James Delahunty
25 Oct 2011 5:18
Roadmap also details planned schedules for other Microsoft products, and mentions Windows 9.
The roadmap marked the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January as the target to release a beta of the Windows 8 operating system, along with the first "Tango" update for the Windows Phone OS, and WinStore Beta.
A release candidate of Windows 8 is scheduled to be rolled out at MIX 2012 along with the online market beta and the Kinect commercial SDK. The Windows 8 RTM (release to manufacturer) build is scheduled for release around June next year.
CES is also noted to bring the Xbox 360 SDK for creating apps, Apollo SDK for Windows Phone and a bunch of new third-generation Kinect video games.
The roadmap also mentions "Windows 9", slotting a developer preview in for the BUILD 2013 conference, and a beta release at CES 2014. MIX 2014 would get a release candidate build of Windows 9 and an RTM build would roll out at BUILD 2014. A commercial release for the OS is targeted for November 2014.
Of course, these dates need to be greeted with skepticism. Microsoft has not confirmed any dates for Windows 8's commercial release, let alone Windows 9, and the 2014 target for Windows 9 seems very early if Windows 8 launches in August 2012. Even if the roadmap is real, the projected events are not set in stone.