In 2017, Microsoft announced Always Connected PC, its foray into the Windows on ARM movement. This announcement and devices with Always Connected PC capability run on Qualcomm chips, apparently under an exclusive deal. Four years later, this exclusivity is about to end.
It’s worth noting that Microsoft and Qualcomm never said there was an exclusive deal between the two. However, no Windows on ARM device has ever shipped without a Qualcomm processor. Additionally, the chip giant was a co-host of Microsoft’s Always Connected PC launch.
According to XDA Developers, there was an exclusive deal in place and it is now coming to an end. We’ve started to see movement that suggests Microsoft is looking to move away from its partner.
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At an executive summit this month, MediaTek discussed plans to build chips for Windows on ARM. Of course, Microsoft is also rumored to be working in conjunction with AMD on a proprietary ARM processor. Considering everything has been Qualcomm so far, it looks like something is up.
Of course, Qualcomm could and still is likely to continue to create processors for Windows on ARM as well, but not exclusively.
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Microsoft may even be happy to have more choices. Windows on ARM was not well received, especially at first. The devices were slow and there was also fear of a perpetual need to upgrade. Microsoft even distanced itself from Qualcomm following the release.
Microsoft’s own Surface Pro X – the company’s first ARM-based device – received only lukewarm reception. Being able to work with other chipmakers and design your own silicon could help Windows on ARM grow.
Tip of the day: Did you know that a virtual drive in Windows can help you with disk management for various reasons? A virtual drive is simply simulated by the platform as a separate drive, while the storage file can be stored anywhere on your system.
Drive data is available in files or folders, which are represented by software in the operating system as a drive. In our tutorial, we show you different ways to configure and use these virtual drives.
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