New Windows 8 logo: It's a window, not a flag

By | February 17, 2012, 10:14am PST

Summary: Here’s the new Windows 8 logo. The Metro-inspired image actually looks like a window, not a flag.

It looks like recently leaked new images of the Windows 8 logo were on the money.

Microsoft officials shared the new “reimagined” Windows 8 logo on February 17. And the final image looks almost identical to the leaked ones.

Unsurprisingly, the new logo, which Microsoft worked with Pentagram to design, is meant to maintain consistency with the Metro design language/style that Microsoft introduced with Windows Phone (and even Media Center before that). The image that is part of the logo looks more like a window than a flag, unlike previous Windows logo images.

According to today’s post about the new logo on the Windows Team blog, Microsoft’s goals with the Windows 8 logo were to make it both modern and classic; use “bold flat colors and clean lines and shapes”: and meant to align with the fast-and-fluid Windows 8 catch words.

When users change their background color, the logo will change color, too, according to the post.

Update: As several folks on Twitter have noted, it would seem that the existence of an official logo calling the product “Windows 8″ would imply that Windows 8 isn’t just a codename, but also is the final name of the next Windows client release — something many of us have expected for years.

Microsoft officials have been quick to note that Windows 8 was only a codename, at least up until today. I’ve asked to see if we can get an official confirmation that the final name of the product will be “Windows 8.” I’m doubtful I’ll get such a definitive statement, given the “no comment” policy of the Windows team on even the most seemingly mundane matters.  If I do get a response, I’ll add it to this post.

Update No. 2: Microsoft officials are not commenting on whether or not today’s logo means Windows 8 will be the final product name for x86/x64 and ARM/SoC versions of what is still being called officially the product codenamed “Windows 8.”

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Mary Jo has covered the tech industry for more than 25 years for a variety of publications and Web sites, and is a frequent guest on radio, TV and podcasts, speaking about all things Microsoft-related. She is the author of Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft plans to stay relevant in the post-Gates era (John Wiley & Sons, 2008).

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Mary-Jo Foley

Freelance journalist/blogger Mary Jo Foley has nothing to disclose. WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). I do not own Microsoft stock or stock in any of its partners or competitors. I have no business ventures that are sponsored by/funded by Microsoft or any of its partners or competitors.

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Mary-Jo Foley

Mary Jo Foley has covered the tech industry for 25 years for a variety of publications, including ZDNet, eWeek and Baseline. She has kept close tabs on Microsoft strategy, products and technologies for the past 10 years. In the late 1990s, she penned the award-winning "At The Evil Empire" column for ZDNet, and more recently the Microsoft Watch blog for Ziff Davis.

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RE: New Window 8 logo: It's a window, not a flag
StevenDDeacon Updated - 1st Mar
The new Windows 8 Logo is totally uninspiring! It has absolutely no character, depth, radiance, thrill, or inspiration! My grandfather would say it looks kind of frumpy! In this age of High-Definition and 3-D graphics its not even relevant. It doesn't belong on a product marketed by Microsoft as a leading software provider trying to make in-roads into the mobile smart device market.

Whoever is in charge of marketing at Microsoft has totally disappointed me!
meh. I think the old one looks better but who buys windows because of how the logo looks.
@neonspark The old one actually looks better though but silly Google messed it up. Look at the Google colour and the "old" Windows colour. I would say people who look at colours to identify things would mix Microsoft and Google up.

I would've loved if Google changed their meh logo, Microsoft picked those colours first.
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Personally, I like shades of green better and a more 3D effect. But I have no objection to MS adopting this as their new Windows Logo.
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Eww (nt)
x21x 17th Feb
.
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Can't believe a team of people got paid to design that.
@Socratesfoot What I can't believe is that bloggers are reporting on this as if it was such a big deal. It's not. Not even a little bit. Must be a slow day at ZDnet...
@BR999 Agreed.
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All the good logos are taken
Robert Hahn 17th Feb
Not just to design it. They also have to make sure that there's no one out there -- worldwide -- that isn't already using something just like it. At least, no one who can't be bought off or beaten into submission.
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Apple already mastered those tactics
William Farrel 17th Feb
@Robert Hahn
maybe MS should start copying Apple more closely?
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MS is already copying Apple
ScorpioBlack Updated - 17th Feb
Besides, where are all the widdle lilacs & daffodils at? To make it purdy.
@Socratesfoot : Hopefully they didn't spend million on this logo. This one could rank up there as one of the most boring/dull/useless logos ever.
Ironic how they now have a "real" window as a logo when that new version of Windows is actually dropping the window concept for only full screen apps (in Metro that is, which is the big focus for this version)!
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@lepoete73 ... not entirely. There are still tiled "panes" for side-by-side viewing.
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Looks good to me, keep it simple. Clearly states Microsoft's product and what it represents with clean design.
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@Loverock Davidson- Agreed, but like the new home screen, I'd have personally liked to see more color. happy
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Trademarked the Swedish Flag
mightythorton 17th Feb
Hey, how'd they pull off trademarking the Swedish flag? (yes I know the window pane color doesn't match; but crickies, it's awfully close).
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@mightythorton ... let's face it though, who among the Swedes would actually complain?
@mightythorton No, this is NOT the Swedish flag. It is however the Greek flag. This is how things are shaping up for Win8 ???
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It fits...
Joe_Raby 17th Feb
...the Start Screen flyout 3D animation for when you launch an app on WP7 as presented here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7-H-OVt9VY&feature=pyv&ad=10821065862

W8DP doesn't display like this. The screen tiles are a bit big to do something like that though.
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I like it happy it looks nice and finally it makes sense Windows = Windows not flags.

of course im waiting to see it on windows, to see how it looks and where i will see it and such. its just a logo anyway, and for me its stupid to care much about something its not important when you use the product.

I guess we will see it on Consumer Preview, so lets wait some 12 days more!
Simple enough, represents many things: Window, Grid of " Live Tiles" and the Metro design language. However I find it boring like many people.
The "Windows 8" name meets my most important criteria - no upper case letters in the middle.
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IT IS A FLAG !
mytake4this 17th Feb
It is indeed a flag. This is the flag of Greece. Such an ominous sign for MS.
The OS is called Windows. The logo is a Window. Win8/metro has no windows. Makes perfect sense.
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RE: New Windows 8 logo: It's a window, not a flag
Emi Cyberschreiber Updated - 17th Feb
@glonq

Im using win8 and i can see windows, oh yeah "glonq
" said Windows 8 doesn't have windows so I might be hallucinating /s

by you comment, I can say maybe Apple should change their name and logo, since i don't see they selling apples or apple juice or apple pies, etc.. with their macs and ipads and iphones.
i mean, it makes perfect sense as well
I don't like the asymmetry at all. It will look terrible on the windows logo key skewed like that (or anywhere else that it is sitting by itself). They should have either done four squares in one color or the Win7 flag in monochrome. Actually, just use the WP7.5 logo. That one is perfect.
I wish that MS spent the time (and money) on things like making W8 better than on silly things like re-designing the logo...

Hank Anrold (MVP)
Ugly!! Makes me want to puke. I like the metro interface, but the logo is a big disappointment. I'd have preferred some dark colors as in Windows 95 / 98
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RE: New Windows 8 logo: It's a window, not a flag
Emi Cyberschreiber Updated - 18th Feb
@Nidhi_000

"When users change their background color, the logo will change color, too, according to the post." obviously its not this color

or like the blog post says
"3. Our final goal was for the new logo to be humble, yet confident. Welcoming you in with a slight tilt in perspective and when you change your color, the logo changes to reflect you. It is a ???Personal??? Computer after all. "
@Emi Cyberschreiber
Ah, I feel so much better already. I was blinded by my disappointment. That's a very good & interesting feature. Eagerly waiting for beta.
Thanks
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@Nidhi_000

yeah this color would look terrible everywhere its not a secret but people forget to read important words in the blog post.

its not like i care much about a logo, but i like it. but of course we have to wait until Consumer preview to see how it reallly looks like.

http://vimeo.com/36842184

thats a video from pentagram news post, see, it looks fine, but of course the logo they have its with this color and of course its not the one that will be used. in the video you can see it with grey, doesn't it look better? lol
@Emi Cyberschreiber Of course, you'll have to spring for 'Windows 8 Home Premium' to enjoy that 'feature'.
It looks like a garage door!!
Looks like a Garage door!!
I just can't believe this is the new logo. Its terrible. Also I cannot believe someone got paid to make this!!! Very disappointed. I like the concept that the logo should be like a window and not a flag but the execution is very poor. I
Looks good !
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Seems kinda ...
daves1646 18th Feb
Basic, plain, a boring?
Reminds me of how I felt looking at the Metro apps provided in the Preview.
"They work OK, but wow, boring. Are tablet processors this weak that the environment has to be 'dumbed down' to plainness?"

Sure hope they notice that the Metro interface looks unsophisticated and boring before they waste a huge amount of money and RTM a final product that no one is inspired, even visually, by.

What sells iPhones and iPod Touch's? Sexy/smooth/nice looking interface AND A LOT OF APPS.
Win8 R&D may need to get a clue.
@daves1646 I use WP7 and I've used iPhone. Both are great but I feel that WP7 has some great strengths over iPhone.

1 - I never really have to explore the app before I know how to use it. All function similarly enough to where I'm in one and in the other and then out pretty quick. If you ever get a chance to use the "4th & Mayor" then you'll get a really good taste of what a great WP7 app is.
2 - "Sexy/smooth/nice looking interface" Not all of us need leather stitching on iCal to have fun using a Calendar. In and out. If iCal's beauty is what sells, then I hope people don't get bored too quick otherwise Apple may have a revolt on hand.
3 - The logo is just a logo. When was a product based off of a logo. If I see MS and the word Windows I know what it is. If I see a green Android I know it is most likely a Google Phone or Tablet. I see a bitten Apple I know I'll see a iPhone or iPad around. Yes the logo isn't great but it is true to what it represents. Personally I've never really understood the Apple logo. Back during the MAcintosh and Issac days it made more sense.
Finally 4 - Win 8 is probably the riskiest OS in the industry. Nothing like this has ever been tried. Apple is heading here but isn't there yet. This is big for MS, Apple, and Google. If MS succeeds then you can bet that Google and Apple will copy. Hell, Google with ICS already copied People HUB from WP7 and copied Apple with the whole Android platform. Poor Steve died angry trying to take down Android for them copying.

Lets not make a mountain out of a mole hill. Let's judge the product as a whole and please let's stop hating on MS. Enough. We hated on the Xbox but MS (just the like the Turtle and the Hare) kept going and eventually won. Same thing here. They may not beat Apple or Google, but they will carve their own niche that will eventually cause Apple and Google to panic a little. Remember if it weren't for MS there would be no Apple today. MS has staying power rather we like it or not.
@dw59
I personally think that Apple's logo was inspired by the Beatles record label...
My granddaughters 1st grade art class could design one that doesn't look so amatorious.
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@thensley@...

how did that person made a better job? it doesn't look like a window, it doesn't look like a flag, it looks like a weird tiles arranged like 2 walls. or a colorful church.
it doesn't say anything about win8. because only becuase it looks good, it doesn't mean it should be used in a product like Windows 8 or it fits windows 8 idea. and if you dont even know what job Paula Scher did, how can you say she and her team didn't do a better job? oh yeah, only because you don't like it? well some people don't like Picasso, or Van Gogh and alot of famous artist, and it doesn't mean their work is bad and only because someone else made realistic art, or something more appealing to your eyes, automatically "did a better job"
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Logo color would change as per the Theme Color (same like WP7) is what I infer from this single color Windows 8 logo...!
Awwww..... Isn't it beautiful! That pre-schooler must be very proud of it.
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Like others have said, looks like 4 BSOD's coming right at you...smooth move Microsoft. Even more intersting, outside of the Metro start screen tiles, the "new" Windows has FEWER windows - Metro design is optimized for full screen apps, or at most 1/3-2/3 screen splits, not your classic desktop clutter of multiple windows...oh well.
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not sure I like the new logo...
LilBambi_z 20th Feb
Sure it looks more like a Window and not a flag this time, but the thing they were going for 'bold flat colors and clean lines and shapes' ... boring. And the color they chose for it? What happened to the deep rich green that they were using with Metro?

I don't know...maybe it will grow on me...
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They have my permission to go forward with this. wink
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They have my permission to use this logo! wink
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RE: New Window 8 logo: It's a window, not a flag
StevenDDeacon Updated - 1st Mar
The new Windows 8 Logo is totally uninspiring! It has absolutely no character, depth, radiance, thrill, or inspiration! My grandfather would say it looks kind of frumpy! In this age of High-Definition and 3-D graphics its not even relevant. It doesn't belong on a product marketed by Microsoft as a leading software provider trying to make in-roads into the mobile smart device market.

Whoever is in charge of marketing at Microsoft has totally disappointed me!

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