14 DAY TRIAL // It’s almost the end of September, and according to Microsoft’s typical Windows 10 release schedule, it’s the time when the software giant should finalize the development of a new feature update for its operating system.
Unlike in the case of the previous such feature updates, however, people barely talk about the so-called 19H2 release, and many people actually forgot that Microsoft should finalize its development this month.
Given the public rollout should start next month or in November the latest, it’s pretty clear that the excitement for this new feature update is at super-low levels. And it all happens for good reason.
First of all, it’s the purpose of Windows 10 19H2 in the first place.
Unlike its predecessors, Windows 10 19H2 isn’t a substantial feature update, but only a little bit more than a service pack, as so many people called it. This means that instead of focusing on new features, Windows 10 19H2 is more about under-the-hood improvements and polishing that users don’t necessarily get to see after installing it.
No new features is what drives this lack of excitement, especially among consumers who typically represent a substantial part of the Windows Insider program in the first place.
In addition, it’s this Insider program for Windows 10 19H2 the one to be blamed for this. The very first 19H2 preview build was shipped on July 1, and until today, Microsoft only rolled out 8 such builds to users in the Slow ring. This means the company started public testing approximately three months before the 19H2 update was projected to be finalized.
For comparison, work on the Windows 10 20H1 feature update, which according to the current schedule should be ready in March 2020, started on February 14 with the first build shipped to Skip Ahead insiders. In other words, this first build landed more than a year before the update was due to get the go-ahead. Until then, Microsoft has released a total of 29 Windows 10 20H1 preview builds.
And last but not least, it’s Microsoft the one who didn’t want Windows 10 19H2 to make the rounds too often. Pretty much because there’s not much to talk about when it comes to 19H2 in the first place, as Microsoft has focused mostly on the refined updating system.
Windows 10 19H2 is shipped as a cumulative update, which is supposed to help Microsoft deliver a more refined updating experience overall.
“The next feature update for Windows 10 (known in the Windows Insider Program as 19H2) will be a scoped set of features for select performance improvements, enterprise features and quality enhancements. To deliver these updates in a less disruptive fashion, we will deliver this feature update in a new way, using servicing technology (like the monthly update process) for customers running the May 2019 Update who choose to update to the new release. In other words, anyone running the May 2019 Update and updating to the new release will have a far faster update experience because the update will install like a monthly update,” Microsoft explained earlier this year.
Unfortunately, it’s pretty clear that users are more excited about Windows 10 20H1 rather than for 19H2, and if the same approach is going to be used in the long term, the spring update will be the one everyone will be waiting for.
Microsoft has remained completely tight-lipped about how close to being ready Windows 10 19H2 actually is, so nobody knows for sure when the rollout is supposed to start.
Are you excited about Windows 10 19H2? Do you plan to install it on day one? Let us know what you think in the box after the jump.