Skip to main content

Microsoft’s updated Windows 10 design to bring curvy corners next year

Source: Zac Bowden, Twitter Image used with permission by copyright holder

In an effort to shed its square image, Microsoft will be cutting corners next year with the next major release of its Windows 10 operating system. Rather than sharp, angular corners on windows within Windows 10, Microsoft is looking at an updated design that will have curved corners.

Recommended Videos

An image of a search window with rounded corners was posted by Windows Central Senior Editor Zac Bowden on Twitter. He claimed that the updated look is now in testing with build 20H1. The operating system update is expected in 2020.

Though this is just a minor aesthetic change, it does bring a more modern feel to Windows. Microsoft began experimenting with rounded corners inside the latest version of its Edge browser powered by Chromium. Now, it looks like Microsoft will soon be ready to bring this design to the entire operating system.

For comparison, Apple has used rounded corners on windows in MacOS for years, and more recently, Google adopted a similar design aesthetic for Chrome OS. With Microsoft adopting this new look for Windows 10, the rounded corner design will also hit other Microsoft products, including Xbox.

“The rounded corners are coming to Fluent Design. You’ll see it all over Windows, Xbox, Office, and other products in the coming months [and] years,” Bowden said.

Microsoft has larger changes planned for Windows 10 in 2020 as well. File Explorer will reportedly get a big visual overhaul and some new functionality as part of the Fluent Design update. Though the final look of File Explorer is unknown at this time, early reports suggest that Microsoft will add some sort of app integration, leading to speculation that users will be able to search across services like Outlook and OneDrive from within the File Explorer app without having to fire up the dedicated apps.

Windows 10 faithfuls who want to experience Microsoft’s new design and get an early taste of build 20H1 can sign up for Microsoft’s Insider Preview program. Insider members will be able to test early builds and releases of Windows prior to the consumer release. For most users, running an Insider build isn’t advisable, as these early releases often contain bugs.

Chuong Nguyen
Silicon Valley-based technology reporter and Giants baseball fan who splits his time between Northern California and Southern…
Microsoft Supercharges AI to fix Windows software bugs
Windows 11 on several devices.

Microsoft is developing an AI system to make detecting and fixing software problems on your Windows 11 PC easier, MSPowerUser reports. The system analyzes error data to resolve issues efficiently, and Microsoft is also working on turning Copilot into a multi-user chat platform.

MSPowerUser recently came across a new patent document with a publication date in February 2025. Specifically, it's a 25-page document that describes how the new system would work. According to the document, the new AI system would detect the issues and suggest or apply solutions to refine the troubleshooting process. Although the AI system is designed for developers, regular users can also benefit by getting automated fixes and smart support. Furthermore, the system can create reports for more complex issues to assist developers in debugging more efficiently.

Read more
Windows 10 KB5051974 update adds a new app without asking
A Dell laptop with Windows 10 sitting on a desk.

Microsoft has released the KB5051974 cumulative update for versions 22H2 and 21H2, adding security fixes and patching a memory leak. However, as Bleeping Computer reports, the update also includes a surprise: the new Outlook for Windows app.

The update is mandatory because it includes the January 2025 Patch Tuesday security updates. Once you install it, you will notice the new app icon near the classic one in the Start Menu's apps section. Since the new app can operate concurrently, you don't have to worry about interfering with the old one.

Read more
Microsoft is cracking down on unsupported Windows 11 installs
A Dell laptop with Windows 10 sitting on a desk.

A support document showing users how to install Windows 11 on unsupported PCs was deleted sometime in the past two months. Its disappearance, noticed by Neowin, echoes Microsoft's recent "year of the Windows 11 PC refresh" rhetoric, encouraging (or forcing) users to buy new PCs that meet Windows 11 hardware requirements.

When Windows 11 launched in 2021, Microsoft announced that it was adding TPM 2.0 as a hardware requirement -- a move that was met with plenty of resistance. To soften the blow, Microsoft also published a support document detailing how users could edit their registry key values to bypass the TPM 2.0 check.

Read more