Windows 8 is expected to run across a variety of formats, desktops, tablets, netbooks, laptops, x86 and ARM. So the question is can Windows 8 and XBox 720 be merged so that Windows 8 will also run on Xbox720?
Here is the issue. Consider that when Xbox developers write code for their games, they specifically target circuits, like vector units, and shaders that exist in an Xbox 360 unit. However, those elements may not exist on a PC. You can have emulators in place to make the transition. Yet, the Xbox user interface is distinctively different from the one on a PC. Xbox users may not be enamored by a less than optimum interface for their games.
Xbox Live and Windows 8
Now comes a possibility. Xbox will merge with Windows 8. Is that possible? Considering that Microsoft has announced that Xbox Live is coming to Windows 8, yes it is possible.
Consider that the missing feature from Windows 8, is the Xbox Dashboard interface; however, the upcoming Dashboard update that Microsoft unveiled at E3 has a resemblance to Windows Phone 7′s Metro UI style which uses live tiles grouped together to organize content. This is similar to Windows 8′s Metro-inspired tile-based interface. In other words, even if the Xbox 720 doesn’t run Windows 8, it will still have the appearance like Windows 8.
A Unified Interface
In the end, what Microsoft needs to exploit is a singular user interface. This will eliminate the temptation to create alternative systems and instead have one OS ready to be used in multiple capacities.
Some speculation is in order here. For instance, Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 may support the same apps. This comes in view that Windows Phone 7 already has some Xbox Live support. So perhaps the Xbox UI and Windows UI may indeed be the same, because both elements of the Xbox OS and Windows 8 OS will merge together.
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