Microsoft to make a Skype Universal Windows Platform app for Windows 10
Microsoft to make a Skype Universal Windows Platform app for Windows 10
Skype's strategy on Windows 10 so far is to have built-in, task-oriented Skype apps. But now, Microsoft has announced that it’ll be making an all-in-one Skype UWP (Universal Windows Platform) app, with a preview version expected to arrive in an upcoming Windows 10 test build. This decision was made after many users feedback that they prefer a single app (and window) to manage both their chat and voice conversations, instead of having separate apps (e.g., Skype video and Messaging apps) that clutter the screen.
While you can still use the existing Skype app on Windows 10 PCs, over time, Microsoft’s intention is to fold all Skype features for Windows 10 into this one Skype UWP app. At the moment this Skype UWP app will only run on PCs and large tablets, though of course, being a UWP app means that it will in time to come run on mobile devices, too.
The first preview version of this Skype UWP app will sport these features:
- Sign in with your Microsoft Account and link a Skype ID
- Show and change your availability
- See a list of your existing Skype contacts
- Initiate a chat with anyone in your contact list
- See that the other person is typing
- Logout
- Make one-to-one voice and video calls and send messages
- Personalize your experience with emoticons and Mojis
- Send photos
- See notifications for incoming calls and messages outside of the app
- Participate in existing group chats
And in the next couple of releases, more flexibility, sharing, and group features will come, including:
- Start a chat with anyone using Skype or not using Skype
- Create a group and send group messages
- Group voice and video calling
- Share your screen, files and video messages
- Manage notifications from individual chats
Source: Microsoft.