Windows 10's first 2020 update has already started beta testing

[sincity]

Microsoft has begun beta testing for a major update to Windows 10 that won't launch until early 2020, codenamed '20H1', the company announced today.

This is way early considering that Microsoft's next major Windows 10 patch, the April 2019 Update, is just now approaching ready-to-manufacture (RTM) status. Heck, public beta testing for the forthcoming October update codenamed '19H2' won't even begin until sometime this spring. 

But, there's a reason Microsoft is getting way ahead.

"Some things we are working on in 20H1 require a longer lead time," Dona Sarkar, Microsoft's head of its Windows Insider beta testing program, wrote in Microsoft's blog post.

• Everything you need to know about Windows 10 S
• How to use Windows 10
• The cheapest Windows 10 prices this month

This version of Windows 10 20H1 (called "Skip Ahead") is the earliest build that beta testers can access, and is by far the least stable of Microsoft's Windows 10 beta tests. The idea is for enthusiast users to help crowdsource the company's quality assurance process, essentially.

Of course, Microsoft hasn't yet revealed any major features that the 20H1 update will bring, but we should expect to hear word soon enough if testing is already under way. And, if testing is starting this far out from launch, we're hoping for some absolutely massive changes.

• These are the best laptops of today

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techradar/digital-home/~4/WQKlN-6k2d4