Windows Blue is expected to bring several Start Screen improvements

Mar 6, 2013 10:10 GMT  ·  By
The Start Screen is expected to come with several customization options in Blue
   The Start Screen is expected to come with several customization options in Blue

Windows Blue, the first major upgrade for the recently released Windows 8, is expected to be launched this summer, so some preview builds have already been sent to a number of developers for testing purposes.

As a result, several alleged Blue screenshots have recently reached the web, including these two photos that are supposed to reveal the build number and the Start Screen of the upcoming Windows 8 upgrade.

While we can’t guarantee that they’re real, previous reports have indicated that Windows Blue is expected to bring several Start Screen improvements, including customization options to make it easier to use for all consumers.

Since Microsoft has no intention to bring the Start button back, offering more settings seems to be the only way to make the Start Screen a bit more attractive for Windows 8 users, so Windows Blue may be the first OS to bring them.

Keep in mind that we should all take these screenshots with a grain of salt, especially because they now show build number 9289, while previous screenshots indicated that Windows Blue could have a build number of 9319, up from 9200 on Windows 8.

While Microsoft remains completely tight-lipped on the Blue project, rumor has it that it could bring significant improvements to several other products beside Windows, including Internet Explorer, SkyDrive and Windows Phone.

It’s believed that Internet Explorer 11 beta, the first version of IE10’s successor, could be included in Windows Blue.

The final version of Blue is likely to see daylight in August, while the public beta release could surface in June in order to give users two months of testing before getting the stable package.

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Since it will be exclusively addressed to Windows 8 users, Blue will be offered at no cost, even though some sources indicated that a small fee is also possible.