Microsoft announced the release of Windows 8 Consumer Preview and is available to download now. It offers a more robust experience for testing the world’s most popular operating system. The initial release of the Windows 8 Developer Preview received more than 3 million downloads on last year.
With Windows 8, the whole experience of Windows has been re imagined and it’s designed to work on a wide range of devices, from touch-enabled tablets, to laptops, to desktops and all-in-ones.
Some key new updates in the Windows 8 Consumer Preview:
Windows Store with new apps: The Windows 8 Consumer Preview marks the beta opening of the Windows Store, which is filled with a variety of new Metro style apps from both third-party developers and Microsoft. During the Consumer Preview, these apps are available to try and experience at no cost to users. The Windows Store will offer personalized recommendations, and Windows 8 gives users the ability to take their apps and settings with them across multiple PCs, making it easy to discover and try new apps while offering developers the greatest opportunity of any platform.
Connecting to the cloud across Windows-based PCs and Windows Phone: The Windows 8 Consumer Preview offers seamless integration with the content people care about across their devices. An optional additional sign-on with a Microsoft account provides access to a host of features, including the ability to roam all settings, use cloud storage, communicate with email, calendar and contacts, and connect to a broad range of services. Your connection to the cloud works across your Windows-based PCs and your Windows Phones.
Internet Explorer 10 Platform Preview 5: The best way to experience the Web on Windows is with Internet Explorer 10. The browser has been re-imagined to create a new experience designed specifically for Windows 8 devices. It provides an edge-to-edge user interface that is all about less browser and more Web. Fast and fluid, Internet Explorer is hardware-accelerated to enable Web performance.
System Requirements
Windows 8 Consumer Preview should run on the same hardware that powers Windows 7 today.
1 GHz or faster processor
1 GB RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
1024 x 768 minimum screen resolutions
The Windows 8 Consumer Preview will be available worldwide for download in English, French, German, Japanese and simplified Chinese languages. More information about Windows 8 and how to download the Consumer Preview is available at http://preview.windows.com.