a new process.
Simply put, the Windows 10 ‘News and Weather’ Taskbar Feed will still run in the background to update the feed throughout the day. The feature reportedly appears as “Feeds” or “Search application” in Task Manager.
Improved 'News and interests' in latest Windows 10 Build 21327 looks 👌https://t.co/1lEzpeVJ9t pic.twitter.com/4FcTVFS2dX
— Daniel Rubino (@Daniel_Rubino) March 3, 2021
Early reports suggest the newsfeed may need as much as 150 MB RAM and about 6 percent CPU when it is actively sourcing content. However, once it is done aggregating content, the widget will not need any RAM.
As previously reported, the Windows 10 ‘News and Weather’ Taskbar Feed is essentially a curating service that will aggregate content about current affairs and finance besides offering information about weather.
Windows 10 build 21327 outs in the Dev Channel with new system icons, taskbar widget update, and more https://t.co/MLR3eO9itA pic.twitter.com/IIcfkdi70n
— Mauro (@Pureinfotech) March 4, 2021
Interestingly, users who customize the newsfeed could bring down the resource usage of the Taskbar widget. In its current form, Windows 10 taskbar shows headlines from global brands, such as The New York Times and BBC. However, users can select or turn off specific sources.
Apart from the information, the newsfeed could also change its hue. Microsoft is still actively experimenting with the widget.
The Windows 10 maker should add the taskbar newsfeed to older versions of the operating system, such as version 21H1 and version 20H2 through Cumulative Feature Updates. However, the feature is currently available to Windows 10 Insider participants in the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and India.