14 DAY TRIAL // It’s been a pretty fruitful week for Windows Blue enthusiasts, as plenty of new details have emerged on what’s expected to be the first major Windows 8 upgrade.
A couple of new screenshots got leaked on Monday, revealing that Windows Blue has already reached build number 9347, which might be a sign that we’re getting very close to the public debut of the first beta.
According to previous reports, Microsoft is planning to roll out the beta version of Blue in June, two months before it brings the full version of the software to the market. Users would thus be able to give it a shot and send feedback to Microsoft before the company releases the stable build.
The current preview version that’s apparently used by several developers will expire on January 15, 2014, if the leaked screenshots are indeed real.
Some unofficial sources reported that Windows Blue had already been released to partners, which means that a preview version is out there in the wild. An alleged ISO file called 9319.0.x86fre.fbl_eeap.130208-1820_client_en-us_DV5.iso is reportedly sent to various developers across the world, but no one has confirmed the information until now.
Microsoft is expected to release major Windows 8 app updates sometime this month, just in time for the Windows Blue beta supposed to see daylight this summer.
The company has apparently analyzed the feedback it received for the built-in Modern app, and it wants to update these tools in order to make sure that Blue has a chance to excite.
An alleged screenshot of the Start Screen bundled in the upcoming project was also published on the web a few days ago but, given the fact that no major change can be noticed, chances are that it’s just a fake picture.
In addition, this Start Screen’s desktop tile revealed what’s believed to be the first Windows Blue wallpaper, so for those who want to give it a closer look, here’s the high-resolution photo.