Microsoft reveals new Start menu and File Explorer coming to Windows 10

Microsoft shows off redesign visuals coming to Windows 10, including new Start menu, File Explorer, and context menu.

Windows 10 new Start menu with icons (source: Microsoft)
Windows 10 new Start menu with icons (source: Microsoft)

Windows 10 recently surpassed the one billion active users, and Microsoft didn’t let the opportunity pass to celebrate the occasion uploading a video that give us a glimpse of new features and interface changes coming in future releases.

In a video posted on Instagram by Microsoft’s chief of the Windows and Devices group, Panos Panay, reveals a new Start menu that moves away from Live Tiles into traditional icons in blocks that take the color theme (dark and light) of Windows 10. The new change is meant to make easier to scan and find an app quickly.

The company also seems to be working on updating other elements, such as context menus, with its Fluent Design system, and it appears that a new modern File Explorer is coming as well.

Windows 10 new File Explorer (source: Microsoft)
Windows 10 new File Explorer (source: Microsoft)
Windows 10 new context menu (source: Microsoft)
Windows 10 new context menu (source: Microsoft)

Although these new changes will be welcome additions to keep modernizing the desktop version of Windows 10, but the redesign might be part of a more ambitious plan to align consistency across Windows 10 and Windows 10X.

It’s unclear when these new improvements will ship to consumers, but now that the development of version 2004 is complete and the 20H2 update is expected to be a minor update, it’s likely that Windows 10 won’t have these redesign changes until sometime in 2021.

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 15 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 21 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. Email him at [email protected].