I like it alot. Much better than 8.5 imo.
Regarding skins, i think it looks very good already, i thought i wouldnt be able to take it without any skins, but ive been proven wrong
And plus if you were a fan of Windows Live Messenger 2009 by roflmao456 then you have no issues
As for the connection problems, i have had none so i cant really comment on that.