MICROSOFT HAS LAUNCHED a new Cloud PC service: Windows 365. For a monthly fee, you’ll be able to access a virtual copy of Windows sitting on an Azure server. This is apparently a “new era of hybrid personal computing.” You’ll be able to run your Windows system on any suitable device wherever you are (including Mac, Linux, and Android systems, and via a browser), ideal for remote working. You can jump straight into a Windows session, with everything as you left it. All you need is a reasonable Internet connection. The thin client model means you won’t need a beefy machine to run intensive applications.
There are multiple levels of service, with differing amounts of processing power, memory, and storage. For light office work, you can have a 2GB single-CPU system with 64GB of storage. At the high end, there’s an eight-CPU virtual machine, with 32GB of RAM and up to 512GB of storage, aimed at content creators and software developers. Support, if you use a Windows rig, includes multiple monitors, printers, scanners, cameras, and local storage. On other systems, support is more limited, although it will improve.
Windows may be on millions of PCs, but Microsoft doesn’t make much from selling it. OEM installations are a few bucks each, and Win 11 will be a free upgrade. Making money out of software the old-school way is difficult. Top PC games aside, it’s easy to get a full range of apps for next to nothing given the amount of high-quality freeware around. The answer is the subscription model, as seen with Microsoft/Office 365. There’s a generation of people happy to rent rather than own. The idea is that Windows will transform into a service, rather than an OS you buy once, then Microsoft can tap your wallet every month. –CL