Windows 11 Taskbar Emoji Button Will Get Different Design Styles

As you may already know, Microsoft is working on an extra taskbar button that will open the Emoji panel in Windows 11. With recent updates, the button has got additional design styles.

Microsoft is introducing a new feature for Windows 11 by adding a dedicated Emoji button to the taskbar. This button will provide quick access to the Emoji panel. The latter is already available in Windows 11 but currently requires using keyboard shortcuts (Win + . or Win + ;) to open. While these shortcuts are convenient for experienced users, they might not be intuitive for newcomers. A visual button is a good alternative to the hotkeys.

It is a work in progress, so Microsoft is still experimenting with the button appearance. Starting in build 26120.3073, the button can have four different designs. Here's a screenshot.

Images by @phantomofearth on X

If you are running Windows 11 Build 26120.3073 in the Dev or Beta Insider channel, you can try the button in action as follows.

Change Taskbar Emoji Button Design

1. Download the ViVeTool utility from this link.
2. Unzip the downloaded archive to the c:\ViVeTool folder in the root of drive C:. Create that folder to conveniently run the vivetool app.
3. Press Win + X and select Terminal(Admin) from the menu.
4. In the Command prompt or PowerShell tab of Terminal, enter the command c:\vivetool\vivetool /enable /id:48504539 /variant:X and substitute X with one of the numbers that matches the design. Press Enter.
5. Make sure the command prompt displays the message "Successfully set feature configuration"
6. Restart your computer to apply the changes.
7. Open Settings (Win + I) > Personalization > Taskbar, and check out the System tray icon section. Enable the emoji button from there.

The Emoji Panel in Windows 11 is a convenient option that allows you to insert emoji, symbols, and special characters into text in almost any app or text field. The picker showcases over 1,500 emoji, organized into categories such as smileys, people, food, animals, vehicles, and more. In addition to emoji, the panel also offers kaomoji and special characters, making your conversations full of fun and expressions. It supports search for an emoticon, favorites, and dark and light themes.

If you are a Windows 10 user but want a similar button on your taskbar, you can get this tiny app that adds it.

Many thanks to phantomofearth for sharing the details.