Windows 10 is supposedly getting a major interface revamp later this year, and more clues as to what might be coming in the pipeline have just been spotted – namely rounded corners for windows.
As you may recall, this is a possibility that has popped up before, with rumors flying for some time that Microsoft is planning to drop the sharp edges on windows or other interface elements like menus or panels, and replace them with smooth, rounded corners.
More recently, we’ve seen rounding of the likes of the Settings panel in mock-ups published by Microsoft, and it’s thought that this more modern look is going to be part of the whole major UI revamp known as project ‘Sun Valley’.
Windows Latest reports that in recent preview builds of Windows 10, Microsoft is now testing a new ‘rounded corners prototype’ flag, which delivers a subtle rounding effect to the main elements of the desktop interface. That includes the Start menu, Action Center and Settings app.
21H2 update
So, given the weight of evidence, it would seem that this is Microsoft’s intention, although obviously it remains to be seen whether rounded corners will be adopted for Windows 10 when Sun Valley theoretically comes to fruition in the second update of 2021 (Windows 10 21H2).
As ever with leaks, we’ll just have to wait to find out, and indeed Microsoft could well change its mind in the meantime. However, because Sun Valley is aiming to usher in a more modern look, the new smoothly shaped corners would certainly fit with that brief, and therefore the move seems a solid possibility.
We recently heard that Windows 10 21H2 could be finished – meaning it hits the RTM build – as soon as June, although Microsoft could still hold onto it until much later in the year, likely giving the feature update extensive testing (as it’s a big one). Usually, the second Windows 10 update of the year arrives in October or November, but it could of course be earlier than this.
