Microsoft made an announcement today that its upcoming Windows 8 operating system will not sport an Aero-style interface. Instead, it will feature a flatter, neutral-colored user interface.
The Aero-style glass effect had been introduced by Microsoft in Windows Vista and had been carried over to Windows 7 too. However, Microsoft claims that it is moving on from Aero Glass by removing reflections, flattening surfaces and down-scaling distracting gradients.
The news comes as a bit of a surprise since last year, the Windows 8 desktop had been called the “Aero Lite.” In fact, even as of March 1, the Windows 8 Consumer Preview continued to feature Aero’s typical transparent windows.
Microsoft has given several reasons for dropping the Aero-style interface, like maintain the compatibility of the interface with existing Windows 7 applications and also about making a clean interface that does not distract users from the actual content displayed.
Although these points do have some justification in them, there is one major reason which Microsoft does not want to admit- Aero is a power and resource hog. However, its effect on performance is not much on a desktop PC, since it draws a continuous stream of power. But notebooks and other devices will bear the brunt since the GPU has to make an extra effort to accommodate the Aero interface, leading to inefficient performance, excessive power consumption and high levels of system heat. In fact, many users choose to turn off the Aero effects in the Windows 7 OS as they strain less-powerful computers.
Also, since Microsoft is aiming to make Windows 8 a universal platform that will run on all kinds of devices, its negative effects on portable devices will definitely not be appreciated.
If you love Aero, you can soothe yourself with the fact that only the aesthetics of Aero will be absent while other features like application previews will remain accessible through keyboard shortcuts.
