Looking in on Windows 8

Intel has already showcased a Lenovo tablet running Windows 8, but the chip giant is understandably hedging its bets and was also seen brandishing a Lenovo tablet running Android at CES. 

The firm is pushing into the mobile market in a big way and given its considerable financial and marketing clout plus that heritage in chip development, it would be foolish to dismiss it.

But back to the point, bluntly: in a market crowded with Apple IOS, Android, Blackberry, earlier Windows and Linux variants, can Windows 8 cut the thick mustard? 

First thing, Windows still has a remarkable market penetration, hovering just below 90 per cent. This means there’s a vast potential audience out there who live, breathe and die the OS – or at least are so familiar with it, it’s comfortably second nature to use. 

This counts for a lot, because it means there are a lot of people potentially inclined to buy new hardware that runs an OS they’re familiar with. This dynamic will find even more favour given that Windows 8 is also backward compatible with Windows 7 so everything that runs on Windows 7 will run on Windows 8.

And by implication it also means that the slightly fading Windows apps ecosystem will be re-energised.  At a technical level, Windows 8 has new application programming interfaces (APIs) and tool kits. This enables developers to more rapidly develop applications for an estimated 400 million Windows users worldwide. 

Towards this end, tools in Windows 8, have a store feature, so once an app has been developed it can be posted directly towards the Windows app store along with pricing and features. 

Windows 8 will also feature heavily on Intel Ultrabooks and great things are expected of these thin, light and powerful devices in terms of share in the consumer notebook market. Windows apps are also being made available in the Intel AppUp Center, which should provide a further fillip for uptake.

Windows 8 is also designed to provide better integration with Windows Phone 7, and together will offer a complete ecosystem for manufacturers who don’t want to be tied into Apple.

In short, we reckon Windows 8 is going to be a disruptive OS that in time will have a big impact on the market.  And you can bet, that many of those shiny new tablets, smartphones and ultrabooks that went headily spinning by at CES, will be running it too.

* This blog post is written by Softtalkmobile, and is sponsored by the Intel AppUp developer program, a single channel for distributing apps to multiple devices, multiple operating systems, and multiple app stores.