Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10586 Burns Rubber On Fast Ring, Previews Looming Fall Update

A little over a week after the last Windows 10 Insider Preview was pushed out to testers, Microsoft is back in the saddle with another update. Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10586 is mainly a release means to squash bugs and improve overall refinement, and doesn’t add any new functionality for testers.

Microsoft has included a number of fixes in this release, resolving a bug with the sleep functionality on the Surface Pro 3, an issue with upgrading small form-factor tablets, and an odd occurrence that would reduce the volume of media being played back when a notification arrives in the Action Center.

Luckily, there are only two known issues with this release, which leads us to believe that build 10586 is extremely close to the RTM build for Windows 10’s big Fall Update, which is known internally as Threshold 2. Windows Insiders have been privy to the feature additions and improvements that will come down in the Fall Update for months — after all, they’ve been the ones testing it — but this will be a significant upgrade for general consumers running Windows 10.

New features that are coming in the Fall Update include a revamped Media Creation Tool, a redesigned Skype Messaging experience and refinements to the Cortana personal digital assistant (along with support for additional markets and languages). There are also some updates to the Windows 10 user interface to give apps and system menus a more unified appearance along with various improvements to the Edge web browser — just don’t expect to see extension support anytime soon.

“We’ve been loving this build in our internal rings as it is very fast and smooth, and makes a great daily driver,” said Microsoft’s Gabe Aul. And if build 10586 indeed is the RTM version of the Fall Update, it looks as though the rest of the Windows 10 audience — which is more than 110 million installations strong — are in for a pleasant surprise next week.