Windows 8 Laptops: Microsoft Talks Future of Touch Laptops

Windows 8 Laptops: Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has been up to a lot lately. In addition to the announcement that it has sold more than 100 million Windows 8 licenses in the first six months, the company has noted that it plans on making changes to its operating system to ensure its compatibility with small tablet devices.

We all know Microsoft has not had the best experience in the tablet market thus far. While its Surface lineup of devices have something unique to offer, sales have been anything but ground breaking.

In mid-March 2013, reports stated that Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) had sold roughly 1.5 million devices.

This doesn’t mean Microsoft is giving up. Instead, the company is freshening its approach, with the help of Windows 8, to ensure more success down the road.

In a recent interview, Tami Reller, co-head of Microsoft’s Windows unit, talked in great depth about Windows 8 as well as what she expects from touch laptops in the future.

With PC sales on the decline, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) needs to find something to hang its hat on – and fast. The last thing the company needs is to continue its mobile struggles, being passed up by the competition.

Here is what Reller had to say about the lack of affordable touch-laptops:

“We know customers like touch laptops, but they are also price sensitive. Our partners (hardware makers) have to bet on volume, so that they get price breaks, and get that moving into the (retail) channel.”

When speaking about partners, she is referring to the companies that will rely on Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system. These hardware makers include ASUS, Lenovo, and Hewlett-Packard.

Right now, the demand for smaller tablet devices is huge. Microsoft is well aware of this, and is hoping that changes to its Windows 8 operating system will allow the company to compete with the likes of the iPad mini, Galaxy Tab and Kindle Fire.

As you can see, the road to the top is not an easy one. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) will have to go head to head with the top names in the space.

Reller also noted that “I think we’ll be pleased with the progress we’ve made by ‘back to school’ and by holiday (year end), we’ll be at this tipping point where we will say, ‘Now I see it’.”

There you have it. We won’t have to wait long to see how much progress Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has made. Instead, according to Reller, we will have a better picture by the end of the year.

On the next page, you can take a closer look at one of the company’s current tablet offerings: