Side-by-side: Windows 8 tablet vs. iOS 5 iPad

While Windows 8 will be Microsoft’s next PC operating system, the platform will also play an important role in mobile devices and Microsoft’s determination to capture the mobile market. PCs will run Windows 8 but tablets and smartphones will be where the war is to be won and Microsoft knows it.

The most formidable of opponents will be Apple with its iOS along with its iPhone and iPad. The iPad single-handedly created a new market segment and it is the tablet to beat, and so how does Windows 8 compares with the king of the tablets?

The video above pits Windows 8 with Apple’s latest iOS 5 to show the strengths and weaknesses of both. It’s worth noting that the Windows 8 build on the Samsung tablet in the featured is an early beta that’s available for the public to download but even in this early version the OS looks very polished. In fact, Windows 8 makes Apple’s latest iOS look decidedly dated. Microsoft has done some impressive work with Windows 8 to make it truly tablet friendly and we’re really excited about this.

Microsoft’s in with a potential winner here with Windows 8 but having the potential to be awesome is only half the battle one. Microsoft needs to rapidly capitalise on the interest and launch the whole ecosystem quickly. The whole gamut — platform, applications and hardware must be ready to go with a big bang no later than the first quarter of 2012 or even earlier or Microsoft will risk having its competitors catching up.

We’ll reserve our final word when we get a full-on review but even at this early stage Windows 8 is looking to be one of the biggest news in 2012.

[source, via]