Windows 8 Hardware Requirement Update Hints At 7-Inch Tablet

A recent change in Microsoft's hardware requirements for Windows 8 is creating a lot of speculation on what Microsoft has planned in the future. Previously, Windows 8 could only run on displays with a resolution of at least 1366x768. However, that requirement has been lowered to only 1024x768, which means that we could see smaller form factors of Windows tablets in the future.

Of course, Windows 8 has supported 1024x768 for a while now, but hardware requirements from Microsoft as far as tablets are concerned requires at least a widescreen 1366x768 resolution, which is rather odd, but Microsoft has quietly updated its tablet requirements with the new spec, meaning that smaller Windows tablets could be in our future.

This seems fairly obvious, though, as small form factors are rather popular as of now, with Google's Nexus 7, Amazon's Kindle Fire HD, and Apple's iPad mini leading the charge in the 7- to 8-inch tablet race. As for when we might see smaller Windows tablets, it's not entirely certain, but they could come during Microsoft's BUILD developers conference in June.

If a 7- or 8-inch Windows tablet does, indeed, step into the limelight, it'll be interesting to see if they catch on. Currently, Microsoft's Surface RT and Surface Pro tablets haven't been selling well, so if manufacturers get the price right with the smaller variants, they could squeeze their way in with the other Android and iOS offerings.

[via ZDNet]