Beyond Windows 10: 6 Microsoft Releases To Watch
(Image: Microsoft)
From the time Microsoft unveiled Windows 10 through its launch on July 29, 2015, the new operating system has been at the forefront of Redmond's news cycle.
For six months, Microsoft consistently released details on the many changes and new features we would see in Windows 10. Windows Insiders and customers watched, listened, and explored news articles and preview builds as they familiarized themselves with the OS. The publicity frenzy came to a turning point last week, when Windows 10 was released in 190 countries.
Though there are still many customers awaiting upgrade notifications, the Windows 10 release is no longer a future event on our Outlook calendars. Now that launch day has come and gone, what can we expect to see next?
[Windows 10: Pros and Cons]
The development and release of Windows 10 haven't been the only items on Microsoft's 2015 to-do list, but they have been the most significant. As it closes out another fiscal year, Microsoft is pinning a lot of hope on Windows 10 to carry it into a successful and profitable future.
Earlier this year, Microsoft announced three core ambitions around which it will build its lineup of products and services: Enable more personal computing, reinvent productivity and business processes, and build the intelligent cloud. The launch of Windows 10 aligns closely with Microsoft's mission, but so do several other projects Microsoft is working to complete for FY 2016.
In addition to numerous batches of fixes and features for Windows 10, Microsoft is planning to launch a series of additions for enterprise Windows 10 PCs, a beta version of SharePoint, and Windows 10 Mobile. Read on to learn more about the announcements we're looking forward to seeing from Redmond throughout 2015 and beyond.
HoloLens
When Microsoft first unveiled its HoloLens headset in January, there was no indication of when the augmented reality goggles would be available to the general public. Now, it seems we're getting a clearer time frame for when we'll be able to try HoloLens for ourselves.
In a recent BBC interview, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella estimated a first version of HoloLens, one geared towards developers and enterprises than consumers, will come out "within the Windows 10 time frame," which he said means within the next year.
"We'll have developer versions of it first, and then it'll be more commercial use cases, and then it'll evolve," said Nadella.
Windows 10 Fixes
Microsoft is still in the process of delivering Windows 10 upgrade notifications to the general public, but it's already focusing on delivering fixes to those experiencing issues with the new OS. Small fixes have already begun reaching customers, but The Verge recently reported on Microsoft's plans to release a group of patches, entitled Service Release 1 (SR1), as early as this week. This batch of fixes won't include any new features, but should eliminate a few pesky Windows 10 bugs.
We may see a sprinkling of features in October, when it's predicted Microsoft will roll out a larger group of patches and new capabilities. These may include extension support for Microsoft Edge and a new app to support Skype integration. Windows Insiders should be on the lookout for a new build in the coming weeks.
Following the October batch, it looks like the next batch of fixes and features will arrive in the form of Project Redstone, which will reportedly arrive in June 2016.
New Windows 10 Hardware
One week before the Windows 10 launch, Microsoft held a conference callto share its fourth-quarter earnings for FY2015. After a write-off of last year's Nokia acquisition resulted in an $8.4 billion loss, Microsoft is heavily relying on Windows 10 to carry it into the future. Part of its success will come from new devices designed to support Windows 10.
On the most recent earnings call, CEO Satya Nadella explained how, later this fall, we'll see devices from all the OEMs to carry the company into the holiday quarter. Earlier this year we got a sneak peek of a few devices built for Windows 10 at the 2015 Computex conference. Products will include tablets, PCs, laptops, and hybrid devices from manufacturers including Dell, HP, Acer, Toshiba, and Asus.
New Enterprise Features
The third portion of CEO Satya Nadella's three-phase vision for Windows 10 will affect its enterprise audience. Microsoft has a release of enterprise features on the horizon, which will help further build the success of Windows 10. "I expect piloting to start and deployments to start in the second half of the fiscal year," he said.
What will these enterprise features be? ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley suggestedthey could potentially include a Web-based Business Store for Windows 10, intended for enterprises distributing apps of their own, as well as an Enterprise Data Protection (EDP) feature. EDP separates personal and business information in an effort to improve data security.
Windows 10 Mobile
The mobile iteration of Windows 10 was pushed to the back burner as Microsoft developers worked to perfect Windows 10 for PCs in time for the operating system's global launch. When the OS was in its final stages, we learned Windows 10 Mobile would receive its due attention after the PC version had been released.
While Microsoft has not given us an expected release date for Windows 10 Mobile, it has announced the Lumia smartphone models that will receive a free upgrade to Windows 10 when it becomes available. These devices include the Lumia 430, Lumia 435, Lumia 532, Lumia 535, Lumia 540, Lumia 640, Lumia 640 XL, Lumia 735, Lumia 830, and the Lumia 930.
The mobile-compatible edition of Windows 10 will contain many of the same features as its PC-friendly counterpart. Users can browse the Internet on Microsoft Edge, receive notifications in the new Action Center, and be productive on the go with universal apps such as Calendar, Maps, and Photos.
SharePoint 2016
Microsoft announced at this year's Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) the public beta for SharePoint 2016 will be released this month. While this does not mean the general availability of SharePoint 2016 is in the immediate future, it does mean Microsoft has decided to continue releasing public previews of its new products in order to gain user feedback, fix necessary bugs, and implement changes to shape SharePoint according to customer demands.
Executives announced the SharePoint core product was "code complete" earlier this year at Microsoft's Ignite conference. Now, the predicted release of its beta version is one more event we can write on our Microsoft calendars for 2015