Why Windows 10 matter for Microsoft.
Windows Phone, Windows RT and to a lesser degree Xbox One.
Today these are, to varying degrees, different OS's. If memory serves, they all share the same kernel, but that is about it. Except, they are all seen as failures. And none of them are profitable. But they are all also in key areas where Microsoft cannot afford to not compete, with perhaps the exception of the Xbox One. That however is the one of the 3 above which isn't an actual failure. Yes Sony is beating them, but they are selling enough units to be profitable in the long run... also note, Sony likely isn't actually making money of PS4's directly either.
The end result of all of that is that Microsoft needs to minimize their investment in these areas or maximize the benefit of efforts spent. Windows 10 will move more of each OS to a shared codebase. This means less will need to be invested explicitly in any one ecosystem and that investments potentially benefit multiple ecosystems.
Another benefit is that the more code all of the operating systems share under the hood, the easier it becomes to blur the lines where one ends another begins. If Microsoft decides that Windows Phone needs to act more like its desktop counterpart to attract more users, making that change becomes easier. Same goes if they want to do something like bringing Cortana to the desktop or Xbox. The more low level code they share, the more these cross OS opportunities grow.
With phones getting comparable in specs to low end Windows tablets in terms of specs (could even drop an Atom chipset in there), it would be interesting per se to have a phone that leverages one UI when used as a phone, and then another when "docked". This of course assumes some sort of phone dock that gives it a keyboard and larger screen. But it would be infinitely better than something like a tablet which runs Android when in tablet mode and Windows when docked. Not just because it isn't two separate ecosystems, but it could actually be the exact same OS as well, just with a different UX layer.
The other place where lines could be blurred is the Xbox One. If MS can work out a way to make the interaction with the gamepad and Kinect viable, I would love to be able to use my Xbox One as a full blown Windows PC. There is the gaming side of things, but also a much richer media experience available. I think a console that could play both PC games and Xbox One games would decimate the PS4 and any hopes something like the SteamBox would have. Heck, I'd be fine if the console couldn't load full blown Windows, but if games publishers packaged games appropriately allowed PC games to be played on the console. I actually had a not so terrible time playing WoW with the Xbox One gamepad. It only sucked for things like accepting quests, dealing with inventory and typing (but I'm anti-social anyway). And WoW should have been a terrible example, so I imagine many PC games would adapt fine.
I don't have much comment on Windows RT. It is really about as baked together with Windows already as the others will become. So, in some way it is already reaping the benefits. In this case, in the form of universal apps. The Windows Phone Store is much larger than the Windows Store and has more big name apps. Universal apps are an attractive way for developers of such apps to target one or more of the platforms they want to hit and get some "freebies" on the side. The other side of it is that it seems traditional desktop devs are more likely to write a universal app than they would have been to write a Windows Store or Windows Phone app. So, one day WinRT may become viable...but that is likely just a pipe dream.
The point is, not only does it allow Microsoft to invest less effort in platforms that aren't making it money, it makes those platforms much more interchangeable. I don't think we'll see an OS that lets you choose the UX from them any time soon. But it should enable them to more rapidly absorb what works in place into another. Which should enable them to focus more time and effort on the things that are making them money. Windows 10 is probably less important for end users than even Windows 8.1 was, but it is super important for Microsoft strategically. And important that they do it right.
Today these are, to varying degrees, different OS's. If memory serves, they all share the same kernel, but that is about it. Except, they are all seen as failures. And none of them are profitable. But they are all also in key areas where Microsoft cannot afford to not compete, with perhaps the exception of the Xbox One. That however is the one of the 3 above which isn't an actual failure. Yes Sony is beating them, but they are selling enough units to be profitable in the long run... also note, Sony likely isn't actually making money of PS4's directly either.
The end result of all of that is that Microsoft needs to minimize their investment in these areas or maximize the benefit of efforts spent. Windows 10 will move more of each OS to a shared codebase. This means less will need to be invested explicitly in any one ecosystem and that investments potentially benefit multiple ecosystems.
Another benefit is that the more code all of the operating systems share under the hood, the easier it becomes to blur the lines where one ends another begins. If Microsoft decides that Windows Phone needs to act more like its desktop counterpart to attract more users, making that change becomes easier. Same goes if they want to do something like bringing Cortana to the desktop or Xbox. The more low level code they share, the more these cross OS opportunities grow.
With phones getting comparable in specs to low end Windows tablets in terms of specs (could even drop an Atom chipset in there), it would be interesting per se to have a phone that leverages one UI when used as a phone, and then another when "docked". This of course assumes some sort of phone dock that gives it a keyboard and larger screen. But it would be infinitely better than something like a tablet which runs Android when in tablet mode and Windows when docked. Not just because it isn't two separate ecosystems, but it could actually be the exact same OS as well, just with a different UX layer.
The other place where lines could be blurred is the Xbox One. If MS can work out a way to make the interaction with the gamepad and Kinect viable, I would love to be able to use my Xbox One as a full blown Windows PC. There is the gaming side of things, but also a much richer media experience available. I think a console that could play both PC games and Xbox One games would decimate the PS4 and any hopes something like the SteamBox would have. Heck, I'd be fine if the console couldn't load full blown Windows, but if games publishers packaged games appropriately allowed PC games to be played on the console. I actually had a not so terrible time playing WoW with the Xbox One gamepad. It only sucked for things like accepting quests, dealing with inventory and typing (but I'm anti-social anyway). And WoW should have been a terrible example, so I imagine many PC games would adapt fine.
I don't have much comment on Windows RT. It is really about as baked together with Windows already as the others will become. So, in some way it is already reaping the benefits. In this case, in the form of universal apps. The Windows Phone Store is much larger than the Windows Store and has more big name apps. Universal apps are an attractive way for developers of such apps to target one or more of the platforms they want to hit and get some "freebies" on the side. The other side of it is that it seems traditional desktop devs are more likely to write a universal app than they would have been to write a Windows Store or Windows Phone app. So, one day WinRT may become viable...but that is likely just a pipe dream.
The point is, not only does it allow Microsoft to invest less effort in platforms that aren't making it money, it makes those platforms much more interchangeable. I don't think we'll see an OS that lets you choose the UX from them any time soon. But it should enable them to more rapidly absorb what works in place into another. Which should enable them to focus more time and effort on the things that are making them money. Windows 10 is probably less important for end users than even Windows 8.1 was, but it is super important for Microsoft strategically. And important that they do it right.
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