The new Windows Live Essentials Beta applications are available for download now at http://download.live.com/. They have been updated to match the Windows 7 UI. Windows Live Messenger now has jump lists and new status icons in the superbar in Windows 7. The new sign in UI looks superb as well. Most other features have carried on from the last beta. For a review of them, check out Redmond Pie. Here’s a quick review of what you’ll find in the updated Windows Live Messenger.

The new log UI.

More options available in the drop down

A lot more scenes added than before. Most of theme match the customized headers used in Windows Live Services.

The thumbnail preview shows the image of the logged in user

The messenger jump list. Notice the new icon shows the status. The system tray icon is history now.

The new notifications.

New mail button.

The on hover menu has changed. This color scheme is also noticeable in the splash screens of Writer and Mail.

The button on the top have lost their icons to look more like the Windows 7 UI. The latest item from the What’s new list of a particular contact is shown under his/her personal message in the chat window. The UI of the IM window also shows a slightly different gradient at the bottom. Looks nice.

The status bar has also changed.

The About Box

Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay updated with our latest blog posts!

Join our Facebook fanpage or follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all things different about Microsoft, Apple and the Internet.