Microsoft has unveiled its new Windows operating system, and has given it a surprising name: Windows 10.
Most in the techie media had expected Microsoft (MSFT) to name its new operating system Windows 9, following the lineage from its current Windows 8 system. Or if the company was to go beyond the expected, maybe Windows 365, or Windows One?
Terry Myerson, the Windows chief, told the crowd gathered for the launch of the new software that Microsoft wants to make a fresh start.
“Our new Windows must be built from the group up for a mobile-first, cloud-first world,” said Myerson.
Nearly 1.5 billion people around the world use Windows today and devices outnumber people, Myerson told the audience, according to The Verge’s live blog of the event.
He set the stage for the importance of the new platform, especially after Windows 8 failed to catch on due to a series of ill-functioning design elements, such as the removal of the classic “Start” button in the bottom left corner.
Only about 6.3% of PC users upgraded to Windows 8 versus 50.1% of users running Windows 7 and 25.3% running Windows XP, according to Net Applications.
Myerson hyped up the capabilities of the new operating system, and particularly focused on its ease of use for office workers as part of Microsoft’s ongoing plan to appeal to enterprise customers — a fancy way of saying businesses.
The company also emphasized the ease of switching from the more common Windows 7 to the new system.
“We want all these Windows 7 users to have the sentiment that yesterday they were driving a first-generation Prius … and now, with Windows 10, it’s like a Tesla,” said Joe Belfiore, the vice president of the operation systems group at Microsoft.
Windows 10 will run on the broadest types of devices to date and will feature a single platform where applications can be discovered, purchased and updated simultaneously across phones, tablets, laptop and desktop computers. Myerson called it the “most comprehensive [Windows] platform, ever.”
The new OS will be compatible with existing traditional management systems, and it will feature a new way to separate corporate and personal data across all devices. Microsoft is already reaching out to companies to evaluate the new system and will launch the Windows Insider Program Wednesday for individuals to start testing it as well.
Windows 10 is still in its early stages of development and is expected to ship in late 2015.