Just in time?
Both Bloomberg and the WSJ have independently cited sources within Microsoft, stating the software giant will use the upcoming CES tech show to reveal it has been working on a new, full-featured, version of its Windows operating system that is compatible with chips using the ARM instruction set.
This looks like a painful acceptance of defeat in the x86 tablet market, with Microsoft having tried for years to promote this form factor via the Wintel paradigm. But if tablets are indeed the target form factor for this new OS, you have to wonder what demand there is for full Windows tablets, regardless of the chip, especially with the precedent having been set as primarily media consumption devices.
Bloomberg offered no timescale for the new OS, which will continue to support x86 chips, but the WSJ reckoned it was still a couple of years away from appearing in consumer devices. The report said this is part of an ongoing effort by Microsoft to make Windows more ‘modular', i.e. able to be stripped down depending on the OEM's needs. Maybe this will be a feature of Windows 8.
Microsoft has apparently scheduled a press event prior to Steve Ballmer's keynote at CES, where this news is expected to be formally confirmed. The keynote is expected to focus on tablets.
Our initial feeling is that the tablet market has initially defined itself as consumer and leisure-oriented. Full Windows on tablets would be primarily a productivity development and it's not at all clear that there's demand for such functionality on tablets. This news would also seem to rule out a tablet version of Windows Phone 7 which, of course, already supports ARM.
Having said that, we have spoken to many people who've said there is a lot of interest in the iPad from the corporate sector, but the bad news for Microsoft is that virtualisation technologies mean that they can be made OS agnostic. Our feeling is that Microsoft would have to make a specific tablet version of Windows available, with a lot of unique functionality, for it to be a viable alternative to iOS, Android, etc.
This news hasn't done ARM's shares any harm, with its London listing currently up nine percent on yesterday's close. We contacted ARM for comment, but hadn't heard back at time of writing.
UPDATE - 11:10, 22 December 2010.: ARM did get back to us, but only to confirm it has no comment to make on this matter.
