Windows, Tablet Computer | featured news

The device, running a new version of the Windows operating system, would be the first computer of the company’s own design — and would be aimed squarely at Apple’s iPad.

Next week a high-ranking Microsoft executive will stand on stage and show off a new version of Windows on a tablet computer. It won't be the first time. But, when Windows chief Steven Sinofsky shows off an early version of its next touch-enabled, tablet-friendly operating system to independent developers at their annual conference in Anaheim next Tuesday, there is a sense that it really matters.

A tablet-optimized, Windows OS could be ready to see the light of day as early as next week, according to recent market chatter and media reports. The new operating system follows a smart move in January to ditch the older, problematic Wintel legacy and focus on new versions of Windows for the System on a Chip (SoC) architecture, many times more suitable for tablet devices, according to Sandeep Aggarwal at Caris. Trade The News goes so far as to report that these new products are being optimized to work on NVIDIA chips.

Dell introduces Windows tablet that comes with a keyboard and may be essentially turned into a standard laptop.