I'm aware that Windows doesn't come with these out of the box, but they easily add up as you install drivers.
On my gaming PC there are:
- Two for audio (if we count the built in one and the one from the driver)
- One for Bluetooth
- One for fan management
- One (or maybe two?) for graphics
- One for driver updates.
When logging in I can see these icons showing up one by one, obviously unnecessarily using resources and just cluttering the UI.
Then when you click the icons they each use a different and often "loud" UI framework, some have embedded ads. Some icons you have to double click, others right click.
You can close many of them, and even disable a lot of them - but not all.
On my gaming PC there are: - Two for audio (if we count the built in one and the one from the driver) - One for Bluetooth - One for fan management - One (or maybe two?) for graphics - One for driver updates.
When logging in I can see these icons showing up one by one, obviously unnecessarily using resources and just cluttering the UI.
Then when you click the icons they each use a different and often "loud" UI framework, some have embedded ads. Some icons you have to double click, others right click.
You can close many of them, and even disable a lot of them - but not all.
Overall it's just not a clean experience.