Shulou(Shulou.com)06/01 Report--

Why Microsoft keeps three sets of systems on the mobile side, for this problem, this article details the corresponding analysis and solution, hoping to help more small partners who want to solve this problem find a simpler and easier way.

Perhaps many people have questions, Apple's mobile phones and tablets use iOS system, but why Microsoft uses Windows Phone system on mobile phones, Windows RT and Windows 8 system on tablets, and the application between these three systems cannot be directly compatible with use?

The benefits of using a unified system on the mobile side are obvious, not only saving development costs and speeding up update efficiency, but also beneficial to mobile application development and mobile cross-platform collaboration. But Microsoft maintains three relatively bloated systems on the mobile side, which actually has its own reasons:

PC thinking frames Microsoft

Apple's ability to unify mobile through a set of iOS is that the company's positioning of the tablet iPad is very clear_an enlarged version of the mobile entertainment terminal. Although Apple has repeatedly stressed that the iPad is also productive, in practice, the iPad is still more used as an entertainment and leisure device. Microsoft sees tablets more as an extension and deformation of laptops than as an expansion of smartphones--in Microsoft's view, people use tablets more for work. Even in the advertisements he shot, there was a strong office complex.

This is also destined that Microsoft will not migrate the mobile phone operating system to the tablet computer like Apple, but instead bring the complete PC system Windows 8 over and become the Surface Pro series. Microsoft has also developed a castrated version of Windows RT specifically for tablets that use ARM chips. For Microsoft, the development of RT system is a trade-off choice, on the one hand, the X86 architecture is not mature enough on the mobile side, Microsoft also hopes to increase cooperation with ARM to avoid the strategic risk of completely bundling with Intel.

Second, Microsoft's unwillingness to create an embarrassing situation

Microsoft's tablet strategy didn't have the desired effect. First, its Surface RT sales are bleak. At present, Microsoft officials have not announced the sales data of the Surface series. According to third-party reports, the Surface series shipped 900,000 units in the first quarter of this year, accounting for only 1.8% of the tablet market. Surface Pro sales are better than Surface RT.

Ballmer also admitted in the middle of this year that Microsoft made too many Surface RT, but sales were not good, and had to cut prices by 30% to clear inventory. This cost Microsoft $900 million.

The second is that in addition to Nokia, which has been acquired, it still insists on producing tablets equipped with Windows RT, and other partners either announce production stops or cancel production plans. The RT alliance has effectively collapsed.

Microsoft is not willing to face this situation, continue to launch Surface 2 generation.

One possible logic is that Microsoft's Surface 2 has entered the development and even trial phase before the final dismal performance of Surface is released. IT hardware manufacturing is a systems engineering, and it's hard for Microsoft to stop a product halfway. At the same time, Ballmer and the Microsoft team may also have some confidence in Surface RT, hoping to reverse the defeat through Surface 2.

In order to change the adverse market impact of the first generation of Windows RT, Microsoft even changed the name of the new generation of products (removed RT, named Surface 2). Pro version continues to upgrade to Surface Pro 2.)

Third, it is not easy for Microsoft to give up RT immediately.

In the "Double 11" promotion for national shopping, Microsoft's official mall Surface 2 sold only 58 units, while Surface Pro 2 performed slightly better, but only 96 units shipped. In the face of a new generation of products that continue to be bleak, Microsoft's transformation and integration on the mobile side has become inevitable.

Microsoft executives recently said they were considering reducing mobile systems, but that it might not happen until 2015--a long time in the mobile internet era.

Tablets with full Windows 8 support are hard to get rid of because Microsoft is adamant that there will be a certain number of business people willing to use tablets for a "PC-like experience." And regardless of the first or second generation, the Pro version of the Surface does perform better than the RT version.

Windows RT based on ARM architecture has a bad future. It's not smart to have a dedicated team to maintain a disparate emasculation system, and as the hardware performance gap between smartphones and tablets narrows, it's inevitable that both software platforms will unify.

In the future, Microsoft may streamline into two systems on the mobile side: Windows Phone (RT), a popular tablet that supports smartphones and ARM architecture, and Windows 8, which supports professional tablets.

As for why it will take until 2015, there may be two factors: First, Microsoft needs to integrate two different departments and software products, which requires a lot of technical investment and management expenditure. Generally, the larger the company, the thicker the "departmental wall" and the longer it takes to integrate. Second, for product planning, Microsoft also needs to evaluate the overall performance of the second-generation Surface series as a whole to convince itself of its trade-offs. At the same time, after integrating Nokia's mobile phone business, Microsoft may also plan as an overall strategy.

The answer to why Microsoft keeps three sets of system questions on the mobile side is shared here. I hope the above content can help you to some extent. If you still have a lot of doubts, you can pay attention to the industry information channel to learn more.

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