

It is expected to go into mass production later this year











Source: Reuters

Comments     Threshold


RE: Before trolls jump in to say MS is crap
By 91TTZ on 4/12/2013 11:25:04 AM , Rating: 2
I'm sure Microsoft wants that, but I don't think that's happening. Microsoft's main reason for switching to Windows Runtime apps on the Windows Store is because they take 30% of all money from app sales. Software developers hate this idea.

Windows 8, Windows Runtime, Windows Phone 8 and Microsoft Surface were all components of a larger initiative within Microsoft to make a strong push into the mobile space. It's failing on all fronts. Windows 8 isn't selling well at all, Windows Phone isn't selling, Surface isn't selling well, and people are ignoring the Windows Store.

Microsoft tried to bring this entire ecosystem online that required substantial internal investment on their part. While people think they're fine because people who avoid Windows 8 are buying Windows 7, Microsoft has to be shaking in their boots. They see that this strategy is failing and their future is being taken away from them.

By karimtemple on 4/12/2013 3:21:09 PM , Rating: 2
It doesn't seem that way to me. Microsoft saw a possible future where x86 was no longer the end-all-be-all, and they acted. Not that betting against Intel is too smart, lol. Still, Windows could no longer rely solely on x86 to thrive.

The mere existence of Runtime solves that problem. CE runs on x86, ARM, and even MIPS, but CE is also terribad and doesn't even share the same kernel as Windows proper. RT brings the all the codebases together. And now that the heavy lifting has been taken care of, Windows can suddenly show up on whatever platform turns out to be strong and popular enough (not just ARM). Naturally they'd want to take the opportunity to increase their revenue streams with a Windows Store; hell, Apple is doing it.

At the same time, they probably wanted to address their concern that we may hit a Supertablet Era, where one phone or tablet is so powerful and cheap that it would make more sense to just plug it into desktop and laptop docks (and probably others!) when you sit down. That's where unifying the interface came in.

To be honest, as long as a platform is competent, all it ever really needs is a competitive value proposition and an attractive software library. RT of course has none of that lol, but that doesn't mean it can never get that. If they handed me the company, I'd have everyone else buckling under raw product superiority, and I don't think I'd have to change Windows 8 that much. They'd have to hit MS with another round of antitrust suits because people wouldn't buy anything else.

