Exclusive: MSN Explorer 8.5 Final Released

Thanks Trade Wind for this

Here at Neowin we have been following the progress of MSN 8.5 very closely and checking every bug has been fixed. We are pleased to announce Microsoft have finished MSN Explorer 8.5 and today we previously announced the product was complete.

Now we can bring you an exclusive download of MSN Explorer 8.5 before it is available generally and before MSN 8 subscribers recieve updated CDs including the software. MSN 8.5 is designed as an interim update to MSN 8 preparing MSN to take the next step to MSN Explorer 9 which will be fully intergrated into Windows Explorer and will include MSN Messenger 6.0.

The final build is marked as 8.50.0017.1202, a build that previously entered the beta stage around two weeks ago. It seems this build has been stamped as the final build to be delivered to consumers and Microsoft will be releasing this build to its current MSN 8 subscribers throughout the week.

Beta testers recieved notification this evening that the Beta had ended and to thank them for testing the MSN client. For the beta participants the official word was "Your software will automatically be updated from the beta version to the released version in the upcoming week." This spells the end for MSN 8.5 and the beginning of MSN Explorer 9.0 internal testing and external testing later this year. Lets look forward to what Explorer 9.0 will bring in terms of tight intergration into Windows and also what MSN Explorer X (10.0) will bring to Longhorn along with Direct X 10.0 and Windows Media Player 10.0.