Microsoft Reportedly Stumbling Toward Release Of Operating System For Tablets Hot

Either Microsoft is going to rebound now and end the mediocrity that has marred its reputation for over a decade or it will see a continued drop in market share to iOS and Android tablets and smartphones, which appear to be overtaking computing.

 

While Microsoft totally dominates desktop computing, the switch to mobile smartphones and tablets is changing how we access information and its stranglehold on computing is weakening.

 

Microsoft two years ago said it would have an answer to Apple’s soon after the first iPad was launched. The first iPhone had already been launched by then, of course, and Microsoft's dominance was being questoined for the first time. 

 

The Verge reports that Microsoft’s ability to deliver a credible iPad alternative is in question, just months away from the release of hardware using Windows RT, Microsoft's operating system for tablets.

 

At question is whether Microsoft’s OEM business model can produce hardware as good as iPads from Apple, which makes both the hardware as well as the software for its tablets.

 

“Whether an OEM, like Nokia, steps forward within the next few months to produce a winning Windows RT tablet with great battery life, hardware, and industrial design, remains to be seen — but Microsoft is clearly positioning Windows RT as the choice for iPad competitors,” says Tom Warren at The Verge.

 

Warren infers that Microsoft may not be on plan to meet its goals and cites a dearth of OEM manufacturers as evidence that Windows RT is not catching on with hardware makers.

 

“Seeing a lone Windows RT device announced at Computex, we question whether OEMs are serious about Windows RT as a tablet operating system, especially with Microsoft now pushing a desktop / Metro hybrid for its more traditional x86 machines,” says Warren.