Microsoft dropped the hardware requirements for Windows 8 a month ago, but may of the choice bits were buried amongst the 1000-page sea of technical jargon and general obscura. The brave souls over at WithinWindows ostensibly just emerged from the depths with the choicest pearls of compatibility wisdom.
What can we expect from devices running Windows 8?
• Touch devices: all will be required to detect five points of touch, which is good for 99 per cent of multitouch uses.
• NFC devices: all will be required to have a designated (read: a visual) zone for functionality. That way, your father won’t be rubbing his phone along the back of his laptop phone in search of a link.
• Tablets and convertible PCs: All will have five — and only five — hard buttons. Power, rotation lock, Windows button, volume up, volume down. Any devices without keyboards must support Windows key+power as the new Ctrl+Alt+Del. Oh, and all screens will be 1366×768!
• Intel-based devices: all must resume in under two seconds.
There are a few other gems you can expect as well, so be sure to check them over at WithinWindows.