Why would Microsoft remove the beautiful Aero Glass effect and replace it with flat colors and cheesy translucency?

I totally agree. Microsoft's incredibly stupid decision to completely remove Aero from Windows 8 onwards is one of the stronger reasons why I'm sticking to Windows 7.

Even Nintendo's weird decisions these days can't compare to Microsoft's absurdly daft decisions, such as this - the act of dumbing down graphics just to match/balance mobile devices. It's another reason why "mobile first" is single-handedly killing the computer industry (at least, it is for me): high-end computers are getting graphics dictated by cheap, buttonless phones/tablets, of all things, for illogical reasons I can't even fathom.

How come Microsoft killed off Aero six years after its inception, yet hasn't killed off Metro for the same reason, after almost the same amount of time? By that, I mean:

• Windows Vista debuted in 2006, and introduced Aero (later used in Windows 7 in 2009). Aero lasted until 2012 (6 years), when Microsoft declared it "dated".
• And yet Metro truly debuted in 2010 with Windows Phone 7 (and to some extent, Zune), and even today (2016, six years after Metro's inception), it's still around. Microsoft should've moved past Metro by now, looking at Aero's lifespan.

My point is, Metro has almost been around for as long as Aero has been (in Microsoft's eyes), so why isn't Microsoft showing any signs of succeeding Metro in the same way they succeeded Aero?

Claims that Aero graphics (or similar) reduce performance are, though sometimes understandable, only partially true. In fact, Metro, from my first-hand experience, is actually more hardware-intensive than Aero. The fact that Windows Phone 8 (Metro graphics) has way higher hardware requirements than even Windows Mobile 6 (Aero-esque interface), must scream that Metro is bloated in itself. Either that, or it's an inconsistent level of optimisation between the two mobile OSes. (If that's not the reason, I wouldn't know what is.)

Removing Aero Glass from Windows 8 onwards without even letting users decide which style to use is one of the many reasons why I lost nearly all of my respect for Microsoft starting from 2012 (among other things, like Windows 8's bland/awful logo, shutting down Windows Marketplace for Mobile, etc.).

Microsoft also called Aero "cheesy"… No words will describe how hurt I was to see them use that adjective to describe what they once loved and cared for (as users did as well, some of whom still do).

So, by their logic, are they going to call Tiles (whatever you call the successor to icons) "cheesy" as well? Those've been around for almost the same amount of time.

What, were they just trying to come up with wording to make Metro sound better? It wouldn't surprise me if the conversation in their offices leading to slandering Aero sounded something like:

Guy 1: "We need to find a way of advertising Metro graphics without upsetting Aero fans…"

Guy 2: "Err… Let's just call Aero "dated and cheesy"!"

Guy 1: "Whoa, whoa, don't just randomly pull words out of your head. That'll just hurt everyone's feelings, and Aero isn't even that ol-"

Guy 2: "END OF STORY."

Guy 1: "But-"

I haven't heard of (or even read about) a single person gullible enough to think, "hey, maybe I should bandwagon upon calling Aero "stale" just because Microsoft randomly said so". Anyone who actually does think that, and somehow support Metro, would be outnumbered by the people who're furious with Microsoft for forcing them into a visual style they didn't even ask for.

(Side-note: I would've been OK-ish with Microsoft removing Aero…if they didn't get Paula Scher to ruin the Windows logo afterwards, thereby knocking out the last remaining part of Windows 8 that truly felt like 'Windows' at a glance.)

If a few users do happen to decide that maybe Aero's getting a bit stale for them, why not add some selectable alternative themes for a fresh look every now and again, with Metro being one of said alternative themes? If Windows 95-2000 graphics could co-exist with Luna back in Windows XP, why can't Metro co-exist with Aero Glass? (Or the hidden-in-registry Aero Lite?)

I do hope Microsoft reads this Question and its Replies (including this one). Surely, after all this uproar, they must be aware that people want Aero Glass back for the same reasons why I'd like Windows 7's beautiful logo back as well? Hopefully they add both of those back by the next Windows version (or Windows 10 update, whatever).

I'm pretty sure there's someone else out there who can bring up more of an argument towards bringing back Windows 7's visual styles (complete with the aforementioned flag-of-a-window logo) than I can. I've probably said enough.

Bottom line: Please bring back Aero graphics (and whilst at it, Windows 7's perfect flag-of-a-window logo as well) for the next iteration of Windows.

…Please, Microsoft?

“Beautiful Aero Glass effects”? Who says its beautiful? Personally I can't stand it.

But then that's just a matter of personal preference. I tend to be a minimalist… just like some people are by nature conservative and others liberal. You might as well argue that a Gothic revival building is more beautiful than a Frank Lloyd Wright building; or vice versa; or Picasso vs. the Pre-Raphaelites.

I went from what was to my mind the clean look of Windows 2000 to the hideous Play-School Luna theme of XP, and replaced it with Classic immediately, and have continued to do so ever since. Clean, lean and mean… that's how I like it. I don't even have a picture as a desktop background, just plain MS blue across three screens. It's far less distracting. Even on my Linux computer I tend to go for Xfce or LXDE rather than some of the other other eye-candy offers, and both my Windows and Linux computers have enough grunt to run plenty of eye-candy.

Most of the discussion here seems to be about the hated Windows 8, and I didn't like the new Start screen either; so I brought back the Start button (there were plenty of third party apps) and banished the Start screen forever. The Windows Classic theme hasn't been available in Win8 or Win10, but with Win10, it's so close that I really don't care.

However I do agree that if you actually like Aero Glass,  and your computer can cope with it's demands, and if you can put up with the schizophrenia of not having it on other Windows devices with lesser resources, then that should be your choice and it should be available.

So you buy a PC just to admire the Start screen? What a waste of a computer.

A Mac copy? This has been levelled at MS Windows since the very beginning, but in those days, copying ideas was done both ways and was fair game..

Aero was seen as a waste of screen space when it first appeared and not all PCs could handle it. Like many things in this life, cult status only comes after the demise..

Barry......they didn't listen. I'm looking to remove W-10 less than a week into the release after the release of Windows face-tweet-phone app-Mac copy-10.

Your graphic arts are hacked up child's play MS........ command, file, write.......

I think I bought a PC, no tellin' really ????????????????????

Why not allow users to turn it off/on? Rather than completely removing it.

How dumb. Just dumb. Negative in all aspects. Dumb.