Microsoft is adding a ton of small changes to Windows 8.1 that add up to a very significant update to Windows 8. The company recently announced many of these changes will be included (at least for now) in the preview build that's set to be released in late June. These include the return of the Start button, a more customizable Start screen, search improvements, new Windows 8 apps, and more.
| Channel | Publish Date | Thumbnail & View Count | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
 Rob Sliwinski | 2021-06-01 05:44:39 |  219,776 Views |
Speed test of Windows 8.1 vs. 10 on a 14 year old laptop 🤔#shorts
The software giant also announced that Windows 8.1 will include a few more built-in apps (Food & Drink and Health & Fitness, among others). But what's particularly notable is the hands-free mode that Microsoft is adding to the Food & Drink app, which will allow users to control the app with Kinect-like gestures. This means you can launch the app, search for recipes, turn pages, create shopping lists, and more without touching the screen or using a keyboard and mouse.
The company hasn't fully disclosed how the new hands-free gesture technology will work, but it's said that the software will work with the same hardware already available in your Windows 8 PC and that it will use a traditional webcam to capture and process your gestures.
While I think this is an exciting feature, it is currently limited to the Food & Drink app for Windows 8. The big question, however, is whether Microsoft will provide a set of APIs for developers to integrate similar hands-free features into their own apps.
