Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 10X has been delayed, although it expects the first computer with this version of the system to arrive in 2021.
The first Windows 10X PC would arrive in some countries in the second half of the year, just in time for the important Christmas campaign. That is a change from Microsoft’s initial plans, but it is not the first.
Originally, Windows 10X was born as a system designed for systems with two screens, or flexible screens, which were intended to be the new revolution in portable computers. However, the pandemic revolutionized the market, and laptop sales started to grow again.
Between that, and the difficulty it added to the development, Microsoft announced last year that Windows 10X would also come to conventional single-screen laptops; Probably cheap models as an alternative to Chromebooks.
Windows 10X is delayed
Microsoft then advanced that Windows 10X had about a year of development left and that, therefore, the first devices would arrive in the first half of 2021. Now, however, company sources have told Windows Central that it will not be able to keep that promise.
Not exactly a surprise, considering that Microsoft has not yet kicked off the marketing machine with Windows 10X, nor has it previewed more features as it usually does before a major release like this one. That indicated that the company was not yet ready to let the system reach the public. The final blow came in December when Microsoft should have released a near-final version of Windows 10X to meet deadlines, something that did not happen.
The new plan assumes that Windows 10X will be available in late spring, and so the first devices still have a little way to go; Now Microsoft is toying with the proposition that the first Windows 10X laptop will arrive in the second half of the year.
Little is known about this device, but it will probably focus on the education and business sectors to offer a low-cost alternative.
What will change?
Inside sources claim that the delay is because Microsoft wants to ensure that Windows 10X is a “robust” and end-user-ready product; That shows how important it is for the company’s future, as it doesn’t dare launch a system and fix it with updates the first few months.
This is important because Windows 10X will be very different from Windows 10 in one vital aspect: Compatibility with traditional Win32 applications. Therefore, Windows 10X will not be able to run most ‘classic’ programs locally.
Microsoft initially experimented with the possibility of adding such support but dropped it when it decided that Windows 10X was going to be for cheap laptops, which will only be able to run apps obtained from the Microsoft Store.
At the very least, there may not be a repeat of Windows RT. Microsoft wants Windows 10X to be able to run Win32 apps, but through Windows Virtual Desktop and Cloud PC, its cloud solutions; That is, they would not run on the laptop but an external server.
In return, Microsoft has decided to improve Windows 10, implementing Windows 10X improvements such as a new design, features, and new versions of programs such as File Explorer.
