Microsoft Continuum – The UX counterpart of Universal Windows Platform

Imagine not to need your Laptop with you on the road any more whether for work or in weekend because you can use your Smartphone as a computer PC simply by connecting it to a screen and a keyboard. How about that? Welcome to Microsoft Continuum, the UX counterpart of Universal Windows Platform.

This vision encapsulates the concept of « Mobile Computing » or if you prefer, a « computing experience » in which the user can not only access its information (networks, applications, contents) but also deploy a fully functional working environment, anywhere, on any device.

CONTINUUM

Continuum for Windows 10 Mobile is kind of the corner stone of a new progressive user experience; in terms of communications, collaboration and work capabilities.

An employee can get on the road solely with its Smartphone, a mini-HDMI connector for a local display screen and Bluetooth for mouse and keyboard. When an employee makes a presentation from a Windows 10 application, the display on his Phone screen will be perfectly adapted to its Phone screen and the Windows 10 application display on the screen connected to the Phone will be a desktop display.

Moreover, a Remote Desktop app for Windows 10 Mobile will soon enable executing, from a Smartphone operating Windows 10 Mobile, a (Win32) software installed on a distant PC and steer it with a mouse and a keyboard, on a large screen.

Add on top, that Windows 10 Mobile will embark free Office applications (Office 2016 or Office 365) optimized for touch; a better integration with Microsoft Cloud service OneDrive for documents real-time synchronization (Office, Photos…) and an enhanced Notification Centre for synchronizing notifications and associated actions with the user’s other Windows 10 devices.

Get the picture?

Think about your “street warrior” employees. Those always on the road working out of their cars and during flights, visiting customers and gathering orders on the go, turning hotel rooms into home offices. Do you think they’ll complain not having to drag along a laptop, a tablet, and a mobile phone anymore?

CONTINUUM BENEFITS ON WINDOWS 10 MOBILE

Productivity gain. There’s way much more to it, but if only by managing, synchronising, updating and upgrading just one single device.

Cost savings. There’s way much more to it, but if only by having to buy so much less devices.

Fewer help and support tickets. As Microsoft Continuum features a single operating system for all Microsoft 10 devices, your employees won’t need to struggle with different OS and application variations, likewise for IT.

UX Plus…

But more than just Continuum, some hints here and there had us wondering if there is not a larger vision emerging at Microsoft, one of an enhanced, augmented, progressive UX… where the user is no more device-dependant, here is food for thought:

• Messaging Everywhere – Microsoft is unifying its separate Skype call, messaging and video apps into a single UWP app
• Distinct Data & Profile Management Protocol coming (Enterprise vs Perso)
• Biometric Authentication with Windows Hello
• Two-Step Authentication with Passport

CORTANA + AI = EINSTEIN

And then, there’s Cortana, the personal vocal assistant which can be synchronized in both directions (you can ask it from your smartphone to execute a task on your computer (adding a note in your calendar, for example) or to receive on your PC the missed call notifications on your Smartphone or even to send from your Smartphone an SMS written on the computer, etc.).

Well, Microsoft is now working on an AI version of Cortana, called “Einstein”, which could tell a user when to leave for the airport, days after reading his flight tickets purchase confirmation email and, in good time, it would automatically check flight status, determine where the phone is located using GPS, and checking traffic conditions, will advise the user to depart for the airport.

This application which can navigate from one device to another is destined to be fully autonomous in the Windows Store and might even be available to Apple and Android devices.

Fresh News

And to hit the UX plus’ nail one last time, let’s take notice that Microsoft just sold its feature brand phone assets (Nokia brand, software and services) to a finnish-chinese consortium as if preparing to start Mobile anew, on fresh bases, with a new approach. Some are even saying that Microsoft is already working on a Surface Phone,  directly inspired by the great success of its PC-Tablet Surface.

CONCLUSION

If you add all these hints (functions), one must see the new user experience which Microsoft is slowly building around the easy access to information (contents, networks and applications) and the capability of actualizing it in a working environment, no matter where and what device.

So, if Universal Windows Platform (UWP) & Windows 10 are promising great benefits for both Developers and IT Managers mostly by way of not being device-constrained / oriented, it looks like UWP comes with a counterpart paradigm for the user side, that is an enhanced UX (progressive**) with potentially greater benefits for the user. Both Developers and IT Managers will have to take it into account for their employees to benefit from it too.

Microsoft has been carefully playing its pawns on the « Mobility » board for years now; is it now playing its Master move or is it totally missing the point?  Really, there’s no telling as of now…

Denis Paul & Michel

* Which has nothing to do with what BlackBerry was bragging about during BlackBerry 10 launch, a few years back and which just really was about the device « OS-Processor » calculus capabilities.

** Progressive: progressing from a device to another.