Microsoft recently held a video conference on March 4, 2025, to talk about the new developments in the Insider program. These Windows insider Program webcast typically happen every few months, and we spotted that the most recent meeting elaborately discussed the battery icon’s facelift.

Windows 11’s battery icon upgrade was supposed to ship to everyone last month, but due to last moment bug, Microsoft delayed the release. However, we now have more details, including even better battery icon. The main reason the company is replacing the older icons is the smushed appearance, which barely provided any details.

Windows users have to deal with the subtle battery icon for several years before Microsoft finally decided to change it. Before we talk more, have a look at the old and new icons.

There are seven new icons, and no additional icons have been introduced. So the focus is only on improving and not confusing you:

1. Battery (when the PC isn’t plugged in)
2. Energy saver (orange color fill when the feature is active)
3. Charging (a lightning bolt icon with a green color fill)
4. Smart charging (to indicate battery protection)
5. Slow charging (an error icon with a solid color fill)
6. Low battery (a slim red bar to indicate battery is between 1-5%)
7. Battery Unknown (a cross icon depicting that battery is not present)

New colors, longer icons, better state depiction

Firstly, you’ll notice that the new icon is longer than usual.

Yes, we agree that it resembles iOS style a bit, but we are after usability and not uniqueness. The longer battery icon can clearly show the percentage, and you don’t have to guess what it’s trying to convey.

Secondly, the small mini icons that appear inside the battery icon have become prominent in this new design. The devs talked about how the sub-icons were in the top right corner of the old icon and barely visible.

Now, the sub-icons take center stage. For example, the plugged-in icon shows the pin in the center and is big enough to understand the state. Similarly, the slow charging icon shows the error icon in the center and is aligned at the bottom.

The next play is with the icon colors. If you remember the old icon, you know that it doesn’t show anything except black or white color.

Now, you’ll see the orange-fill in icon if the energy saver is active. A small red bar will appear if the battery is low, and if you get to the 80% mark, you’ll see a green fill-in icon.

Note that the 100% battery will still show black (in case of a light theme) and white (in case of a dark theme). The bar will be progressive to help you visualize that the levels are dropping bit by bit.

Lastly, the devs discussed introducing a battery percentage label. Windows Latest appreciates this idea because iconography can depict only so much and sometimes, it is better to show it in the system tray rather than hovering on the icon.

These icons and changes will appear on Windows 11’s taskbar.

What do you think about these changes? Do the icons look a lot like iOS, and whether the design needs a further tweak?

The post This is our first look at Microsoft Windows 11’s battery icon’s upgrade, similar to Android and iOS appeared first on Windows Latest