Microsoft’s Requirements for Windows 8 Tablet PCs

Microsoft and its partners are gearing up for the release of the first Windows 8 devices later this year, when the platform hits gold status and becomes commercially available.

The Redmond-based company wants to make sure that devices running Windows 8 will deliver specific capabilities to their users, and has come up with a specific set of requirements for manufacturers to take into consideration. 

The same as it did with the Windows Phone platform, Microsoft wanted to make sure that upcoming devices met Windows performance, quality, and feature criteria, and released the hardware requirement documentation for Windows 8 logo certification. 

One of the features that devices will have to include is the option to disable the Secure Boot feature, though it will become available only on non-ARM devices, as previously reported. 

However, there is a series of other features that users will certainly be interested in seeing inside Windows 8 tablet PCs, such as support for a minimum of 5 touch points.

Multi-touch will certainly be there, and not only two-points, as the HP TouchSmart features, WithinWindows notes. Users will be able to put at least five fingers on the screen at the same time. 

Windows 8 tablet PCs will also include NFC capabilities. They will arrive on shelves with NFC “touch marks,” which translates into some sort of a sticker that indicates where another NFC capable device can connect with it. 

Knowing exactly where the NFC chip is located inside the device will make it much easier for users to pair Windows 8 tablets, especially since they feature large form factors. 

Additionally, it appears that Microsoft is asking manufacturers to pack their tablet PCs with a number of 5 hardware buttons. 

There will be one button for Power, one for Rotation lock, another one for Windows Key, and two for Volume up and Volume down, respectively.

Moreover, Microsoft asks for the Windows Key on these devices to be at least 10.5 mm (0.41 inches) in diameter. The shape may differ, it seems. 

These requirements will be in place for all Windows 8 tablet PCs, regardless of the application processor packed inside them. We should see both Intel-based and ARM-powered devices complying with them.

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