Microsoft’s VP of Consumer and Device Sales, Nick Parker, hinted yesterday towards a new ‘modern OS’ with seamless updates at the Computex trade show in Taiwan. According to Parker, the OS will have “enablers” and “delighters” like seamless updates, and sustained performance.
The company mentioned a few other features that will define the operating system: separating application, compute, and, core OS to make it secure, constant connectivity, and AI-powered applications.
In a blog post, Microsoft said that the said OS will have” form factor agility” – meaning it would work on different kind of devices.
A modern OS is also multi-sense. People can use pen, voice, touch, even gaze – what ever input method a user wants to use works just as well as the keyboard and mouse. Finally, a modern OS provides the ultimate in form factor agility. A modern OS has the right sensor support and posture awareness to enable the breadth of innovative form factors and applications that our partner ecosystem will deliver.
This indicates that the operating system might work on laptops, tablets, and phones too (Surface phone incoming?).
Interestingly, there was no mention of “Windows” from the company, and it’s possible that it might start afresh with new branding for a cross-platform operating system.
The 💜 of EU tech
The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!
In March, a report from The Verge suggested that Microsoft is working on ChromeOS-like operating system named Windows Lite. However, it’s hard to know at this stage if this ‘modern OS’ is indeed the rumored Windows Lite.
There’s no official word on what shape this OS would take, so we can’t expect it to be released in the immediate future. But, it would be refreshing to see an operating system that would take on the duopoly of Apple and Google.
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.