If a listing on the Microsoft Careers website is to be believed, Windows 10 is about to get even more ubiquitous in the coming months with 64-bit ARM processor support. This is scheduled to take off at the same time as the major Redstone update slated for release by the year’s end.
Here’s a clip from the job posting:
Are you passionate about creating the operating system foundation to enable breathtaking experiences? The silicon ecosystem is always evolving. Windows across all device categories is readying for the introduction of 64 bit computing with the ARM instruction set (ISA). Bringing a new ISA to market involves working both broadly and deeply across Microsoft from devdiv to WDG to Server to Office and others depending on the scope of product target.
This news is huge considering this would allow emulation of full-blown x86 Windows apps on a mobile phone. Moreover, as Windows Central reports, ARM64 support on Windows 10 would mean that any ARM-equipped mobile device with between 4 and 8GB of RAM could serve as a truly personal (and handheld) computer.
With that in mind, it isn’t all that surprising that we’re hearing about this now. There have been rumors of a Surface phone approaching since 2013, and even more recently, it was confirmed that Microsoft was working on “a prototype of a new phone” that Intel is apparently heavily involved with.
As for the job listing, Microsoft is looking for a senior program manager with the ability to handle the following:
- Building the plan for ARM64 aligned with the Redstone wave
- Identify the “big rocks” we need to move, solve, make it happen
- Build the all-up view of where we are, drive the schedule
- Work to ensure the necessary hardware is planned for and delivered on time
If this isn’t for a Surface phone, it’s certainly a missed opportunity.
