14 DAY TRIAL // Consumer Preview is expected to become available for the general public in the next few weeks, with a great deal of interface changes packed inside.
Among them, we can count the lack of a Start button, although it has been present in all flavors of Windows ever since Windows 95 was launched.
But this is only one of the major changes that the touch-enhanced flavor of Windows will arrive on devices with.
When compared to the Windows 8 Developer Preview, which has been around since September, the upcoming Consumer Preview will also change the Charms bar that can be seen on the right side of the screen.
The black Charms bar is no longer there, and has been replaced with a transparent one, in which only the icons are visible.
Screenshots of a Windows 8 Build 8220 have emerged over the weekend, bringing proof of these modifications.
These changes will appear on both touch and non-touch devices running under Windows 8, replacing the bar that has been available for all of them for the past few months.
The Metro Start screen might have suffered some changes as well, and one of the said leaked screenshots, available courtesy of Chinese website PCBeta, appears to confirm that.
The selecting language settings will have a different UI in Windows 8 Consumer Preview. Internet Explorer 10 will be included into the mix as well, with features such as the option to enable automatic updates.
When released to the public, the beta flavor of Windows 8 will offer us a taste of the upcoming Windows Store, as well as hints at other changes that the final release of the platform will include.
Following the release of Consumer Preview of Windows 8, Microsoft might launch the RC version of the platform sometime in summer, while making the gold flavor available in fall.
In the meantime, have a look at the leaked screenshots available today, or give the Windows 8 (Developer Preview) a try, downloading it via this link.
