Well, well, what have we here! Collaboration! It seems that Microsoft, Google and Qualcomm are all working together to bring the Chrome web browser to Windows 10 on ARM computers.
Microsoft’s operating system is catching up fast with other platforms to offer better support on ARM processors, but this is not possible without support from third-parties.
We all know what happened to good old Windows RT, right?
Anyway, long story short, some emulation magic is at play here with these newer Windows 10 ARM devices. These machines emulate the x86 processor, albeit at the cost of a major slowdown in comparison to native ARM applications.
It’s a tough pill to swallow, but together still is the lack of applications.
Case in point, how Windows 10 on ARM users are essentially forced to use the included ARM compatible Microsoft Edge web browser instead of a third-party one, like say Google Chrome.
But luckily, that is all about to change.
Work seems to have already begun on a Windows 10 on ARM port of the browser, with the Chromium source code showing signs of life. Not only is Google in on the development, but developers from Microsoft are too, as is Qualcomm, the maker of these Snapdragon chips.
Nothing officially announced yet, but we probably are not far off.
However, this is a wise move from Microsoft, as many modern applications rely upon Google Chrome in one away or another. Electron based apps like Slack, even Microsoft’s own Visual Studio Code and Node.js that is built upon the Chrome V8 JavaScript engine.
Time will tell what comes off of this partnership, and whether it leads to bigger, greater things.
But it is not the first time that Microsoft and Google have worked together, as the two companies teamed up to bring Windows 10 dual-boot support to the Pixelbook and, possibly, Pixel Slate.
Via the Campfire project.
Let’s see.
