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Surface RT Devices Won't Get Windows 10

Posted by Soulskill on from the take-that-early-adopters dept.

whoever57 writes: In its announcement of Windows 10, Microsoft indicated not all devices would get the updated operating system. Now, Microsoft says its Surface devices running Windows RT won't be receiving full updates, though it does plan to roll some new functionality into them. "Given that Windows RT and RT 8.1 were designed for power economizing devices sporting 32-bit ARM architecture, and never had the same functionality — to many users' frustration — as full-blown Windows 8 and 8.1, it comes as little surprise that the RT versions of the operating system should be left out of the latest update loop. In fact, a week before Microsoft's big Windows 10 reveal on January 21, the company released firmware updates for all three models of its Intel-powered Surface Pro series, but neither of the ARM-based Surface tablets — the Surface 2 or Surface RT — received any new updates this month." The Surface Pro line of tablets, which run a normal version of Windows, will be getting an update to Windows 10.

5 of 158 comments (clear)

  1. Not surprising by daninaustin · · Score: 3, Interesting

    MS has a habit of abandoning devices. Maybe that's a reason so few people want their phones.

    1. Re:Not surprising by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      That parent, right there.

      As a developer, this is the one thing that pisses me off about microsoft the most. Wasted time and effort developing an app for a specific platform only for it to be dumped (the language, the OS version or device range).

      Though if you used something like unity, it's less painful as you can retarget other platforms I suppose.

    2. Re:Not surprising by Pope+Hagbard · · Score: 4, Interesting

      On the other hand, Android mfrs tend to either provide just 1-2 updates or not at all, and those phones sell pretty well.

  2. multi-arch Windows by unixisc · · Score: 3, Interesting

    NT multi-architecture might be a good thing, but the time for that had come & gone once the Alpha went under. They could still resurrect it for the MIPS or the Power architecture (the same one that they made the Xbox 360s) and go there. But the opportunity to go multi-architecture for Microsoft existed in the 90s, and they blew it. Had they made a separate win64 based OS (like we have today) then for just the Alpha & the MIPS, they'd have had time to test & refine it, and had alternatives to 64-bit Wintel when it surfaced. But they never made any serious attempts to support these platforms.

    I think now, the wars are b/w platforms, rather than just OSs or just CPUs. The only thing you'll get iOS on will be the A series of processors from Apple. Android comes on a variety of platforms, but Windows Phone 8.x seems to come on just the Cortex.

  3. If Microsoft would unlock the boot loader now... by ron_ivi · · Score: 4, Interesting
    If Microsoft would unlock the boot loader now, heck, even I (who dislike most microsoft products except their keyboards and mice) would probably be happy to buy a Surface RT.

    Seriously - I like the form-factor of the device - and the price. The only thing that stopped me from buying one when they came out was the OS.

    Request for Microsoft --- now that you're abandoning it --- please unlock the boot loader.