Dev and Canary Insiders can check out a new Photos app version made with Windows App SDK

If you are enrolled in the Windows Insider Program and have subscribed to receive updates from the Dev or Canary channel, you can currently access an intriguing new release. This is not a fresh Windows 11 Insider build, but rather an updated version of the Windows Photos app.

In a recent blog post, Microsoft announced that the new Windows Photos app was developed using the Windows App SDK. This software was initially released in March 2021 and provides developers with a platform to create apps for both Windows 11 and Windows 10 versions 1809 and above. The most recent version of the Windows App SDK, 1.5, was released in late February 2024 according to the stable channel release notes.

According to Microsoft in a support post, utilizing the Windows App SDK for developing Windows 10 and 11 apps offers numerous advantages. These include the ability to incorporate new APIs and features immediately upon release, a more efficient update schedule, and a unified API surface. This will allow all apps, such as the Windows Photos app, to access the same set of Windows APIs provided by the Windows App SDK, regardless of their chosen app model.

In today’s blog post, Microsoft announced:

This change moves Photos to the latest Windows app development platform, with modern UI and other quality and performance improvements.

All the current Photos app features and functionality is still present in this version. However, given the extensive changes, this version may be a little rough around the edges as we continue to polish the experience. To get this experience, Windows Insiders on Windows 11 in the Canary and Dev channels can update the Photos app to version number 2024.11040.1002.0.