Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore shows off new Windows 10 features at BUILD 2015 (video)

On April 29, Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore took the stage at the BUILD conference in San Francisco and as expected, he showed a number of improvements and features coming to Windows 10.

During the 28 minutes on stage, Belfiore had the chance to show off various features from unreleased builds of Windows 10. Using Windows 10 build 100105, he quickly focused the attention to how Windows 10 is bringing back some of the elements of Aero Glass from Windows 7.

Next, Belfiore used build 10072 to demonstrate the new fresh UI and functionality for Cortana. He even launched Viber by simply telling Cortana: “Tell Terry Myreson, I’m running really late using Viber.”

While the software has previously talked about its intentions to replace Internet Explorer, one thing we didn’t know was the actual name of the new web browser. During the presentation, the company unveiled that it will officially be calling it “Microsoft Edge”. The new web browser is built as a universal app and it will work across all Windows 10 devices.

Another big announcement was Windows Spotlight, which is a new feature in Windows 10 that enables the Lock screen to be a place that users can use to learn about new features in the operating system, tips & tricks, suggest apps from the Windows Store, and much more.

Microsoft also demonstrated how Windows 10 will look like on small devices. During the demo, we saw a Windows 10 without a desktop environment and with a modified version of the Start menu and a dedicated back button in the taskbar. However, after docking the tablet and expanding the experience to a bigger screen, the desktop was available once again – all thanks to the new Continuum mode built in the operating system.

Finally, the company showed Continuum for phones, which will allow users to use phones as actual computers. Microsoft is aiming this feature for mobile countries, where phones are easier available than computers.

If you didn’t have the chance to watch the full Microsoft’s BUILD conference. You can click play in the video above to see everything is coming in Windows 10.

About the author

Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 14 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me.