Didn't they kill off the Windows Mobile series anyway? If they did, it would cause more confusion - "Oh look, Microsoft's bringing back Windows Mobile! Wait, this isn't Windows CE, it's Windows NT? What?"

I personally think windows 8 will be a massive success, with both an x864 and an arm version I see big things ahead, especially once oems get there hands on it for tablets

I hope they didn't kill it, I was planning on getting a Windows phone!

Windows Phone and Windows Mobile aren't the same thing, Wumbowalrus. Windows Mobile was killed off. Windows Phone is still active.

Oh... What's the difference?

Edit: I'm guessing windows mobile has a OS interface and Windows phone has a more phone friendly interface?

The two aren't compatible with each other. Windows Phone is still based on CE, but it's programmed differently.

There is such a huge use case hole left by the iPad and various Android tablets.

I see it like this:

HP totally screwed the pouch by running WebOS in the ground. They were gunning for the enterprise market hard cord. But we all know how that turned out.

Android acts like they are going for the enterprise market but look at how long they have been out vs. what they have accomplished -- Zero traction. Let alone Google's stunning lapse when comes to working with OEMs, carriers and the like to push out updates and incentivise devs to create tablet apps. Their current strategy isn't working.

Apple might eventually get around to giving the iPad enterprise-grade OS level features but they will only do this as an after thought. Although it should be noted the iPad has such a massive list of enterprise-grade apps Apple might just point to the App Store and direct SMBs and big business that away. They are a consumer company first and foremost.

RIM -- really? Nope. They are sooooo slow to adapt to the market with their entire smartphone line let alone their lackluster tablet offering the game is over for them. I see them slowly sink to a 4th-5th tier status -- fading more and more into a Palm-like buy out.

Windows 8/RT tablet despite its MSFT epic lateness surprisingly has a clear path to the top. They aim to push Apple to the 50 percent market share sometime around middle of next year. I dont see this happening but then again we haven't see SMBs and Big Business spring for tablets ina major way.

I personally have put DP/CP Windows 8 on the older HP atom based slate up through an all in one desktop with second monitor and it performs admirably.

I am also excited about the prospect of actually begin able to have some newer form factor like the ASUS Transformer series -- but intel based Ivy Bridge Windows 8 dock able tablet/laptop with all day battery life.
So yeah, I think MSFT is in the best position to capitalise.

One more point about Apple -- they are number one when it comes to consumer level tech. The boys and girls go crazy for their offerings.

On a side note it would be nice to see MSFT's future with Windows Phone 8; provided they could actually get traction with next gen hardware and not two year old junk they are peddling windows phone 7.

I don't think it will be as big a success as windows 7 for the desktop. Metro UI just isnt designed with mouse/keyboard in mind and removing the start menu leaves mouse/keyboard users out to dry IMHO. windows 8 on tablets with touchscreens might be a success. It will all depend on how many ipad/android owners buy one. I'm a microsoft/pc enthusiest but i own an ipad and I dont think i will buy a windows 8 tablet as I am use to my ipad now.

I'm starting to find it amusing when people talk about how Windows 8 "isn't designed with mouse/keyboard in mind" and it "leaves PC users out to dry". I currently have Win8 and Win7 dual-booting on my desktop. 8 is actually EASIER for me to use than 7. The only reason I keep 7 is because 8 doesn't support all my games yet. Just something to consider, that maybe not everybody has trouble using it with a mouse and keyboard.

You can't seriously think that Metro was designed with a mouse in mind. seriously i don't need boxes that big to click with the precision of a mouse. the metro ui is designed for people to touch with their finger. period. Microsoft is just trying to capture some of the market share that apple/google has taken away with the ipad/tablet OS. And if it works for you....great! I just think it will alienate more people than it will win over, especially seeing how they could have left the start menu in there but had an option to turn it on or off (developer preview) depending on how you prefer it.

I tried the beta and really hated it. The only good part that I can see is the "Windows Explorer" bit which is essentially the same as Windows 7's, without a Classic GUI (first time since Windows 95!)

I have the belief of "Supplement, don't replace". Microsoft continued to provide basic tools such as the DOS emulator (cmd.exe) and Windows Classic themes even in Windows 7. There is no reason they can't do this in 8 as well. Metro is fine for tablets, but it's a complete joke for laptops and desktop computers. I will say this much right now - if they seriously keep the RTM the way the consumer preview is, I will be sticking to Windows 7 x64 and avoiding 8, similarly to how I stuck to XP and avoided Vista.

I agree, but metro somewhat looks good, but is more suited for tablets. Like seriously, *Voice of a n00b with windows 8*

"Wow, this is lame it looks just like Windows 7"

*Start Menu*

"Wowza! this is a big change!"

Change is good sometimes. In this case, no and yes.

Exactly.
It dont seem very friendly with mouses or keyboards. Its like there trying to force us to buy tablets or touch screen monitors. Poor Windows 8 with all the changes most likely will end up like Vista did...A FLOP.

oh well..

There are many good and bad aspects of Windows 8 that some customers may like or may not like. Microsoft has tried to improve the overall performance and ease on engineering this operating system, and their work has triggered many controversial arguments. Let's not forget that this OS is based on the feedback and stats that their Customer Experience Improvement Program has spitted out. The change that they have made have both pros and cons for certain people.
Yes, the Metro style apps and the Start screen may have been a flop for people using mouse and keyboard, but it's not hard to get used to the new UI. Just remember the corners, charms, and start key, and you'll be okay. Instead of dragging the scrollbar at the bottom of the start screen, drag your mouse across the right side of the screen, and it will scroll. One thing I'll say, though. It is harder in Windows 8 to shutdown or restart, because now tablets and laptops are oriented for sleeping and connected standby. If you find going to charms a step too long, make a shortcut on the Start screen or taskbar, or simply press Alt-F4 on the Desktop.
However, there are some things in Windows 8 that I'd like to see changed. For example, dual-booting: when you start up your PC, it starts up Windows 8, then asks you which OS you want to boot up. If it's Windows 8, good, but if it's Windows 7, then you have to restart and boot up again. A suggestion would be to make the boot selection before booting. I like the fact that they've added the mouse, though.
Stop complaining that Windows 8 is worse in every way. It's not. Windows Explorer is now easier to use, with more options such as ISO/VHD mounting, enhanced file copying/moving/deleting, and the ribbon UI from Office 2007.

Get used to it. I think that people will eventually stop resisting change and enjoy the experience. It's not that hard to accept that the controls are a bit larger.

Incoming rant...

Yes lets just sit back and let Microsoft assume where ever they go we'll follow like a bunch of mindless sheep.

Windows 8's start menu is a disgusting distraction, you start your machine up with the intent on working and you have tiles all over the screen telling you how many emails you have, the weather, the news and they're all colourful just begging for you to click them and whenever you go into that start menu to look for an application there they are again just trying to distract you. Honestly at the rate things are going it'll be no different than the Xbox 360's menu where about 80% of the screen is covered in either adverts or blank space and 10% of that is spent on what you actually want. Microsoft honestly don't give a damn if their interface is designed with their main customers in mind and sometimes I have to wonder if Microsoft even know what they're doing half the time, Games for Windows didn't exactly work out as they planned and now they seem to be completely backing out of it with their tail between their legs.
Please do time yourself trying to find an application via the start menu in Windows 7 compared to finding an application in this new start menu that takes up the entire screen and requires you to scroll! And that doesn't mean using the search function either.
The new start menu should be optional for desktop users, how hard can that be? It may be a step forward for tablet users but it's a step backward for the rest of us.

I would like to respectfully disagree with you, sir. I find the new start menu quicker and easier to use than the current one, and I LIKE the Mail and Weather notifications, as it saves me from having to find my iPod to look those things up. I agree with you that the new Start should be optional, but I would use it either way. Oh, and side note: If you have more than a few programs installed on your current computer, you still have to scroll in the Start Menu to find what you want. The only difference is in direction, and not having to click through pesky subfolders.

There's a wonderful thing in Windows Vista and 7 called gadgets that could be added to your desktop which showed these things, if I wanted to quickly check them then I could simply hover my mouse in the bottom right corner of the screen to see a preview of my desktop with those gadgets showing me the current weather and what mail I may have. I don't see how going into the left-hand corner and then having to go into some menu to check them was a better idea than that really but apparently all people care about is if it 'feels' faster.



And on your second argument. Not all applications appear on the "main" start menu in Windows 8, you want to find something? Well have fun...
GO INTO START -> RIGHT CLICK MENU -> CLICK SHOW ALL APPS -> SCROLL THROUGH APPS [-> CAN'T SEE ALL APPS ZOOM OUT] -> FIND APP GROUP/FOLDER -> CLICK ON APP


GO INTO START -> HOVER OVER / CLICK ON "ALL PROGRAMS" -> HOVER OVER FOLDER -> CLICK APP


Either I'm missing something here and being dumb but I honestly don't see why it's better or easier to use.

@hogsy,

Same. The tiles for me are too big. I have to move my mouse on much longer distances, and the scrolling is just not fast, even compared to iOS for example. I find myself using the scroll wheel much harder when using the start screen, so I just moved to classic start menu.

I agree with you on that one. For a desktop PC, the size of the tiles are downright unneccessary. May be useful for tablets, but I kind of find it unappealing on a desktop.

I do like the Metro UI, if only because Tablets. But, We DO need to see something along the lines of a Permanent Solution for the non-metro users, like me. Though I might be Upgrading to 8, I really can't be sure, because I may have to upgrade this POS Standalone I work on.

How many people have actually tried Windows 8 on a tablet so far?

I haven't been able to try it on a bona fide tablet, but does a touchscreen PC count as close enough?

A touch-screen PC is what I would think Microsoft assume most users that use desktops will switch to with Windows 8, so yes I suppose.

Yeah. Aside from the random freezes every five minutes (possibly caused by my NVIDIA drivers, not sure), it works wonderfully. It's very smooth and very easy to navigate. Average time from ending installation to being fully customized and ready to go on my Win7 setup is almost 45 minutes. On Win8, it was about 20.