Microsoft has released a video preview of Windows 8.1, showcasing a number of features the company has already covered in previous blogs. These include new tile sizes in the Modern UI interface, the ability to bring the desktop wallpaper to the Start screen, and adding photographs to the Lock screen. Naturally the demo is conducted on a Surface tablet.
As previously reported, all applications installed on the device will no longer clutter the Start screen by default. Instead, they'll show up in an "app drawer", AKA the All Apps screen, tucked away at the bottom of the screen. Simply swipe up from the bottom, and you're greeted with everything installed locally on the device. Want to pin an app to the Start screen? Simply press and hold, and then choose "pin to Start". It looks rather simple when using a finger, if not extremely familiar.
One of the more interesting features offered in Windows 8.1 is motion accents. The "wallpaper" isn't in constant motion like you'd find on an animated Android wallpaper. Instead, objects in the background move when the Start screen tiles are swiped left and right horizontally. It's a tiny detail, but enough of one to give any Windows 8.1 device a bit more flair than before.
The demo, presented by Jensen Harris from the Windows User Experience team, reveals that Windows 8.1 is powered by the cloud. "An important part of this is SkyDrive which gives you Gigs of space to put all of your files up in the cloud so that they're available on every PC," he explains. "Within every app on the PC, I can see SkyDrive -- which is the cloud -- and "This PC" which lets me put files that I just want to keep on this device in a single place."
The video also goes on to demonstrate the new simplicity in multi-tasking, and searching online and offline when using Windows 8.1.
In related news, Windows CFO and CMO Tami Reller announced during Computex that Outlook 2013 RT will finally make an appearance on Windows RT tablets as part of the "Blue" rollout. That means current and future owners of a Windows RT or Surface RT device will have access to the new app when the free update becomes available. Outlook joins Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote which are already available on the platform.
"We're always listening to our customers and one piece of feedback was that people want the power of Outlook on all their Windows PCs and tablets," Microsoft's Chris Schneider said. "In fact, a Morgan Stanley research study found that 61% of people shopping for tablets consider Microsoft Office to be the single most important software feature. We're pleased to have Outlook 2013 RT join the other best-in-class Office 2013 RT applications."
