One of the most popular aspects of previous versions of the Windows operating system has to be the inclusion of Media Center which provided a rich multimedia experience to users. The news that the new Windows 8 OS won't come bundled with Media Center may have filtered down to prospective purchasers, but for those who were a little disappointed with that may be a little perturbed to find out that it isn't the only part of the Windows media experience that is missing in action.
Following much rumor and speculation, Microsoft has just announced the final Windows 8 SKUs, as well as reaffirm that Windows 8 is the official, final name of the upcoming OS. Prior to clicking on the link to the announcement post on the Windows Team Blog, I was slightly nervous; Microsoft is notorious among the tech community for their unnecessarily complicated product branding. Expecting the worst, I was actually quite delighted to see that Microsoft… actually simplified the number of editions in Windows 8!
While Windows 8 has received plenty of mixed criticism regarding its user interface and the desktop, there's a more unanimous agreement that it is a pretty damn good tablet OS. But, is Microsoft's unique approach to tablets going to be enough to even get a foot in the door of the tablet market? After all, it isn't even so much a tablet market as an iPad market; Apple created this market, and are doing a great job at maintaining a firm grip on it. But, while nothing will kill the iPad anytime soon, it is possible for a product to gain decent share in an Apple-dominated market. Just look at Android.
One of the more significant additions to Windows 8 (on the latest Consumer Preview build) - which is critical for the platform to succeed in the tablet space - is the Windows Store, essentially an app store where you can purchase applications for Windows, particularly Metro-style ones. Thus, in terms of functionality, it's pretty much like a combination of the iOS and Mac App Stores. But, in usability and design, it does have its differences.
Microsoft has begun to unveil plans of how its tiled Windows 8 operating system will be scaled to fit different tablet screens and resolutions across the board, revealing that there will be support for Retina-Like displays.
Although the response from tech enthusiasts regarding the Windows 8 Consumer Preview has been altogether positive, this hasn't stopped some developers from altering things around - in particular, trying to recover features lost from Windows 7.
At this present moment, the tablet market is a two-horse race consisting of Android tablets, and Apple's iPad range. The third iteration is set to begin retailing tomorrow morning at 8am, with many fanatic consumers expected to be queuing through the night tonight ready for doors to open.
Regardless of whether you are an Apple lover, Google guru or an old faithful Microsoft worshipper, the current technological climate represents an excellent time to be involved in, as a user of hardware and software. The majority of the major players in the tech business seem to have some exciting new pieces of kit about to hit the public eye, with Apple set to imminently launch the new iPad and possibly Apple TV, Google looking likely to seed their new Android Jelly Bean in the coming months and Microsoft finally releasing the Consumer Preview of their new Windows 8 operating system.
Windows 8 Consumer Preview Tablet Vs. iPad 2 Running iOS 5 – Head To Head Feature Comparison [VIDEO]
When Microsoft released its Windows 8 Consumer Preview, it was always going to be compared squarely against the biggest, best and some would argue only real competition in the tablet market: the iPad 2.
On Wednesday, Microsoft officially released the Windows 8 Consumer Preview (which is essentially a fancy term for 'public beta'). If you're eager to dabble around with the build in a virtual machine - perhaps due to the lack of a non-production machine, a spare partition, the fear of using it in a production environment, or, well, if you just want to install it in a virtual machine - then you're in luck.
