Microsoft is ramping up the Windows Insider programme with Windows 11. In announcing its strategy for 2022, Microsoft announced that future Insider releases will focus on “trying out different concepts” with Microsoft’s features and services.
In a blog post, Windows Insider programme lead Amanda Langowski stated that the Dev Channel will be restructured as a “place to incubate new ideas.” Microsoft will now be able to work on long-lead items as well as control the states of individual features through the Dev Channel.
The basic idea is to simply step up its experiments on features and services. For this, Microsoft will be rolling new features in stages, to monitor quality and feedback from Insiders. It will also then test variations of features, also known as “A/B testing.” Once these features are found to be ready, they might get released in a future Windows update.
Langowski, however, highlights that in some cases, these new ideas and concepts may never even be rolled out to the public. Though, by increased experimentation, “we can better refine experiences, and deliver solutions in Windows that truly empower our customers to achieve more,” Langowski wrote in the blog.
While the Dev Channel will focus on these experiments, the Beta Channel will showcase experiences that are closer to what regular Windows users will see in the future. Because the Dev and Beta Channels will run concurrently, it’s possible that features and experiences will appear first in the Beta Channel.
In addition to explaining how things will work in the future, Langowski advised Windows Insider programme developers to consider which Channel best suits their needs. For those who want to switch from the Dev Channel to the Beta Channel, the company has promised that a window will be available to Insiders soon that will allow them to do so.
Surprisingly, near the end of the blog, a crucial note was hidden. Langowski finished his explanation of Insider Channels by revealing a new icon for the Windows Insider Program. The Insider community is now better represented by the icon across all three channels: development, beta, and release preview.
