Windows 11 is barely a year old, and the new operating system has already received two major updates during 2022, but Microsoft is continuing development for future versions. It seems there’s already a plan and an improved design that we might see in a few years on Windows 12, but the company has already “leaked” an image of its interface in one of its recent presentations.
Windows 12 will look more like Apple’s macOS
At Ignite 2022, Microsoft’s biggest event of the year, the company included a screenshot in which a computer apparently running Windows 11 actually includes some major differences that suggest it’s a future version of the operating system. This could be a prototype for Windows 12, as the bottom of the screen is not identical to the one on Windows 11. The taskbar, which has always been glued to the bottom edge of the screen, now appears to “float” a few millimeters above the edge. So the taskbar becomes a sort of “dock”, just like on macOS, where your favourite apps are integrated on a floating menu.
Also, the quick info that we usually find in the taskbar has been moved to the top of the screen, also like on macOS. The exact time, battery and Wi-Fi indicators, weather, and searches have all been moved to a new bar at the top. The image also reveals that the Windows 12 prototype is being developed under the name “Next Valley”.
Given that we’ve only just received Windows 11, however, this concept will probably become reality in a few years. Windows 10 was kept on the market for 6 years before being replaced by Windows 11, so we can expect another 5 years with the current OS before it is replaced by what we see in this concept.