Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Windows 8.1 is about to get better for mouse and keyboard users

Published Apr 1st, 2014 10:44AM EDT
Windows 8.1 Update 1 Release Date

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

Microsoft will release Windows 8.1 Update 1 following Build 2014, ZDNet reveals, making the operating system more appealing to users who still choose the mouse and keyboard when it comes to interacting with the operating system — especially on those older Windows computers that don’t even have a touchscreen display. Developers who have MSDN subscriptions will receive Windows 8.1 Update 1 on April 2nd, once the company unveils the new features in Update 1. Everyone else will receive the update beginning April 8th.

“Microsoft will be providing Windows 8.1 users who interact primarily with a mouse and keyboard a task bar and other visual cues to make navigating Windows 8.1 easier, according to sources and those who downloaded the leaked bits,” the publication writes. While it appears the actual Start button isn’t coming backmany reports have recently revealed the kind of changes Windows 8 users are expected to find more than useful once Windows 8.1 Update 1 arrives.

The same report revealed that Microsoft will share some details about Windows 9 during its Build event, announce a touch-first version of Microsoft Office, reveal Windows Phone 8.1 features and launch plans, and detail the steps it has taken towards a “more unified dev world,” when it comes to app development for Windows and Windows Phone.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.