Days ahead of the official launch of the Windows 8 Release preview, an unofficial version has been leaked onto the internet.
But even if you're the sort of person to go searching for leaked builds, you shouldn't get too excited about this one because it's the Chinese language 64-bit version of Windows 8 -- and unless you're familiar with Chinese, let me tell you that this makes it really hard to use, even if you're really familiar with Windows.
The release is marked as build 8400, and is most probably the same build that Microsoft will release during the first week of June.
The download weighs in at a whopping 3.34 GB.
I can confirm that it is legitimate and appears to have been leaked by a Microsoft TAP (Technology Adoption Program)/OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) partner.
So why am I telling you not to bother with this download if I myself have played with it? I've got a number of good reasons:
- Despite being an official build, the files do appear to have been tampered with. My guess is that this is to hide the source of the leak, but there's no telling that other, more sinister, alterations have been made to the download.
- It's a Chinese build, so unless you know Chinese, or are willing to learn, installing and using it is going to be very painful! Things get especially hilarious if you get error messages.
- There's no language pack for this release, so you're stuck in Chinese language mode.
- As more and more people try to get their hands on this download, download speeds have dropped dramatically.
- Microsoft has promised that the Windows 8 Release Preview will be available during the first week of June, so between waiting for the leaked build to download, and having to learn Chinese in order to install and run it, you'll probably be better off waiting for the official release.
Remember, patience is a virtue!
