5 Reasons You'll Want Windows 10

Microsoft is hoping its next operating system will be like Bo Derek—a perfect 10. At least that's my best guess about why the company decided to skip Windows 9. Or perhaps Redmond figured the number 10 has worked well for arch-enemy Apple for all these years.

Whatever the reasoning, Windows is due for a major re-branding given the nearly universal contempt for Windows 8 (despite its many wonderful advances). And not just a rebranding: in order to maintain its lead among desktop computer operating systems, Windows desperately needs some functional changes.

Yesterday afternoon, Windows brass showed a roomful of enterprise users and tech journalists the first look at Windows 10, which is expected to launch sometime in mid-2015. The new operating system is something of a backpedalling to earlier desktop-style Windows, while maintaining the touch friendliness of Windows 8.

But Windows 10 isn't simply a reblending of Windows 7 and 8. There are a few brand-new features, some of which have been asked for by observers for a while. And it's intended to be the singularity of OSes—one to serve phones, tablets, laptops, convertibles, and desktop PCs. One thing to keep in mind is that nothing is yet set in stone—this is still a very early look at Windows 10. With that caveat, click through our slideshow to see the major new enhancements in Windows 10.

The Return of the Start Menu

With both old style icons and tiles, Windows 10 will see the return of the much-lamented Start menu that's been a feature of the operating system since Windows 95. (Never mind that the same kind of analysts pushing for its return poo-pooed the original Start menu as a feature for know-nothing noobs.) The Windows 10 Start menu will feature "Universal Search," like that in Windows 8.1. This uses Bing to search not only apps and files on the local PC, but also Web and semantically culled content—for example, you could search for Justin Bieber and the some of the results let you play his "music."

Modern Apps in Desktop Windows

In Windows 8, two kinds of apps meant two different app behaviors. Windows 8.1 fixed a lot of the disconnects—adding a window title bar to modern apps running on desktop PCs and adding entries for them to the Taskbar. With Windows 10, the new-style apps that used to be only full-screen height can now run in a standard program window just like any old Windows program.

Task View

In versions of Windows going back for many years and even through 8.1, you could always hit Alt-Tab to switch windows. Task View is like Alt-Tab but the application thumbnails are bigger and run across the center of the screen. On touch-capable devices, you can swipe in from the left to get the new Task View.

Multiple Virtual Desktops

This is something that power users have been requesting for a while. For home and novice users, this will probably just add to the Windows 8 confusion. Mac OS X has had virtual desktop views called Spaces since Leopard in 2007, but I suspect the average user doesn't use Spaces much and probably won't tinker with Windows 10 multiple desktops, either. In any case, it's nice to see Microsoft giving its loyal experts what they want.

New Snap Options

A much-touted capability in Windows 8.x (and Xbox One, for that matter), is the ability to snap an app to the side of the screen while you're working in another app. With Windows 8.1 came the ability to adjust the size of snapped windows to taste—but only with a vertical divider. In Windows 10, you'll be able to snap four apps in the four corners of the screen. The empty space will show other apps available to fill it.

About Our Expert

Michael Muchmore

Contributor

My Experience

I've been testing PC and mobile software for more than 20 years, focusing on photo and video editing, operating systems, and web browsers. Prior to my current role, I covered software and apps for ExtremeTech and headed up PCMag’s enterprise software team. I’ve attended trade shows for Microsoft, Google, and Apple and written about all of them and their products.

I still get a kick out of seeing what's new in video and photo editing software, and how operating systems change over time. I was privileged to byline the cover story of the last print issue of PC Magazine, the Windows 7 review, and I’ve witnessed every Microsoft misstep and win, up to the latest Windows 11.

I’m an avid bird photographer and traveler—I’ve been to 40 countries, many with great birds! Because I’m also a classical music fan and former performer, I’ve reviewed streaming services that emphasize classical music.

Technology I Use

For everyday work, I use a good-old Dell tower with 16GB of RAM, a 12th-gen Intel Core i7 processor, and an Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti GPU that runs on Windows 11. I pair it with a 4K Lenovo ThinkVision P27u-10 monitor and a Logitech MX Vertical mouse. For offsite work, I use a 2024 Microsoft Surface Laptop with a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processor. Camera-wise, I moved to mirrorless from a Canon EOS 80D with a Canon 70-300mm IS USM lens. I now have a Canon EOS R7 with a 100-400mm lens, but I miss my DSLR for several reasons.

In order of usage, the software I turn to most frequently is the Edge web browser, Slack, Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft 365, Firefox, Brave, and WhatsApp. I use the Windows Phone link app to see everything on my Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra phone, which has excellent telephoto capability.

For fitness monitoring, I have a Fitbit Charge 6 and use an Anker Smart Scale P1. I’m also a streaming fan, so I subscribe to both Amazon Music Unlimited (especially for its Dolby Atmos content) and Qobuz (for its high-res sound quality and classical catalog). I recently added a Vizio 5.1 Soundbar SE, which sounds surprisingly good given its low price. To holler commands instead of using a remote control, I have the Amazon Fire TV Cube in the living room, which lets me verbally tell the TV what I want to watch. It hooks up to an LG B4 OLED TV. I have a Sonos One speaker in my kitchen that also ties in with Alexa, as does the Echo Dot 2 With Clock in my bedroom. For serious listening, I have B&W 601 speakers plugged into a Conrad-Johnson Sonographe amp and preamp, with a Cambridge Audio AXN10 streamer as source. For reading, I also have a Nook GlowLight 3.

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