While Microsoft hasn’t revealed a great deal about Windows 10X, we’ve seen snippets and heard rumors about the software giant’s plan for its mobile operating system. Now, images of a smartphone running 10X have appeared online, and it looks like a fantastic system for those who like how Windows 10 handles its UI.
What Is Windows 10x?
Windows Latest first spotted the news of Windows 10X running on a smartphone. If you’ve never heard of Windows 10X before, it’s a miniature version of Windows 10 designed to run on mobile devices.
Windows 10X was originally scheduled to release with the Surface Duo, but Microsoft scrapped the idea in 2018 and shipped the Duo with Android instead. However, Microsoft 10X is still under development.
Despite this, someone has managed to get the prototype version running on their phone already. Such is the case of Gustave Monce, who posted screenshots of Windows 10X running on a Lumia 950 XL:
Two other pics, left shows the large taskbar option, right shows the small one. All previous pictures showed medium pic.twitter.com/YYtpw1TjTU
— Gustave Monce (@gus33000) January 20, 2021
Anyone familiar with Windows 10 will notice how familiar the 10X UI is. Despite being an entirely different branch of Windows 10, it’s like someone managed to squash the operating system onto a phone.
In fact, Windows 10X seems to adapt well to any device you throw it on, no matter what shape it is. Developers had previously managed to get Windows 10X running on a tablet, and it looked equally good there, too.
As such, Microsoft seems to be making the smart move to create an operating system that can adapt to the device it’s on, not the other way around. This would make life easier for both Microsoft and developers; Microsoft would only need to maintain one mobile operating system, and developers wouldn’t have to fight to get 10X to play well with their device.
Right now, Microsoft is aiming to get 10X to work properly on single-screen devices. However, the company does intend to add dual-screen support sometime in 2022.
Is Windows 10X a Game-Changer, or the Next Windows Mobile?
Windows 10X isn’t ready for prime-time just yet, but from the hints and rumors appearing online, it’s set to be a fantastic way to bring Microsoft’s ecosystem onto mobile devices. Hopefully, Microsoft will give us more tidbits of information while it fleshes out Windows 10X.
Microsoft is also considering putting Windows 10X onto laptops. In fact, the software giant released a new “Modern Standby” feature for 10X that lets you receive emails when you close the lid on your laptop.
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