Taiwanese companies exploring Windows 8 ARM tablets
updated 11:50 am EST, Mon March 7, 2011
Taiwanese companies anxious of Windows 8 on ARM
At the CeBIT show in Taiwan, ITProPortal found that the companies exhibiting were anxious to bring out ARM-based products running on Windows 8. This will include notebooks, tablets, mainboards and barebones PCs, with the first companies to do so likely to be those who already make ARM-based devices.
This could include ASUS, MSI and Gigabyte, among others. A senior VP who chose to stay anonymous said his company would explore building such products if ARM released products that support Windows 8. ARM has a strong reputation in mobile devices, with lower power consumption than x86-based devices. Hardware with its chips is expected to bring native 3D, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, 3G, NFC, and mobile TV support.
Windows 8 promises to deliver the same interface on more than one architecture. Back in February, Morgan Stanley analyst predicted that ARM-based tablets with Windows 8 could arrive in late 2011 or early in 2012, though a countering roadmap leak has put them in late 2012, consistent with Microsoft's rigid three-year Windows update schedule.
