Five reasons Microsoft can still win the tablet war

May 31, 2011

Microsoft has let it be known that the next version of Windows will run on ARM-architecture, and it has demonstrated early builds of Windows 8 -- or whatever Microsoft ultimately calls the next OS -- on a tablet at both CES 2011, and MIX '11. While Microsoft did a quick 180 on comments from Steve Ballmer confirming a 2012 launch of Windows 8, we know it's coming sometime, and when it does it quickly dominate the tablet market.

Why? Well, here are five reasons that MIcrosoft could come from behind and ultimately win the tablet war.

[ Also on InfoWorld: Microsoft to show off Windows for tablets. | Stay ahead of advances in mobile technology with InfoWorld's Mobile Edge blog and Mobilize newsletter. ]

1. Uniform Experience. Microsoft Windows enjoys a dominant market share of nearly 90 percent for desktop operating systems. While the tablet is a different environment than the desktop, users will appreciate having a tablet that has a look and feel consistent with what they're already familiar with.

2. Software Library. Intel informed investors that the ARM version(s) or Windows will not be able to run legacy software, so that could significantly reduce the available software for a Windows tablet. But, Microsoft declared that Intel was out of line in speculating, and it has already demonstrated both Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer 10 on ARM-based tablets.

Even if Intel is correct -- and it seems quite possible it could be -- Microsoft could still provide developers with the tools necessary to make porting from x86 to ARM as simple as possible. The more users can use the exact same software they are already comfortable with from their desktop, the more successful the tablet will be.

3. Diverse Hardware. Apple dominates the tablet market right now, but with Apple you just have the iPad 2. Granted, it has a variety of models, but overall an iPad 2 is an iPad 2. A Microsoft Windows tablet will most likely follow in the footsteps of the current array of Android tablets with a variety of shapes and sizes to choose from. That diversity gives users more options to choose the tablet form factor and hardware specs that work best for them rather than using the one-size-fits-all approach.

4. Price? You might notice the question mark. On the one hand, different vendors creating rival tablets will drive some price competition -- both in the tablet industry overall, and among other Windows tablets. The freedom to use different hardware specs will also enable some cost cutting. But, as it stands now, Apple seems to have cornered the market on many of the key components of tablets, making it difficult for other vendors to purchase the hardware necessary to make tablets in sufficient volume to bring the price down. So, price is a gray area that may be hard to deliver.

Source: http://www.infoworld.com/d/mobile-technology/five-reasons-microsoft-can-still-win-the-tablet-war-510

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