Skip to main content

Windows 8.1 preview now available to general public

Windows 8.1 Everything you need to know windows 8.1 Aesthetic improvements
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Attention all you anxious Windows 8.1 fans, because this one is for you. Steve Ballmer hopped on stage at today’s Microsoft Build conference to let the general public know that an official Windows 8.1 preview program is now available for download. Ballmer also noted that the preview is perfect for any developers out there who are looking to craft items and applications for use on the Windows 8.1 platform. This is a great chance for the skeptics out there who have been holding out on making the Windows 8 jump to see what Microsoft’s future OS has in store for you.

You can grab the preview right now from the following Web link. Keep in mind that you will also need to download a small update to your current Windows 8 OS in order to accommodate the preview version of 8.1. Microsoft also released a handy video that showcases some of the new features for all of you that aren’t necessarily interested in trying the preview version out, but still want to get a glimpse at what it has to offer. Be sure to check out the video below and stay tuned to Digital Trends for more news regarding the upcoming Windows 8.1 update!

Russ Boswell
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Russ Boswell is an aspiring video game and technology journalist from Colorado. He's been an avid gamer since he was old…
Adobe Photoshop now runs natively on Windows on ARM, catching up to Apple’s M1
A person using the Surface Pro X.

Photoshop is now fully compatible with Windows 10 PCs like the Surface Pro X that are powered by ARM-based architecture. Adobe announced the news on a support page, noting that as of May 2021, the software now runs natively on 64-bit Windows 10 ARM devices.

Now that Photoshop runs natively on Windows 10 on ARM devices, there should be some performance gains for these Windows users across the board. It no longer runs under emulation, which had severely limited the speed and efficiency of some process-intensive tasks.

Read more
The next major Windows 10 update is about to launch. Here’s how to get it now
microsoft surface go pro 7 deals amazon best buy fathers day sale 2020 review feature 768x479 c

Microsoft is getting the next update for Windows 10 ready for release. One of the final Windows 10 May 2021 Update test builds is now out for Windows Insider beta testers, meaning the general public could get the release on their PCs in a little as a few weeks.

Although the overall experience could still be improved between now and a final public release, Windows Insiders in the Release Preview channel can choose to install this update now by downloading Windows 10 21H1 Build 19043.928. This build can also be downloaded as an ISO file for a clean installation on any new PC, with the caveat that the computer will be enrolled in the Insider Program.

Read more
M1 MacBooks can now run Windows 10 up to 30% faster than Intel Macs
m1 macbook scan run windows 10 faster than intel paraleels apple mac

Parallels Desktop for Mac, the popular program used to run virtualized versions of Windows 10 on Apple's Mac devices, has gotten even better. Version 16.5 of the app now lets Mac users enjoy a seamless Windows 10 on ARM experience on Apple's newest Macs featuring the M1 silicon.

According to Parallels, with version 16.5, Mac users can enjoy improved performance compared to when running Windows through the program on Intel-based macs. When running Windows 10 on ARM Insider Preview virtually through Parallels 16.5, users with M1 Macs can enjoy 2.5 times less energy consumption and 60% better DirectX 11 performance.
More specifically, Parallels says running Windows 10 on ARM on Parallels Desktop 16.5 with an M1 Mac performs up to 30% better than a Windows 10 VM running on an Intel-based MacBook Pro with Intel Core i9 processor. That's because the Parallels team worked to reengineer the app under the hood for the M1 silicon. Over 100,000 M1 Mac users also tested the Technical Preview of Parallels Desktop 16.5 for M1 Mac, according to the company.

Read more