Still for insiders for now, but coming to everyone soon

Jun 28, 2018 08:07 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft has announced a major Skype for Windows 10 update, bringing new features and refinements to users of its latest operating system.

Still available for insiders for the time being, this new version of Skype comes with improved calling experience, including flexible group call canvas.

This allows you to drag people around on the screen when in a group call, which makes it possible to configure the UI in a way that makes more sense for you. Microsoft explains: “Customize your group call experience and decide who appears in the main call canvas. Simply drag and drop people between call canvas and the overflow ribbon to select who you want to focus on.”

Additionally, these improved Skype for Windows 10 version features new snapshot capabilities right within a call. This particular tool comes in handy for group office calls when sharing slides or graphs that need to be saved by participants. Without such features, many users relied on the Snipping Tool or on third-party screenshot capture solutions for this purpose.

More frequent updates

Skype for Windows 10 also brings screen-sharing right within the call UI, making it possible to share your screen with a contact that you’re talking to in just a couple of seconds.

There’s also a new layout in this version of Skype for Windows 10, including custom colors and themes, just like on mobile devices. Microsoft says it also added further tweaks to media gallery, notifications panel and mentions, and even more improvements will be included in future updates.

The company promises to roll out new versions of Skype for insiders at a much faster pace than before, which means that the client could be getting both preview and stable updates more frequently. At this point, there’s no ETA when these features could arrive for all users, but it all depends on how the testing goes in the preview program.