Windows Free On Devices With Screens Smaller Than 9 Inches Acrosss

[6Foot2]

Link: Want to Build a Windows Wearable? That'll Be $0, Please

 

...By making Windows free on those devices, Microsoft will be in a much better position to compete with the likes of Android — which now dominates the smartphone market, and is rising fast in tablets — mainly because it costs manufacturers nothing to use. Windows usually requires paying Microsoft a licensing fee....

[sted]

i wonder if some clever company will design a desktop with a built in 9" screen then expext users to plug in a tv/monitor and use the small screen as a companion screen/not at all to get a cheap desktop out there

[penfold]

Or how about netbooks making a resurgance?

[X-13]

So if I add a 9" or smaller screen to a full gaming rig, built into the case for monitoring stuff I guess, I can have Windows for free?

 

 

Good to know.

[CAM]

Phones and tablets so nope.

 

Microsoft know they will struggle to compete with iOS in the higher end of the market, so they are targeting the lower end cheap smartphone arena. Then they are only competing against Android who cover both ends. But I'm not sure how this will pay off as all income will have to come from hardware. The Microsoft store is too small for a lot of money from apps and they don't perform the same degree of analytics and advertising as Google (in fact, that's one of the appeals of the Windows Phone platform, less intrusion).

[X-13]

Phones and tablets so nope.

 

I keep seeing "Phones, Tables and devices with a <9" screen".

 

I've also seen it extended to apply to the "internet of things", so a fridge can have Windows Phone 8.1 on it if you want...

 

 

If it's just phones and tablets, the screen restriction is unnecessary. A tablet with a massive screen is unusable as a tablet, and won't be as powerful as a desktop/laptop which would have just as much tablet-style usability.

[Arthur]

Although not much is known about Windows for IoT, I imagine it would be a popular OS for devices like Intel's Minnowboard.

 

Windows to be free on 9” and smaller tablets, also on IoT devices « Ars Technica