It would not come as any surprise to our readers to hear that Microsoft has cancelled another project, and today some news has bubbled up from the WC that the writing is on the wall for two Windows 10 shells, Andromeda and Polaris.
They write:
Polaris was essentially a copy-cat of legacy Windows 10 S, except built on Windows Core OS meaning it didn’t have any legacy parts. Andromeda OS was an experience tailored specifically for dual-screen mobile devices that focused on journal experiences, which Santorini sort of replaces. Both of these flavors of Windows Core OS looked a lot like Windows 10, but Microsoft has decided that there’s no point trying to mimic Windows 10 with Windows Core OS. Instead, it’s building out new experiences. So for now, Andromeda OS and Polaris are considered “dead.” Santorini is a suitable replacement for both of them.
For now, the living bits of the Windows Core OS project, according to the WC are:
According to the WC Microsoft hopes than Santorini, running Store apps and featuring elements such as Sets, will eventually become the operating system for casual Windows users, while power users and demanding business users will still use Windows 10 “Classic”, running proper Win32 apps from any download site.
Microsoft hopes to sell Santorini as the OS which will have quick and easy updates, and which will receive the new technology and features, while Windows “Classic” will be left to wither on the vine. It will primarily be targetted at those who can not choose which operating system their PC runs, such as school students, but will also show up more and more on consumer PCs.
So far, Microsoft has failed to deliver any viable operating system except Windows 10 PCs running Windows apps. To us, it seems more likely that Santorini will join Andromeda and Polaris as failed projects, as has most of Microsoft’s attempts to move away from legacy Windows.
Do our readers think Microsoft will succeed with Santori where they failed with Windows RT, Windows 10S, Andromeda and Polaris? Let us know below.