11 of the best apps for your new Windows 11 PC - The Verge
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This year marked the launch of Windows 11. Stock permitting, there are a variety of PCs and laptops available with Microsoft's new operating system, and while the updated Microsoft Store fills out with apps, we figured we'd put together a list of our 11 favorite apps for a new Windows 11 PC.
We're covering productivity, gaming, and media playback, so there should be an app for everyone here. There are even some options to bring back Windows 10 functionality if you're missing some of the features and customizations Windows used to have.
EarTrumpet
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Microsoft's built-in Windows 11 audio management still isn't great. EarTrumpet overhauls it completely, with a system tray utility that gives you volume levels for every app and the ability to set custom inputs and outputs for those apps. If you want YouTube to play out of your speakers but prefer that your game audio output on your headset, then this is the app for you.
Tweeten
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Twitter's app for Windows is just a web app, and TweetDeck doesn't even have its own dedicated app. If you're a fan of TweetDeck, Tweeten gives you TweetDeck on Windows by taking the web interface of TweetDeck and making it a lot more Windows 11-friendly. There are a bunch of customization options and even a notification interface if you want to be alerted to Twitter activity.
FeedLab
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There are lots of RSS apps available on Windows, but FeedLab is my top pick. I've been using this RSS reader ever since Nextgen Reader suddenly stopped working on new PCs. FeedLab has a lot of customization and features for reading your daily list of news, and it's updated regularly. While the app is free, it's supported by ads, but they're easy to remove if you're willing to support the dev with a one-time ad removal fee that's essentially the price of a coffee.
PowerToys
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Microsoft's PowerToys for Windows are essential if you want more customization over how Windows works. There are a variety of tools available, including utilities to keep your PC awake, a system-wide color picking tool, and a FancyZones window manager that lets you quickly position apps into different layouts. One of my favorite PowerToys is Run, which acts as a Mac-like launcher to let you find apps and files or quickly search the web.
OneNote
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I use OneNote daily to arrange my notes for work and sync them across my PC, laptop, and phone. OneNote is free and fully featured and allows you to divide notes into separate notebooks, sections, and pages. It also fully supports inking, so if you want to take actual notes with a stylus, then it's ideal. I'd highly recommend this app to students and those who need to take notes regularly.
Adobe Photoshop Express
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Adobe Photoshop Express is a free photo editing tool that has all the basics you need. While photo editing in the Photos app in Windows 11 has improved, Photoshop Express includes easy-to-use slide bar adjustments and automatic one-touch fixes. There are also a bunch of correction features and even a spot heal feature that lets you remove blemishes or dirt and dust from photos.
ShareX
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