How-To Holography

Windows 10 now runs the exact same operating system on your desktop, tablet, Xbox, and your phone… assuming you have a Microsoft tablet or a Windows phone. The new “Continuum” feature will let you switch Windows Store apps from desktop windows to full screen when you undock your Surface or similar device, so you are using a tablet like a tablet, and a desktop like a desktop. In the demo videos it looked a little clunky, but we’re assuming they will continue to refine it.

But is Windows 10 on mobile devices likely to make people switch from iPhone or Android? Not until the apps are a whole lot better and, even then, Google and Apple have such a huge market share lead that it could be forever, or never, until they gain real market share.

The track record on the Windows Store hasn’t been very good so far — sure, they have a ton of apps in there, but most of them are so terrible they can barely be called apps. When they do have an app from a well-known company, it’s generally a pale imitation of the Android or iPhone versions, and nowhere near as good as the iPad-optimized version of that same app. We’re certainly hoping that Microsoft announces some changes at their Build conference that will get more people making more apps for Windows, but so far we’re not holding our breath, despite it being a great platform for developers.

The one area that does seem interesting for home users is that Xbox One will soon be upgraded to Windows 10, and have access to at least a section of the Windows Store. So people will finally be able to make apps for the Xbox, which could mean some amazing things for media centers or pretty much anything you’d like to display on the TV.