14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 10 will come with a new Start menu that mixes traditional elements with modern features, so the live tiles we first met when Windows 8 came out will live on in the next version of Windows.
While the Start menu will come with live tiles, a greatly improved experience will be offered to users who switch to Windows 10, so in addition to some new features, they’ll also get a set of visual effects that will make both the tiles and Start a bit more eye candy.
As we reported to you a few weeks back, recent versions of Windows 10 come with a 3D live tile effect, but it turns out that more such aesthetic tweaks are being prepared by Microsoft.
Several effects to be offered
At Microsoft Ignite in Chicago, company developers presented the new live tiles that could be part of Windows 10, and in addition to the 3D effect we were talking about, there are also two new implementations that aren’t yet available in the public preview builds of the operating system.
As you can see in the GIF below, the email live tile now comes with a small icon placed in the center that slides a few millimeters to the left whenever a new message arrives. The unread email count is displayed, thus letting the user know how many new messages there are in the inbox.
The News app uses the same traditional live tile effect that was available in Windows 8, whereas Photo comes with a fade-in effect to display new images stored on local drives or in the cloud.
At this point, it’s not yet clear whether all these live tiles will be part of the final version of Windows 10 or whether Microsoft plans to let users choose which ones they want to see in the Start menu or the Start screen, but it’s a sign that the operating system is very likely to become a much more visually appealing piece of software on the desktop.