Microsoft is starting to modernize some of the basic parts of Windows 10, improving the system icons that are available in the operating system. A new sample version of Windows 10 is being released to testers this week and includes system icons that now adhere to Microsoft’s Fluent Design style.
The new icons include a more rounded and simplified appearance and are available as a new font – Segoe Fluent Icons. Microsoft has also updated its new taskbar widget with the new icons, providing a good overview of how basic icon changes can modernize even the smallest parts of Windows.
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It is a small change in Windows 10 that will appear later this year for most, but it is part of a broader effort by Microsoft to overhaul Windows 10. Microsoft updated some of its Windows 10 icons last year with color versions and He even adjusted the Start menu to make it a little bit simpler.
Microsoft is also planning a “comprehensive visual rejuvenation of Windows,” code-named Sun Valley. It may seem that Microsoft has been promising visual revisions of Windows 10 for years with its Fluent Design impetus, but even greater changes to the user interface are expected to appear later this year.
The Windows Start menu, File Explorer and integrated applications are expected to be reviewed as part of this UI update. Even basic things like buttons, controls and sliders in apps should get some design love. This should mean that Windows will look much more consistent and, hopefully, many of the old icons and warnings from the Windows 95 era will begin to disappear.
Microsoft has worked hard to improve the consistency of the user interface in Windows 10X, an upcoming version of Windows that will be designed for devices similar to the Chromebook. Windows 10X includes a new Start menu and many changes to basic controls, such as Wi-Fi, the notification center and more. It looks like a stripped down and more streamlined version of Windows.
The way Microsoft markets Windows 10X can be a hint of where it sees Windows in the future. Rumors suggest the company is preparing to use “the new Windows” as a marketing term and we hope that Microsoft will have much more news about Windows soon. Microsoft is planning events in the coming weeks to detail its future plans for games, Windows and more.
While Microsoft held its Ignite conference this week, the company had very little to say about Windows. The head of Windows and Microsoft devices, Panos Panay, acknowledged that the news is on the way. “I haven’t talked about the next generation of Windows and what’s to come,” Panay said during an Ignite session earlier this week. “I’m so excited. The future of Windows is incredible, but we are here today to talk about Windows 10. ”
It is unusual to hear Microsoft talk about its “next generation of Windows”, mainly because the company has maintained the Windows 10 brand since its debut almost six years ago. I don’t think that means we will see Windows 11, but as Microsoft separates Windows 10 from Windows 10X it will be the key to avoid any confusion (hello, Windows RT). This is especially true if Windows 10X does not support legacy desktop applications at launch, as suggested by our recent review of the operating system.