August 23rd 2012 9:01 am PT

New Microsoft logo

After 25 years, I’d say it was time for an refresh. Above is the new one that you’ll start seeing pop up over the next few months. Back story and more on the Microsoft Blog.

Industry, Random By Larry Hryb, Xbox LIVE's Major Nelson

permalink: http://majornelson.com/2012/08/23/new-microsoft-logo/

  • http://twitter.com/MykeJayy Michael J

    It’s nice to know someone in the creative department has found the crayons again.

    • Z4M0

      LAMO !

      It’s the way to go nowadays… in the 90s if someone did that they’d called him incompetent designer. Now corps are too much into “cleaning” their logos… wich ultimately feels like lacking personality.

      Justo look at DC comics’ logo now… awww.

      BTW Microsoft is two black stripes far from infringeing Mondrian’s copyright ;)

  • tabicat

    Hey Major, the Eighties are calling, and they want their graphic designers back!

  • MilkyTee

    I think it looks nice.

    Appropriate given how the new Windows 8 UI looks, which I assume was what they were going for.

  • http://twitter.com/OoMelyannaoO Chiara Pasquini

    I like it! I think it looks good with Windows 8 and it’s going to look very sleek on boxes and together with other graphic elements.

  • Leo Davidson

    lol

  • http://twitter.com/Lucky13X Lucky13X

    Hey Major,

    I would not say it is a full refresh. It looks like the same logo but in the design that I’ve seen at times at the Microsoft store. Same setup, different style.

    • BostonSup

      It shouldn’t be a “full” refresh, It still needs to hold some of it’s brand identity. Also if they were using it at times at the MS store, that means they were slowly bringing it public (“rolling it out”, so to speak)

  • ElektroDragon

    Well, color is always a good thing. Also shows that the company is betting its bottom line on TILES. :)

  • Lee Rayson

    I don’t like it, ive always prefer the wavy flag style windows logo, changing the logo after such a long time would be like changing the red stop sign
    it going to look silly on future keyboards

    • Hugoku

      This is the MS (the company) logo. Not a Windows (the product) logo. The new Windows logo is the (even more simplistic) all-blue one.

      • Lee Rayson

        Point is they changed the company logo. the logo was there image when you see the logo you who it was, this new one is to close to the AVG logo and without the word “microsoft” youd mistake it for AVG logo

  • ungeheier

    That’s so Metro.

    • http://www.facebook.com/AlexAtkinUK Alexander Atkin

      More like Retro!

  • Russell Gorall

    I would rather hear about some new IP’s.

    • BostonSup

      Google (er..Bing), State of Decay Xbox. It is an exclusive new IP that ISN’T Kinect!

      • http://twitter.com/Navarin Buster Wolf

        Yeah but it’s an XBLA game and the vast majority of gamers don’t care about those and the rest don’t know. They’re idiots for it but that’s the world we live in.

    • http://twitter.com/GreenMistt Miller

      Lol at the people downvoting. Just give the sheep their transmetroid 4, gears and Forza and they’ll bend over for them.

      • BostonSup

        It is probably cool to down vote, or it is a sense of rebelling, or to conform with nonconformists so they too can be “unique”… or maybe they don’t want new IPs, or don’t like new XBLA games, or possibly new IP retail games (I will look it up Phil, thanks. I hope its true, the XBLA game looks great so far, would love to see a full retail game.). Either way, I know I will be getting a ton of kids down voting this. lol.

  • http://twitter.com/MacUser1986 Michael Dolcin

    I really like it but want is the yellow going to stand for?

    • BostonSup

      I am not being sarcastic, but do any of the colors mean anything? If so, what?

      • http://twitter.com/MacUser1986 Michael Dolcin

        Yes, blue is Windows, red is Office and green is Xbox. Yellow is still a mystery I guess.

        • http://www.facebook.com/people/Zaira-Vicere/100003482240394 Zaira Vicere

          Well those are the same colors as always, so it’s more a matter of when they create a ‘yellow’ product, not what the colors stand for.

  • http://twitter.com/seekul Luke Es | sE ekuL

    Shrug. Yeah that’s pretty much the geometry I expected to see. I’m glad they kept the joined FT, much more noticeable with a thinner typeface.
    The 1980 logo is still a classic though. ;) The Seattle Times article is a good read.

  • BostonSup

    I like it, but not too crazy about how MS is going into designing/identifying as square everything.

    • http://twitter.com/Navarin Buster Wolf

      it’s hip to be square.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003665681840 Timothy Johnson

    It looks like the AVG logo.

    • Lee Rayson

      never thought of it that way but ur right. it just the colours are upside down

  • http://www.facebook.com/Shiaoran Fernando Costa

    What’s with this simplistic logo fad? It was already old when it began.

    • TonyLN

      Have to agree with you, I think what they had before was better. I’d rather see a retro fad going on throwing it back to the 70′s & 80′s than this.

  • http://twitter.com/MythicalWolf77 Mythical Wolf

    k

    • aStrangeDisease

      Potassium.

  • Hugoku

    Hmm. Not sure. Something is off. It is too Windows-related.
    I mean, I understand Windows 8 is your main thing right now but still.

    • BostonSup

      This is just the MS logo, Xbox will still have its own logo that is different from it’s main logo (which is pretty much MS’s logo as a software company)

      • Hugoku

        Not talking about Xbox. I’m talking about a company logo that is very closely related to one of it’s products, which in my mind ties it very close to it. But they don’t just do Windows.

        • fsdfg dsfds

          shut the f up noob

  • Harvey Finklestein

    Terrible. Thank goodness I don’t by my products based upon their logo. I would love to see what got voted off the island if this is what survived.

  • Volitar Prime

    Just like the Windows 8 (Metro) interface, they are reducing things down to the lowest common denominator. I’m sorry, but making things simpler looking does not make it better.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Zaira-Vicere/100003482240394 Zaira Vicere

      Because turning it from waving flags into squares is simplifying it? They explained the decision being about making it look more like window panes.

      • http://www.facebook.com/AlexAtkinUK Alexander Atkin

        But it always has clearly been meant to represent window panes, but stylised to add a little creativity to it. It seems odd to go back and make it more primitive now.

        I suppose you could argue that is exactly what the new Win8 UI is doing so its somewhat fitting, but just seems an odd thing to do.

  • Jason Bielauskas

    OK.. can anyone say Google? The new MS logo without the word Microsoft would never make me think MS, just a new version of a Google logo.

  • http://twitter.com/N7_Alex Iskandar Dzulkarnain

    Metro to the Max!

  • http://twitter.com/HaloKitty343 DMH

    LOL That’s different? If you’d have shown it to me and asked, I’d have said that was the same MS logo. Good ecognition, I guess, but not much of a refresh.

  • http://twitter.com/GreenMistt Miller

    huh, ok. Who spent 5 minutes in ms powerpoint designing this?

  • http://twitter.com/ENich1 E.Nich

    I do like more the old logo.

  • http://twitter.com/Navarin Buster Wolf

    How much did some graphic design student get paid for this?

  • http://twitter.com/foxsnipe Foxsnipe

    Not really a fan of the Segoe font being used in the typeface of the logo. I prefered the more stylistic, classic logo with italics and the little cut-out of the “O.”

  • http://www.facebook.com/adamdjt Adam Daniel John Thompson

    So Microsoft are only marketing their products at squares?

  • http://www.facebook.com/joesiegler Joe Siegler

    It may have been time for a refresh, but not to THAT. That looks like a “beta” version of what should be released as final. The logo it replaced was still more interesting than this.

  • http://twitter.com/StrikeSudden StrikeSudden

    Not very exciting. First dos then windows time for new name.
    Tired of the little squares on xbox and windows phone. The squares trying to be windows.

  • barry hansen

    Looks retro 80′s.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Dane-Miller/500337604 Dane Miller

    From the one video i have seen they seem to do a lot with the “boring squares” everyone seems to hate. Logo’s are made to be easily recognizable and relate able. With windows 8, and the new roll out of all MS products, keeping it simple is obviously the theme, and this logo works with it perfectly. The internet is so cynical, It’s not about the logo, its what they do with it. Everyone seems to want to hate on the most minute things, for no apparent reason. It seems like no one’s mother except mine, said things like “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all.”

  • http://twitter.com/korahn Eric Starr

    Logos by MS Paint

  • http://www.facebook.com/Hoots.Bude David ‘Hoots’ Crawford

    Worst corporate logo ever, where’s the flare? This one just says, “we’re boring”

  • Thânia Santos

    As usual, what a nice display of misoneism,
    thanks to the community!

  • Thânia Santos

    btw,
    This is the new MICROSOFT logo,
    not a new WINDOWS logo!

  • http://twitter.com/SithusX Dylan

    Personally I like it because it matches the new theme and sleek modern designs of today. Simplicity is often the best! Can’t forget the rules of KISS!

  • http://twitter.com/fcviotto Fernando Coli Viotto

    I loved the reference to X360 buttons :)

  • Russell Gorall

    The future is more boxes!!!!!!!

  • http://twitter.com/Vincent604 Vince

    Thanks I’m the designer.

  • http://www.facebook.com/andreevkms Александр Андреев

    I like the new logo

  • http://www.facebook.com/andreevkms Александр Андреев

    I like the new logo

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