Windows RT: Features and Limitations

One of the significant changes that Microsoft has prepared with Windows 8 is the ability to see its desktop operating system for the first timeworking on devices with ARM architecture The so-called Windows RT is one of the options that we will have consumers as of October 26. But before that day comes, let's see how it is and what characterizes ARM Windows compared to the versions for x86 platforms.

The new in the Windows 8 family

Each new version of Windows comes out with several flavors for the consumer to choose from.Windows 8 is no exception, but in this case it adds a clear difference with a new edition that stands apart from the rest: Windows RT. After all its life running on x86 processors, the quintessential operating system begins its foray into another architecture: ARM. Windows RT is Windows for ARM processors, or, as they call it from Redmond, WOA (Windows on ARM)

Windows RT shares a large amount of code with the rest of the Windows 8 family but is mainly designed for other types of devices other than our computers and laptops. Although nothing prevents its use in the previous ones, the truth is that in this case the accent is placed on mobility. Microsoft's ultimate goal is to maintain the same experience on ARM that consumers will enjoy with Windows 8 on the x86/64 architecture. In other words, take 'Modern UI' everywhere, whatever the device in front of us.

But Windows RT will not be a commercial version of Windows 8. WOA consists of a single version that is intended to come pre-installed on computers and tabletswith ARM processors. Unlike Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro, Windows RT will not be sold separately to the end user nor can it be purchased by upgrading from our Windows 7. Furthermore, Windows RT devices cannot be replaced by another system, since, in principle, disabling UEFI Secure Boot is prevented.

Hardware: stricter rules

To push WOA forward, Microsoft has allied itself with the ARM platform's headliners, including NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments. All three have provided prototypes for the development and testing of Windows RT and are primary suppliers to large manufacturers in the industry.This ensures that we will have multiple and very diverse gadgets with which to use this version of the operating system. Including Microsoft's own Surface.

The main feature that Windows RT brings to all of these devices, derived from its ARM architecture, is that it helps manufacturers build thinner and lighter devices with significant improvements in autonomy, promising longer battery life to contribute to a better mobile experience. It is precisely the mobile theme that permeates the entire philosophy behind the RT version of the system. An example of this is that unlike computers and laptops, and as if it were a mobile phone, with Windows RT we can forget about the shutdown button, going into hibernation or suspending the system.

But in order to install Windows RT manufacturers have to comply with the strictest rules they have set since Redmond in the hardware section .These range from the need, in the case of being tactile, to have a multi-touch screen that differentiates at least five points and whose minimum resolution must be 1366x768, to the requirement of having five physical buttons with a minimum size, going through have at least 10 GB of storage and many other requirements. In any case, this means less freedom of movement for manufacturers and a greater effort to control the final user experience by Microsoft

Software: Apps and the Windows Store

In Redmond they know that a fundamental part of the user experience is the software, and with Windows RT they have not wanted to leave anything out of their control. For this reason, in this version of the operating system, we can only install applications directly from the Windows Store All of them 'Modern UI' applications, without the possibility of executing classic desktop programs on our ARM devices.

To fill that gap, Microsoft has taken care to provide developers with the same tools in WOA as those available for creating 'Modern UI'-style x86/64 applications. The main difference lies in the use of the new WinRT runtime, intended for the development of a whole new generation of applications ready for the cloud, oriented towards mobility, designed to be controlled through a touch interface and permanently connected to the web.

But as the movement is demonstrated by walking, Microsoft wanted to be the first to take the step and not leave Windows RT users in second place compared to those who opt for other versions of Windows 8 That's why they have planned to include with the system desktop versions adapted to WinRT of some of their main tools, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote.

The old desk remains but limited

In view of the above, it is evident that 'Modern UI', with its Start Screen in the foreground, makes all the sense in WOA. But that does not mean that with Windows RT we are not facing a genuine Windows. Underneath all this, as in other Windows 8, there is still the traditional desktop, although in this case with significant limitations.

In Windows RT we can continue to access the classic desktop, but we won't be able to install or run any of its applications, except those that Microsoft has expressly converted. In this way, we will continue to have Windows Explorer to browse our files and folders, the task manager with all the improvements introduced by Windows 8, or the control panel to keep our system at bay. Even some applications like Internet Explorer 10 will also be present in Windows RT with a desktop version.But no third party apps.

Therefore, it is the Windows we know, yes, but with limitations. Everything in WOA seems designed so that we gradually leave the desktop and immerse ourselves once and for all in the 'Modern UI' experience. If you want your old desktop apps working forget Windows RT and go for Windows 8 or Windows 8 Pro

Windows RT completes the ecosystem

Windows RT comes to cover the gap that the recent success of tablets had opened in the Microsoft ecosystem. With it, those from Redmond close the circle and complete one of the most cohesive ecosystems of all that we can find on the market right now. We have Windows 8 on our PCs, Windows RT on our tablets, and Windows Phone 8 on our phones

Everything working under 'Modern UI'.All with access to apps from the Windows Store or Windows Phone Store. All interconnected to conquer the user. Windows RT is one more piece of the system and that's how it has been designed by Microsoft. It is not a question of replacing Windows 8, but of coexisting with the complete desktop system We have to wait and see what the market thinks of this new strategy of the giant computing.