These past few weeks have shown us that Microsoft’s Windows 10X should be a formidable alternative to Chrome OS. It seems to work well with a mouse and keyboard and on laptops with touch screens. Now, a pair of new images show how well it scales to a mobile form factor.
Twitter user Gustave Monce claims they managed to get a pre-release build of Windows 10X running on a Nokia Lumia 950 XL, a device that was released all the way back in 2015. The images Monce shared shows how well the upcoming software scales to different screen sizes. On the Lumia 950 XL, which features a 5.7-inch display, Windows 10X’s taskbar fits wells at the bottom of the screen, while the quick settings panel pops up with all the elements in place.
Monce said Windows 10X responds well to the smaller form factor, as the images demonstrate, but plenty of work still needs to be done from a usability standpoint. Still, if we didn’t know better, we’d say Microsoft was preparing to get back into smartphones (but we know that couldn’t be further from the truth).
Windows 10X is expected to be a lightweight take on Windows 10. As we’ve seen in previous leaks, it takes a lot of inspiration from Google’s Chrome OS while still retaining the soul and design of Windows 10. As something that will likely be targeted at enterprise and education customers, Microsoft’s new software could be primed to have a breakout year.
As we’ve said before, Windows 10X won’t be something you’ll be able to upgrade your existing machine to. Instead, the software will come pre-installed on new machines similar to laptops that run Chrome OS. If you’ve been tempted by Chromebooks in the past but are embedded in the Microsoft ecosystem, the launch of Windows 10X is the perfect solution.
Windows 10X devices are expected to be released this year, possibly as early as this spring. Wouldn’t it be cool if Microsoft allowed old Windows Phone owners to download a working version of the software on their device? If only.
