By
Delia
/ Last
update
December 15, 2021
What is Mica material
One of the features of Windows 11 is the Mica element, which gives a translucent appearance to the windows and title bars of some applications when enabled. This new Mica design provides excellent visual effects, and Microsoft now says it will further extend Mica to more applications.
Mica, which is usually visible in dark mode, brings the background color of Windows applications in line with the desktop and creates a modern translucent color hierarchy. The company says that the Mica effect does not cause any performance issues and that it can distinguish between multiple open instances of the same or multiple applications.
Currently, Mica theme is available for Chromium-based Microsoft Edge, Movies & TV, MS Paint, Snipping Tool, Photos, Calculator, and many other system applications. And as an important part of the next Windows 11 feature update, Microsoft plans to introduce Mica in more applications.
In the latest preview, Microsoft has quietly enabled Mica in the title bar of some UWP apps like Tips and Feedback Hub, and it's possible that Microsoft is treating Mica as an "Aero Glass theme" and that Mica could become the default design feature for all UWP programs.
Unlike Mica, Windows Aero Glass is more resource-intensive, but it also looks good and runs without any problems on modern PCs.
Microsoft is also working on a new design for Office desktop applications, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, and Notepad. The redesign is to coincide with the release of Windows 11, and it looks like Office apps are finally getting support for Mica, which will apply to the background.
Microsoft announced a redesign of the Office UI based on user feedback, but the Mica background effect was not added to the application. With today's update, it appears to be opening up the production channel to users, making a more natural and consistent Mica design available to everyone.