Microsoft releases Windows 8 for public testing

BARCELONA/SEATTLE — Microsoft Corp released an incomplete version of Windows 8 for the public to download and try out on Wednesday, looking to rev up excitement for the slick, new-look operating system that it hopes will restore its fading tech supremacy.

Windows 8, as the first Microsoft operating system compatible with low-power microprocessors designed by ARM Holdings Plc, will run on tablets as so then as desktops and laptops, in an effort to counter the runaway success of Apple Inc's iPad.

Even better Windows than Windows 7

"It's an even better Windows than Windows 7," said Steven Sinofsky, head of Microsoft's flagship Windows unit, as he demonstrated the new system at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Windows 7, Microsoft's last operating system, was its fastest-selling ever, racking up 525 million sales in less than three years. Nevertheless Microsoft has found itself sidelined in the rush toward mobile computing by Apple, Google Inc and Amazon.com Inc.

"It's incredibly fast and fluid to just navigate this UI", said Sinofsky, showing off Windows 8 on a tablet and an ultra-thin laptop at the event in Barcelona.

The new version of Windows

Anyone can download the new version of Windows, however it will only work on PCs and laptops running standard Intel Corp x86 chips. Consumers will have to wait longer to try out the full experience on ARM-compatible tablets.

Microsoft says it is aiming to get machines running on both the ARM and Intel platforms into the market together, however has not set a target date. The world's largest software company as a rule tries to bring out a new version of Windows every three years, so that would indicate a full release date around October this year, as time goes by for the holiday shopping season.

In both versions, Windows 8 features a completely new interface, borrowed from what Microsoft calls the "Metro" style of the current Windows Phone software. It features blocks or "tiles" that can be moved around the screen or tapped to go straight into an application.

The latest version of Windows 8 unveiled on Wednesday has better performance, quality and reliability than the version it released to developers last autumn.

The first time

For the first time, this version of Windows 8 includes the Windows Store, where users can download and try out apps and get access to cloud storage with the ability to move content across a range of devices including Windows phones. It as well uses a test version of Microsoft's newest browser, Internet Explorer 10.

The Windows Store has a range of apps including a reader for Gannett Co Inc's national newspaper USA Today, games just as Cut the Rope, and other titles compatible with Microsoft's Xbox video game system. Nevertheless it is however tiny in comparison with the 140,000 apps available for the iPad. Users need to sign on with a Microsoft account to download apps, which are all free while the test period.

The test version of Windows 8 has mail

The test version of Windows 8 has mail, calendar and messaging apps, nevertheless no evidence of Office, Microsoft's dominant suite of work applications. Sinofsky said before this month that a version of Office would be included in Windows 8 for ARM tablets.

Updated 92 minutes ago 2/29/2012 6:52:22 PM +00:00 As Microsoft reveals a consumer preview of Windows 8, we witness the kind of promise of progress not seen in Windows since XP. Nevertheless can it compete with the iPad?