Microsoft to drop Desktop App from Windows 8 ARM tablets
Back in September, there was controversy as to whether Microsoft planned to allow “Desktop” (non-Metro) apps to run on Windows 8 ARM-based tablets. But I was told they would, and, indeed, the Softies and partners showed off the Desktop app on ARM tablets at the Build conference.
However, if my Windows Weekly co-host Paul Thurrott is right, Microsoft has rethought that plan and is leaning toward cutting the Desktop from Windows 8 ARM tablets. That would mean only Metro-style apps would be supported on that platform. (Thurrott just dropped that bomb while we were taping Windows Weekly on December 1.)
If Microsoft does do away with the Desktop App on ARM, it also would mean — unless Microsoft also changes its strategy for x86/x64-based Windows 8 tablets — that Windows 8 will be different on different hardware. The Developer Preview Samsung tablets Microsoft gave to attendees of its Build conference include the Desktop app, which allows non-Metro, legacy apps to work on these machines.
I don’t hate the idea that Microsoft might pull the plug on the Desktop App on Windows 8 ARM tablets. In fact, I think it’s the right thing to do if Microsoft and its partners want to position ARM-based Windows tablets as more of a true iPad competitor.
Microsoft doesn’t need to be all things to all people. Windows 8 is the first time Microsoft will have Windows running on ARM, so why not use that as a place to cut the cord and support only new “modern” apps on that platform? Even if Microsoft did go ahead with its plan to offer Desktop App on Windows 8 ARM tablets, it wouldn’t run existing Windows x86/x64 apps. Developers still were going to have to rewrite them.
Thurrott didn’t know whether Microsoft still plans to support the Desktop App on ARM-based Windows 8 notebooks; his information was generically about ARM-based Windows 8 versions, which he took to mean “tablets.” It’s unclear if this refers to both tablets and notebooks.
5 Ways Microsoft Can Make Windows 8 Tablets a Hit
According to a report from Forrester Research, consumer desire to purchase Windows 8 tablets has suffered a massive decrease, slumping from 46 percent in the first quarter of the year to a mediocre 25 percent six months later. That’s not good news for a product still a close to a year away from seeing an official launch.
1. Ensure Ample App Offerings
Unfortunately, not all Windows 8 tablets will be created equal. Where some will no doubt boast powerful Intel chipsets, loads of RAM, and a luxurious amount of storage space, other more reasonably priced devices will come packing ARM mobile processors and more modest storage and memory sets. These less-powerful devices won’t have the horsepower to run the full desktop iterations of Microsoft Office, FileMaker, or other software that many businesses rely on daily to make the wheels go 'round.
In order to make Windows 8 tablets not only a viable but an attractive alternative to consumers, Microsoft must have a substantial launch-day library of useful applications to offer potential customers. It needs key third-party developers on board with ARM-compatible offerings that allow the power of their desktop software to be enjoyed on a low-powered, tablet-based sibling.
2. Work Toward Unification
Since I’ve already mentioned that not all Windows 8 hardware will be created equal, the time is right to discusss whether users of the various flavors of Windows 8 will be able to communicate and collaborate easily. SkyDrive will play a significant role in Microsoft’s Windows 8 strategy. This has document sharing and communications covered. But it leaves open whether users of a Windows 8 desktop or Intel tablet with access to a full version of Microsoft Office would be able to collaborate with users packing ARM-powered tablets and their less-capable iterations of Microsoft’s productivity tools. If Microsoft can crack this nut, it will be well on their way to capturing the hearts and minds of business users.
3. Do Away with Past Frustrations
Windows 8 virtual keyboardWhile users of Windows 7 tablets can leverage the power of desktop software on the go, doing so has been an exercise in frustration, thanks to the operating system’s lackluster touchscreen interface features. Fortunately, it looks like Microsoft is taking steps to address this with Windows 8. The virtual keyboard offered as part of the developer’s build of the OS offers the best tablet typing experience on the market today, handwriting recognition is respectable, and the Metro UI was made for poking and swiping. When using legacy applications such as Microsoft Word and Tweetdeck, window closure options as well as maximize and minimize buttons are all a touch-friendly size.
Unfortunately, despite all of these features, the relatively small amount of screen real estate doesn’t allow for easy use of legacy app interface items, such as PowerPoint’s ribbon interface, or the selection of individual cells on an Excel spreadsheet. If Microsoft finds a way to do away with such interface frustrations without forcing users to invest in new, tablet-oriented versions of software they already own, it could have a serious win on their hands.
4. Keep It Simple
One of the key reasons that the iPad has become such a staggering success is the device’s simplicity of form and function. Microsoft would do well to take note of this and keep things simple. With the Metro interface system of floating, resizable, and moveable tiles, it would appear that Windows 8 is on the path to the zen enlightenment that could make it the tablet computing hit we’re hoping it will be. But a lot can happen between now and when the OS is released later next year. Here’s hoping it stays on target.
5. Watch Quality Control
As any PC user will tell you, an operating system is only as good as the computer it’s paired to. When installed to a high-quality machine with respectable tech specs and excellent build quality, users can expect a superior computing experience. When that same operating system is installed to a rig that barely meets the OS’s minimal requirements? Not so much. With Microsoft’s history of offering the Windows OS to any grey box manufacturer under the sun as an OEM installation option, we’re betting to see any number of tablet manufacturers adopt Windows 8 as an alternative to Android.
That said, we’d like to see Microsoft hold off on making Windows 8 available to every tablet computing vendor under the sun, even if it’s only for a little while. In order for the OS to be considered a true contender in mobile computing, it needs to be showcased on well-spec'ed hardware developed by premium manufacturers such as Asus or Samsung with an eye to quality and performance.
This would allow consumers to have an opportunity to see what the OS is capable of on top-drawer hardware, before choosing to go slumming for kit available at a bargain basement price.
Interest in Windows 8 tablets has plummeted
INTEREST is waning for tablets running Microsoft's Windows 8 before they have even arrived, according to analyst Forrester Research.
While Forrester "is bullish on Windows 8 as a product for consumers", the firm said in a report that it "is going to be very late to the party".
The company said that, rather than being a "fast follower", Windows 8 is at best a fifth-mover after the Ipad, Android tablets, HP's now-defunct WebOS tablet and the Blackberry Playbook tablet.
Forrester also pointed out, "Apple, Samsung, and others have already launched second-generation products and will likely be into their third generation by the time Windows 8 launches."
The firm added that "newer competitors like Amazon (Kindle Fire) and Barnes & Noble (Nook Tablet) are reshaping consumer expectations in the market, driving down price points (and concomitant price expectations), and redefining what a tablet is".
Forrester said that in the first quarter of 2011 Windows was "by far" the top choice for US consumers, with 46 per cent saying they wanted one despite the fact that no touchscreen Windows tablets existed. However, by the third quarter of 2011 Windows was no longer number one in choice preference and interest among consumers dropped to 25 per cent.
Forrester's JP Gownder said, "These market dynamics are rapidly altering consumers' attitudes and needs. Most significantly, consumers' interest in Windows tablets is plummeting. Microsoft has missed the peak of consumer desire for a product they haven't yet released."
The firm said Microsoft's product strategists should take a lesson from Amazon's product strategists, who "fundamentally changed the tablet product experience by leading with content and services rather than feeds and speeds, at a compelling price point".
Microsoft's uphill battle to push Win8 tabs into punters' paws
Microsoft has its work cut out thanks to its entry into a tablet arena revived by Apple's iPad, according to analysts. Just as the company approaches the finish line clutching Windows 8 for fondleslabs, panting away like Steve Ballmer at a developer conference, punters have already lost interest.
Forrester Research has published a report that claims consumer interest has "plummeted" during the past nine months. The bean counters are vague on what the tab-happy public has grown tired of - be it Windows 8, tablets, or tablets running Window 8 - but the conclusion is that Microsoft's got a hard act to follow. According to Forrester here:
The analysts can, no doubt, offer some well-remunerated advice to help Microsoft and OEM partners embrace the platform and help them regain lost interest. This is often the inspiration for such reports, whose authors publish only the most leading and suggestive portions available on the internet for free.
Windows product strategists will have to overcome several disadvantages associated with being a fifth mover in the tablet market. Product strategists in any industry have to evaluate their potential to be 'fast followers': Waiting too long to follow raises the bar your product must meet to compete.
That said, the analysts' conclusion does highlight how Microsoft's tablet strategy is still predicated more on promises than product.
Apple released the first iPad in April 2010 to an unprepared Microsoft; with Apple selling more than three million units in the first thee months - 270,000 in the first week - Microsoft's chief executive by July was on the ropes and promising something from Microsoft the following year - 2011.
CEO Steve Ballmer indicated we should expect something running Windows 7 on Intel's then-new Sandy Bridge processor this year; Sandy Bridge came but the Windows 7 tablets didn't.
As 2011 comes to a close, the tablet future still has yet to happen for Microsoft. In the last 12 months Microsoft has succeeded in building an early version of the successor to Windows 7, Windows 8, that'll feature a user interface for the tablet and support for ARM chips.
But with no actual date for Windows 8 beyond 2012, and with a UI that's yet to be finished and that will rely on significant levels of conversion from the ranks of ISVs, Microsoft continues to leave the field almost 100-per-cent open for Apple, cementing Cupertino's mental and monetary market hold with the iPad.
4 Reasons Windows 8 Tablets Aren't Dead in the Water
Time is running out for Windows 8 tablets to stay relevant in the eyes of consumers--at least according to a survey from Forrester Research. Over the last two quarters, consumer interest in Windows tablets has dropped from 46 percent in Q1 to 25 percent in Q3.
In a blog post, Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder called this a "shrinking window" for Microsoft, who will be "very late to the party" when Windows 8 tablets launch in 2012. But I don't think Microsoft should be worried. Here's why:
People Are Clueless
If you're a tech-savvy PCWorld reader, don't worry, I'm not talking about you. But if you ask an average man on the street whether he's interested in a Windows tablet, I'll bet he's thinking of the version of Windows he's used his entire life, slapped onto a touch screen.
Of course people are losing interest in that. Now that they know the simplicity of an iPad, traditional Windows on a touch screen no longer seems like a great idea. What the average person probably doesn't realize is that Microsoft is rebuilding Windows to be more iPad-like, with a new interface and touch-friendly apps. It's a little unfair to gauge people's interest in a product if they don't know what they're getting.
Windows is Huge, and So Is the Market
Those who argue that Windows 8 is running out of time overlook the vast number of people who haven't bought a tablet yet. Microsoft has licensed 450 million copies of Windows 7 as of September, whereas Apple has sold about 40 million iPads as of November. Windows isn't going away anytime soon, so Microsoft has plenty of time to convince PC buyers to get a tablet instead of a laptop.
Late to What Market?
“Windows 8 looks like it’s going to be a good product," Gownder told the New York Times. "It’s just going to be so late to the market.”
Gownder's comment implies that being early to the market is an advantage, but I don't think that's true when you're talking about competing with Apple. Android didn't take off until after the launch of Motorola's Droid in October 2009--more than two years after the original iPhone. Earlier competitors, such as the Palm Pre and the Blackberry Storm, got no traction. And Android tablets, HP's TouchPad and RIM's Blackberry Playbook have been no match for the iPad. Showing up early to the market doesn't mean much unless there's a compelling reason to buy the product instead of going with Apple.
Cheap Tablets Are a Different Product
Forrester notes that cheap tablets like Amazon's Kindle Fire and Barnes & Noble's Nook Tablet have reshaped consumers' expectations and redefined what a tablet is. I believe it. But while the iPad was initially dubbed a consumption device--essentially, what the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet set out to be--it has blossomed into a powerful computer, with apps and accessories that let you do all kinds of advanced tasks, and its bigger screen is better for getting work done than the 7-inch displays of cheaper tablets. Windows 8 tablets will be more like the iPad and less like the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet. For now, these are separate markets with room for everyone.
Windows 8 Tablets to Feature Improved Dynamic Orientation Functionality
While Windows 8 is designed to run on many different devices, the developers at Microsoft seem to be focusing heavily on tablet functionality.
This may be because tablets present hundreds of new challenges and opportunities for the new operating system, but is probably also because tablets are more and more becoming the new laptop, and in some cases, even desktop, computers.
As such, the Windows 8 team has spent considerable time researching the ways people intuitively use tablets to optimize the operating system for the dual-orientation capabilities of the tablet platform. Tablets are unique in that they offer a very personal user experience, both in the tactile interaction with content, as well as in the ability to allow users to choose their preferred viewing orientation (landscape vs. portrait).
Rotating a tablet from landscape to portrait is not a new concept; this feature has been a stable in even the earliest tablets (eg, the iPad). Tablets that support Windows 8, however, tend to stress more the widescreen-landscape dimension of the device, and are often longer and narrower.
On the one hand, this might seem like a disadvantage for Windows 8, because it constricts the page width in portrait view. But considering the page dimensions of a standard book page, it also could be an advantage over other, squarer tablets, because it distinctly differentiates between the two orientations, and allows developers to make the most out of two very different design schemes.
With a tablet, different screen orientations are better suited for certain activities than others, a fact that is corroborated by experience, and by test results from some observational research Microsoft conducted while working on screen orientation design. Reading the news or email, for example, one would probably prefer a longer, narrower screen, to closer approximate a print page, whereas while watching video or playing games, one might prefer a widescreen, landscape orientation.
Because users can do all these things and more on a tablet, Microsoft focused much of their development on the rotation process between landscape and portrait orientations.
Two impressive process elements that the team has released are the rotation transition duration, and the orientation lock.
When a user turns the tablet from landscape to portrait, the accelerometer in the device registers the motion and sends a signal to the processor, triggering the rotation process. Windows 8 features an incredibly smooth rotation animation, to gently transition users from one orientation to another — and all under 500ms.
The other feature, the orientation lock, is a response to a common problem in almost all hand-held computers: overly sensitive rotation trigger. We’ve all experienced the frustration of a tablet that unpredictably changed from one orientation to another. Windows 8 tablets will have an orientation lock button that prevents this kind of annoying setback.
It might not be the most exciting news we’ve heard yet, but that Microsoft is paying attention to even the smallest details such as this, definitely bodes well for the success of Windows 8.
Windows 8 Tablets Will Be a Huge Hit: 10 Reasons Why
Windows 8 tablets are scheduled to launch next year. Although Microsoft hasn’t been able to win significant market share for Windows on tablets, some market watchers are saying Windows 8 will change that situation.
There’s little debating that tablets have become a huge hit and will be a major factor in the future growth of the PC market. People around the globe are flocking to stores to get their hands on everything from Apple’s iPad 2 to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to the Amazon Kindle Fire. And along the way, they’re helping those prominent companies generate millions of dollars in new revenue and their pushing other firms to join the fray.
Easily the most important company yet to make a mark in the tablet market is Microsoft. The software giant has acknowledged the importance of tablets in the past, but it has so far been unable to gain any significant market share. But with Windows 8, Microsoft hopes to change that. Now it looks like a host of vendors, including Dell, HP and others, are planning to help Microsoft achieve its goal.
The only issue is, not everyone believes Windows 8 can be a winner in the tablet space. In fact, they say it will fail miserably. They’re wrong. These are the reasons why.
1. Consider Windows 8’s Prospects for overall success
As with most previous iterations of the operating system, Windows 8 will likely be a success on the desktop and laptop. Once vendors switch over to shipping only Windows 8 computers, both enterprise users and consumers will adopt the new operating system and Microsoft will once again generate boatloads of cash. But that success should also spill over into the tablet market where customers, happy with the experience of using Windows 8, will want to get a slate running the new Windows version as well. Microsoft’s Halo effect will prove integral to its future tablet adoption.
2. Vendors are already lining up
Already, a host of tablet makers are saying that they’re going to build Windows 8-based slates. Perhaps the most notable among them are Dell and HP. Just recently, HP CEO Meg Whitman said that her company will be offering Windows 8-based tablets and she seems confident they’ll succeed. When Dell, Asus, and countless other companies follow suit, it might not take long for those companies’ dedicated customers to start buying their tablets.
3. The enterprise loves Windows
It’s easy to get caught up in the rhetoric surrounding the tablet space that says consumers are the only customers that matter. But the reality is, the enterprise is and always has been, a change agent in multiiple markets. And that will undoubtedly happen with tablets when Windows 8 launches. Although some companies might want an iPad, the smart move will be to adopt a Windows 8 slate. The devices will provide the kind of compatibility and usability IT managers looking to maximize productivity are after.
4. Apps and accessories could play a role
When talking about tablets, it’s important to consider the third-party products that make a respective device appealing. The only issue is, with iOS- and Android-based tablets, the number of accessories that work with them is quite small. With Windows 8, though, just about anything should work with the tablets, since the operating system should provide legacy support for all the peripherals and in many cases, applications that are already in use on laptops and desktops. That’s a major selling point for many customers.
5. It’s what people know
Although Windows 8 comes with a dramatically different design, it’s still the same old operating system at its core. That’s important. Currently, there are millions of people around the globe who have used nothing but Windows. And many of those people are uncomfortable using any other operating system. If they decide to jump on the tablet craze, Microsoft (and thus, Windows 8 tablets) should benefit.
6. Android security will weigh heavily
There are some analysts and researchers who believe Android-based tablets will dominate the marketplace in the coming years. However, what they fail to acknowledge is that Android suffers from a number of security issues that are only getting worse. Windows has had a host of security issues. But Windows 8 on the other hand is expected to be the most-secure Windows version yet. Some observers are claiming it won’t require additional third-party security software. If both of those scenarios play out, expect Android to be sitting on the sidelines.
7. A single iPad against several Windows 8 tablets
Apple’s iPad is the dominant force in the tablet space right now. But how will it be able to hold up against the onslaught of Windows 8 tablets ready to hit store shelves? As noted, several vendors are readying Windows 8 tablets. As long as they follow through on their plans, store shelves might be saturated with those devices. The iPad might outsell individual Windows 8 tablets, but as a whole, it’ll fall short.
8. Timing is everything
Some people say that Microsoft is too late to the tablet game, and therefore will it won’t be able to make up the lost ground. However, recent research suggests that the tablet market is set to explode in a big way in 2012. So, perhaps Microsoft is getting into the tablet market at the right time.
9. Expect several price points
If the Amazon Kindle Fire has taught vendors anything, it’s that offering a low price on a tablet is a good idea. With that approach in place Windows 8 might just sell like gangbusters next year. After all, with so many vendors, some companies will offer devices on the cheap, while others will take on Apple at the higher level. In either case, expect Windows 8 tablet prices to run the gamut.
10. Microsoft can go toe-to-toe on cash
In the tablet market, one of the key success factors is capital. Companies that have cash to spend on marketing and promotion will be successful, while those that don’t will fall short. Luckily for Microsoft, it has billions of dollars sitting in its bank account that can be used on anything. So, if it wants to dedicate millions (if not, hundreds of millions), it can do so. That’s a powerful asset and it could have a profound impact on the tablet market in the coming years.
Windows 8 tablets will target what market again:
Forget Android tablets and the iPad, there are a lot of folks waiting for the much ballyhooed Windows 8 tablets due to hit next year. A lot of folks believe a full computer like the Windows 8 tablets will offer lots more utility than the toy tablets currently available. The reality hasn’t hit these folks yet, that these future slates aren’t really aimed at the current tablet market.
Microsoft is busy working on Windows 8, especially the new breed of tablet that will take tablets to the next level. That may be the plan, but it’s already hard to figure out who will benefit from this effort. There will be both Intel-based Win8 tablets and ARM-based models. This will require two different versions of Windows 8, and more importantly two different app ecosystems.
Those expecting the ARM tablets with Windows 8 to be more capable than Android tablets and the iPad better sit down. Windows 8 tablets using the ARM technology will need entirely new apps to be of any use. This means an entire ecosystem of apps, both third party and from Microsoft, will have to be written for this new platform. Those dreaming of running all of the legacy Windows apps are living in a dream world. Even if developers are willing to port all of the apps users might want, they all need to be totally revamped for the Metro touch interface. This means entirely new apps, even if based on existing user favorites.
While Intel-based Windows 8 tablets can more easily use legacy Windows apps, they too will need to be revamped for touch operation. Those of us who have been using touch Tablet PCs for years can tell you how useless most Windows legacy apps are on those devices. It will be no different on Windows 8 Intel tablets. This means yet another app ecosystem, on top of legacy Windows and ARM Windows.
It’s too early to tell how many developers will be willing to do all of this work porting legacy Windows apps to these two new tablet platforms, much less write new ones. Without the ability to predict how the app situation will evolve for Windows 8 tablets, it is impossible to guess which market segments might be attracted to which version of Windows.
Will consumers flock to the ARM Windows 8 tablets? Depends on the apps available. Same thing holds true for the enterprise market. Will it be attracted to the Intel-based Windows 8, the ARM-based, or stick with desktops/laptops? That’s impossible to predict without seeing how the apps go on each. It all sounds as clear as mud, but it really is even less clear than that.
Microsoft has forked the app development effort into three streams with Windows 8: conventional desktop/laptop (Intel), touch tablet (Intel), and ARM tablets. Each brings its own demands and requirements to write apps, and developers must guess what type of user they must target with the effort. They have to decide if they are going to develop just one or two versions of their apps, or go all-in with all three. Whatever they do, they will be stuck with supporting the various versions, a major investment.
Like many folks I am anxiously waiting the appearance of Windows 8 tablets. I am a tablet person after all. But I can’t see how this will all shake out, and exactly who OEMs should target with them. It is anybody’s guess at this point.
The iPad may be the world's dominant tablet, but Android devices--especially Amazon's Kindle Fire--are finally making the tablet race a little more interesting.
Now, Windows 8 tablets are limping slowly toward the starting line. Will they have an impact.
You might know Windows. It's that operating system that runs on your desktop at work.
Nokia has said it will release a Windows 8 tablet in June of next year, but other Windows tablets are expected to dribble out later in 2012.Microsoft already killed off an earlier tablet effort that would have given the company a jump-start in the tablet arena, so you can bet the Windows 8 tablets will arrive come hell or high water.A new report by market analyst Forrester doesn't look kindly on this late arrival to the party. The report shows sharply declining consumer interest in a Windows tablet.
Microsoft's fate in the tablet world won't be decided by market analysts, however. It's up to manufacturers to get behind the OS and consumers to vote with their dollars.
Knowing that you'll have to wait well into next year to get your paws on one, do you want a Windows 8 tablet.
