Microsoft Windows 10X will drive innovation and growth in the foldable device market

I believe foldable devices are a big part of our technological future. Devices like Samsung’s iteration of foldable smartphones like the Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Z Flip have changed my use cases forever and it’s hard to imagine a future without them now. That said, I agree with the early form factors and use cases, but recognize that many are not. For them, foldable devices still have a long way to go in terms of width and depth. Depth in the refinement of devices, especially in durability, and breadth in the use of a crease in other form factors. Windows 10X is Microsoft’s operating system for foldable and dual-screen devices and likely form factors Microsoft isn’t even talking about yet. Windows 10X will be spread across a lot of great form factors, but in the near term it will be foldable and dual-display devices. I will discuss which market Windows 10X is aimed at, the differentiation it has with Windows 10, and the gap it bridges between these two converging markets.

The future market

After years of seeing a bendable or curved screen, the application of this technology is progressing. Companies like Samsung, Huawei, TCL and Motorola have all unveiled smartphones with a foldable display with Variance. Foldable screens will have a significant presence in the larger device category, so much so that I think it will be as disruptive as the presence of 2-in-1 laptop design. Besides foldables, dual-screen devices will follow, and both will require the right software. Much of this opinion comes from the market opening up for dual-screen and foldable devices.

The mobile device market is changing in two ways. Laptops are more like smartphones in their mobile experience, and smartphones are more like laptops in design, power, and input capabilities. The iPad and its updated operating system to allow keyboard and mouse input is a prime example. Although I consider this a strategic failure of Apple that has been overdue for so long, Apple finally made the right decision. More inputs in a device means a more diverse and efficient workflow. Another example of smartphones that look more like laptops is Samsung’s Galaxy S20 Ultra. The S20 Ultra has 16GB of memory and 512GB of expandable storage. That’s laptop-level spec in a smartphone, which is an incredible achievement that other smartphone makers will follow; Not because it’s necessary, but because they can. Samsung has further improved its DeX experience, which allows its devices to access a desktop experience, and it has even partnered with Microsoft to be in a Windows environment via USB.

An example of laptops looking more like smartphones would be the overall concept of an Always Connected PC (ACPC). ACPCs are a great example of merging the connectivity and battery life of a smartphone with the performance and capabilities of a PC. Another example is the evolution of 2-in-1 laptops. 2-in-1 laptops have done a great job of seeding the foldable device market by having to overcome the embarrassment of not being the best laptop or “tablet”. “, but rather being both. The advantage of ACPCs and 2-in-1s is that the user gets the best of both worlds with a limiting factor.

The limiting factor comes from their primary contributions. For 2-in-1s and ACPCs, the primary inputs are the keyboard and mouse. It goes without saying that the primary function of both is to be laptops first, tablets/mobility second. It’s a differentiator when looking at it compared to dual-screen, foldable devices whose primary input is touch-based, with keyboard and mouse being secondary.

This market trend is not only true for consumer devices, but it is also true for enterprise and enterprise workflows. Much of the business workflow is shifting to mini PCs that plug into the back of a monitor and lightweight laptops like ACPCs, Intel Athena-certified devices, and 2-in-1s that take the office workflow out of the office.

The same can be said of software. With the release of the first set of foldable, dual-screen devices, the Surface Neo and Lenovo Flexbook need an operating system that can rightly meet the needs of a hybrid mobile device.

Why standard Windows 10 is insufficient for foldable and dual-screen devices

Windows 10X puts Windows 10 in an interesting position. Aren’t Surface tablets a testament to Windows 10’s viability as a tablet-friendly operating system? Windows 10 has a tablet mode, and it works. However, just as we’ve seen that laptops don’t make good smartphones and vice versa, Windows 10 doesn’t make a good mobile operating system. Windows 10 encounters an obstacle when a user tries to touch a main input on a mouse and keyboard. To understand why we have to go back to 2012.

Windows 10’s tablet mode is the product of what Microsoft wanted to implement with Windows RT. For those who don’t remember Windows RT, this was Mircosoft’s first attempt at a tablet operating system in 2012. It happened when tablets were a new concept and stuck to thumbnails Windows mobile dynamics. It had one flaw that separated it from classic Windows – the reliance on developing apps for the Microsoft Store. A power play that was not favorable to desktop apps and supported apps on Windows 7. Windows RT then became the tablet mode shell of Windows 10, and touch became a secondary input, even for applications in tablet mode.

To continue, Windows 10 is only suitable for one mode, tablet mode. Dual-screen and foldable devices need mode optimization as much as they need app optimization. Both require inputs to change as modes change. For example, in the Neo, the dual screen will have touch as the primary input, but when the keyboard is flipped, the keyboard becomes the primary input and apps are optimized for the keyboard in the same way as the user experience. More modes mean more use cases, and more use cases mean more productivity in a mobile experience. Windows 10 lacks the mobile experience.

Bridging the gap

Windows 10X is the Windows RT concept and Windows mobile kept alive eight years later. I believe there are some key changes that will allow the operating system to succeed in the wake of dual-screen and foldable devices.

Windows 10X cleans up the look by removing live tiles. As I mentioned before, Live Thumbnails translate from Windows Mobile. For Windows 10X, we’re getting more of an Android look and feel with updated native apps. There’s still a hint of Windows RT with the taskbar and overall concept, but it takes what Android has learned in terms of OS design rather than Windows mobile.

Microsoft released the Windows 10X SDK a year in advance. This tells me that Microsoft is serious about optimizing apps for its new software. Developers face many hurdles when it comes to optimizing apps for dual-screen and foldable devices. The gap between screens and determining where the crease is for different devices will be difficult. It reminds me of what Android is going through with its varied number of devices with different screen sizes and different hardware. Windows 10X, like Android, will need to be wide enough to be on various devices and still be able to stick with its dual-screen, foldable experience.

Windows 10X can run legacy apps alongside native apps. This is a big problem and a feature that Windows RT lacked. Legacy apps like WIN32, Universal Windows Apps (UWP), Progressive Web Apps (WPA) are still present in this form of Windows. These special legacy apps run in a separate Windows container from the Windows 10X operating system and separate from native apps. This separation limits legacy apps to all administrative controls, but improves device security.

Wrap

Just as foldable devices and dual-screen devices require an operating system like Windows 10X, Windows 10X will create market growth for these types of devices. I think it has the right ingredients to make a successful operating system, and I think Microsoft is taking the right steps to make the operating system successful. An early release of a SDK will help bring the Microsoft Store to life with the app and mode optimization it needs.

Windows 10X is still in the works, and so far it’s a significant improvement over what Microsoft was doing with Windows RT. The success of Windows 10X is going to be in the hands of dual-screen devices, and others like it.

Note: Moor Insights & Strategy co-op Jacob Freyman contributed to this article.

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