Image source: microsoft.com
Recently, Microsoft stopped making the Windows RT tablet. A Microsoft spokesman said that the company recently decided to stop the production of the Nokia Lumia 2520 Windows RT tablet. This was the last remaining Windows RT device from Microsoft.
Windows RT was developed as an alternative to the more demanding Windows 8. Windows RT was designed for devices that use ARM processors instead of Intel x86 ones. Devices that ran Windows RT were more battery efficient and cheaper. However, the mobile operating system didn’t quite catch on and it confused a lot of potential consumers who were unable to make the difference between Windows 8 and Windows RT. Tablets that used the less demanding RT OS were unable of running desktop applications, a factor that even further damaged the consumer opinion on such devices.
Microsoft released a Surface tablet with the RT operating system in 2012. This decision led other companies that had RT devices such as Asus, Dell and Lenovo to remove them from their hardware line-up. In 2013 Microsoft lost $900 million on the RT Surface tablet. Later that same year, Microsoft also launched the Windows RT-based Surface 2 tablet but also gave that device up in order of focusing more on Intel powered tablets.
But this doesn’t necessarily mean that Windows RT has been completely left out in the cold.
In last month’s Microsoft conference regarding its new operating system, the company briefly talked about RT. The tech giant told the media that they are working on a Windows RT update as well. Microsoft said that it’s going to update the entire Surface Pro line-up to Windows 10 but that it is also working on an update for the RT version which will offer some of the features present in Windows 10.
However, it seems like the company’s dedication to the less demanding operating system is a little uncertain. Microsoft is launching its new OS to offer a common platform across smartphones, tablets and PCs. Keeping the other OS alive would be against what the tech giant is trying to accomplish with Windows 10.
The company said that even though they are no longer manufacturing Nokia Lumia 2520 Windows RT tablets, those who are interested in purchasing these devices may still do so by visiting MicrosoftStore.com, Microsoft Retail Stores and third party resellers and retailers. After the company bought Nokia in 2014, Microsoft also got custody of the Lumia series along with Nokia’s mobile business.
