Numerous leaks regarding the upcoming Windows Phone 8.1 update have been coming out and the latest appears to be a new Action Center notification area for Windows Phone devices. The screenshots of the Action Center show a new notification center that includes toggle options, for things like WiFi and Driving Mode, as well as new ways to clear and view notifications for email, messages, and calls.
Windows Phone 8.1 is expected to be unveiled at Microsoft’s Build conference which takes place on April 2, so until then, we are unlikely to know for sure what the new OS will be like. However, some of the changes present in Action Center screenshots are plausible and may very well be part of Windows Phone 8.1.
One of the interesting features of the Action Center is that when someone is within a full-screen app, it is being reported that one swipe down will bring up a small blue tab and then another swipe is needed to actually open the notification area. This sounds very much like the way Apple’s notification center operates in iOS, in order to ensure that the notification center does not open when it is not needed.
Many of the features present in Windows Phone 8.1, like toggles and a quick way to view the battery percentage, have been requested for quite some time by users that feel the OS has needed a proper notification center. Luckily, if this leak is legitimate, Microsoft may be providing what people want in the form of the Action Center.
According to the sources who attained the leaked screenshots, they originated from a source within Microsoft itself. The source reportedly stated that they had been included in an internal email to update employees on Windows 8.1 and to show the progress that has been made on Action Center in particular.
It is still not known for sure if Microsoft will be using Action Center for the name of the upgraded notification area but according to this leak, that is the name being thrown around.
Summary: A leak has come out showing what the Action Center notification area may look like in the Windows Phone 8.1 update. The new OS is expected to be unveiled in April at Microsoft’s Build conference.
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