I don't understand x86 madness, please explain it to me

[WildKarrde]

Well, my first desktop has a 486 66Mhz DX2 processor, so there's not much that hasn't surpassed that.

 

[anon(7929613)]

Well its not a debate between desktops and laptops. Just consider this example. When we connect a Windows tablet with an x86 processors, like Acer Iconia W4, to a larger screen via mini HDMI slot on the tablet, we can either mirror the tablet or use it as a separate screen and the FULL Win 10 gets projected on a large display or TV with no restrictions on apps or other options.
On the other hand, when we connect a Lumia 950 xl with a Qualcomm snapdragon soc to a TV, it only projects the W10M on the screen with all is restrictions and also gets hot.
Now the 8" Acer iconia W4 costs 200 dollars and is more powerful than 6" Lumia 950 XL that costs 600 dollars. This example pretty much explains why we need x86 processors for Windows.

 

[Dragone]

Well its not a debate between desktops and laptops. Just consider this example. When we connect a Windows tablet with an x86 processors, like Acer Iconia W4, to a larger screen via mini HDMI slot on the tablet, we can either mirror the tablet or use it as a separate screen and the FULL Win 10 gets projected on a large display or TV with no restrictions on apps or other options.
On the other hand, when we connect a Lumia 950 xl with a Qualcomm snapdragon soc to a TV, it only projects the W10M on the screen with all is restrictions and also gets hot.
Now the 8" Acer iconia W4 costs 200 dollars and is more powerful than 6" Lumia 950 XL that costs 600 dollars. This example pretty much explains why we need x86 processors for Windows.

I'd really love a Microsoft phone with x86 processor with both (x86) metro apps and legacy desktop when switching to Continuum.

 

[Migi2015]

Honestly outside of a few fanboys, nobody is aching to run x86 apps from a phone. ARM is simply a better architecture for mobile with a much lower cost. Intel is not willing to go down in cost on their Atom processors. Apple makes money because their ARM chip is part of a larger integrated package(iPhone) that they can sell at a premium. Intel should maybe think about making a smartphone?

 

[ajayden]

I would like to share a slide from a presentation in our company. The whole idea of Windows ecosystem is to convert the existing x86 software to universal apps and then sharing them across various devices. We are implementing this in our company, although we might not use Hololens and Xbox much, but being a universal app, we can open it up to these devices very easily.

Let me explain the idea:

1) Windows Phone : We will adopting windows phone for the executives who are on the forefront, meeting customers and have to present new ideas/concepts. They will have new Windows Phones with Windows Mobile 10 and Continuum. They will use Microsoft Powerpoint and present then on continuum.

2) PC/Tablet - Existing x86 softwares for our clients will be converted to Universal Windows Apps and will be used on Windows 10 devices. Our clients are in Education, Retail and F&B industry.

3) Holo Lens - Currently we do not have much use in the industries we cater to but see a future use in the education industry. At such time, current apps can be ported to Holo Lens with enhancements.



Please note : I have made some modification to the heading and slide to suit the general scenario for Windows ecosystem.

 

[rafal soboczynski]

I would like to share a slide from a presentation in our company. The whole idea of Windows ecosystem is to convert the existing x86 software to universal apps and then sharing them across various devices. We are implementing this in our company, although we might not use Hololens and Xbox much, but being a universal app, we can open it up to these devices very easily.

Let me explain the idea:

1) Windows Phone : We will adopting windows phone for the executives who are on the forefront, meeting customers and have to present new ideas/concepts. They will have new Windows Phones with Windows Mobile 10 and Continuum. They will use Microsoft Powerpoint and present then on continuum.

2) PC/Tablet - Existing x86 softwares for our clients will be converted to Universal Windows Apps and will be used on Windows 10 devices. Our clients are in Education, Retail and F&B industry.

3) Holo Lens - Currently we do not have much use in the industries we cater to but see a future use in the education industry. At such time, current apps can be ported to Holo Lens with enhancements.

View attachment 119832

Please note : I have made some modification to the heading and slide to suit the general scenario for Windows ecosystem.

this is awesome, personally this is how I invisoin the future of windows, convert apps to universal so they run on all windows devices, and not putting x86 processor in a phone, only certain specialized applications like heavy CAD and Video editing tool should be left x86.

Now lets hope more companies in ARM SoC industry focus on squeezing out more juice out of their processors. Personally I would like to see better single core performance rather than another 4 cores added. Even high end I7 u series are dual core (multi threaded I know). I'm not Apple fan but I admit A9 was the best SoC on the market this year, I can just imagine how well windows 10 mobile would run on it with propper drivers.

 

[power5]

Laptops do not run the same processors as desktops. They may be "i" Intel chips but they are not the same. Not even close. Usually the top end laptop cpu is on par with a bottom tier desktop processor.