Several companies have announced plans for tablets based on the upcoming version of Microsoft’s Windows operating system, Windows 8. While planning so far ahead can sometimes backfire (tablets shipping with Gingerbread or Froyo just seem out of date now that Honeycomb is here), it seems Microsoft has no immediate plans to develop a tablet OS.
Speaking to Pocket-Lint, Microsoft UK managing director Ashley Highfield said the company won’t be releasing a tablet or a tablet OS until it can offer customers something different than what’s already available.
"We won't do anything in the tablet market unless we can be distinctive," he told Pocket-Lint.
As we mentioned, several companies have confirmed they’re planning Windows 8 tablets for release early in 2012. Currently, there’s a number of Windows tablets available running Windows 7, which has been optimized for touchscreens. Highfield didn’t discuss the possibility of a tablet running Windows Phone 7, so we’re assuming that’s not in the cards just yet. But, hey, you never know.