New build, new naming convention: Microsoft has renamed its Technical Preview builds to Insider Previews. And with that comes Build 10074, the latest in a running series of Windows 10 previews ahead of the operating system’s main release, currently rumored to be in late July. That was supposed to be a secret, but we know the date courtesy of AMD’s CEO telling everyone on the company’s last earnings call.
The new build hits both the fast and slow rings, which means there’s also an .ISO available if you want to do a manual install. First, let’s hit the new features. Build 10074 gets a new Live Tile animation for Start, plus some performance and stability improvements. Microsoft also improved its support for high-DPI displays, which remains a sore spot with current Windows 8 machines. Of special note are improvements to not only that, but in support for dual-monitor setups, where each monitor has a different DPI: Microsoft is working to ensure that core UX components scale correctly on both monitors.
There are some new Aero Glass elements in the UI, echoing days of Windows 7 past. But not everyone will see them: “We’ve also heard loud in clear that many Windows Insiders want to see Aero Glass from Windows 7 make a comeback,” Microsoft said in the post announcing Build 10074. “We’ve been working out how to satisfy this request, and are trying some things out with this build to see how you like them.” The company is running a 50/50 A/B test, so you may or may not get the Aero improvements. For those that do, Microsoft is asking for your input via the Windows Feedback app.
With Continuum, you can now close an app in Tablet mode and drop back to the Start screen instead of the desktop, and there are some snapping refinements between windows as well. For more about the latest Continuum updates, here’s Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore:
Cortana also gets a boost thanks to Bing Instant Answers, so you can say things like “time in California” and get the right answer for the time zone, or “10ft in meters” for on-the-spot unit conversions. We’re particularly amused by the listed example, “How tall is Brad Pitt,” and will have to try that immediately on 37 different celebrities. Except we actually won’t, because that would be really annoying to everyone in the office.
For multimedia, Music Preview delivers a full-screen experience for Now Playing, and Video Preview lets you download movies, TV shows, and seasons, and you can check progress, pause, resume, or cancel the downloads for up to three devices. The Xbox app gets Game DVR for PC games, screenshots, its own Live Tile, and user profiles, and Windows 10 finally includes drivers for Xbox controllers, which is another one those things we never understood wasn’t automatically set up out of the box. Having to plug that giant Xbox 360 for Windows USB receiver in was always a pet peeve for PC gaming; let’s hope they do away with that soon, as well.
Underneath the surface, Alt-Tab, Task-View, and Snap Assist all see minor updates on the multitasking front. There are new default Windows sounds for the first time in forever. Some other less-exciting things are updated, including improvements to Windows Store Beta and app discovery.
That’s it for the features; now onto the bugs. Microsoft fixed Windows 10 Build 10061’s horrendous inability to launch Win32 desktop apps from the Start menu, and actually apologized for it in the release notes. You can now download music in Xbox Music and Music Preview, and minimizing an app no longer silences its audio. This time around, Developer Mode is broken, and some games no longer work in full screen mode. The People app “continues to crash,” but no one cares about that one.
How is Windows 10 Technical Preview working for you so far? Will you try out this latest build? Let us know what you think in the comments below. If you want to give Build 10074 a go, here’s how to install Windows 10 Technical Preview in a virtual machine. And if you haven’t done so already, here are the best ways to bring back the Start menu and button in Windows 8.
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Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10074 hits the fast and slow rings
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