Even though 2020 has been off to a very weird start, there are still some cool things to look forward to this year. Huge advancements in technology are upon us; some held back specifically for the year 2020.
Because of course 2020 is such a futuristic year – you must have your best coming this year. The year 2019 feels like last century, while 2020 is filled with flying cars and shoes that lace themselves.
This is true for all the software companies as well. And so, in pure geekdom, I present to you what gets me excited about Microsoft in 2020! (And some things that have become extremely drab) …
Microsoft Azure
It is no secret that Azure has seen exponential usage as the world progressively moved towards lockdown, and sure, some services struggled to keep up with the demand. But the fact remains that Azure is still growing and remains super exciting. Every year, more and more features get added to Azure while existing services get moved to Azure to benefit from the development pipeline that Azure presents.
From Blockchain, to containers, to IoT and even Machine Learning, Azure is pushing forward into all aspects of our lives. While it remains a second to AWS, Azure is adding features and customers at a rate higher than any other cloud vendor.
Just a few of the things getting me excited about Azure this year is the increased focus on Machine Learning for gaming in particular. This Machine Learning can take a sub-HD game, intelligently upscale it to 4K and add in HDR.
Along with this, LogicApps is allowing increasingly more businesses to develop line-of-business apps and automation without writing a single line of code. Similar to how everyone writes their own Excel macros, this will allow almost every worker to automate parts of their job. Isn’t that an exciting thought!
All while the growth of Azure and the updated feature set has not stopped growing. In just 10 years, Azure has gone from a place to run virtual machines to a place to run your entire business. I look forward to what 2020 holds for Azure, and how it will grow and develop in the next 10 years too.
Surface
Microsoft have nailed hardware. If you disagree, just have a look at the Surface line. From Surface X to Surface Studio – each one inspires a primal desire to own one, even if you have no use case. I mean, what would I do with a Surface Studio? I have no idea, but it would look absolutely stunning on my desk!
I mean just look at it!
The Surface division is now in charge of all Microsoft hardware, and the design head – Panos Panay – is now even in charge of the Windows division. Maybe now we can hold out hope for a cohesive design? His team’s vision gave rise to the Surface line, and the breakthrough Surface Pro 3 that changed the entire product line. From this line, he has given us two new categories to excite us this year – the Surface Neo and Surface X.
The Surface Neo is a dual screen tablet device that runs Windows 10 X, and it is a complete reimagining of how Windows should look and behave on a tablet. Thank the pope! Windows 10’s Tablet Mode is a far cry from the elegant and functional Windows 8. Along with the investments in digital inking, this new Surface Neo is going to be the tablet for all aspiring writers, artists, and anyone who prefers a pen to a keyboard.
The Surface X runs an ARM CPU. This is a big deal, with even Apple rumored to be moving their MacBooks to their A-Series chips, which are found in iPhones and iPads. This shows Microsoft is committing to a future of Windows on ARM. All the benefits of your phone built into your PC – instant on, battery that doesn’t drain when in standby, always connected, and ready to go instantly.
Xbox
This is the year of the Xbox Series X (and maybe even the Series E), the brand-new console in the Xbox family. And this time, Microsoft did not hold back. Focusing on power from the get-go, the Series X will take the crown of World’s Most Powerful Console from the Xbox One X. A twelve-teraflop monster of a console with inbuilt ray-tracing, and even ray-traced audio… it’s no secret I am excited for this console. It will mean, for the first time, consoles are pushing PCs forward instead of holding PCs back.
To adequately explain the power of this beast, a GTX 1080 Ti (which is what I currently have in my HEDT) is 11 teraflops… This was a $1,500 card on release. The current top-of-the-heap graphics card, the RTX 2080 Ti, coming in at $2,400 is 14 teraflops… This console, probably coming in at $700 will be 12 teraflops! That alone is insane! I cannot wait to see flawless 4K60 with HDR and all options on!
It’s not all hardware though – the services, from the consumer facing to the backend, are also worth getting excited about.
With Game Pass and XCloud for the consumer and Azure on the backend, this console is poised to take full advantage of all the tech at Microsoft’s disposal. And to be honest, it’s about time. The Xbox division is firing on all cylinders and their future looks bright and exciting. I cannot wait for November!
Marketing
If you have not watched any of Microsoft’s recent Marketing videos, you’re seriously missing out.
No, I am being completely serious!
The marketing videos are stunning! They make you excited to use Excel, and for that fact alone they are worth getting excited about.
I mean just watch this one below and tell me you don’t want to fire up Microsoft Office right now. But don’t do it – you’ll be rather disappointed.
And now, the least exciting…
Of course, not everything a company puts out can be as exciting. Some things are just run of the mill. Yes, they get updated about four times a year, but you know what you’re getting – there are no surprises. They are like getting new pots and pans – this one doesn’t have features so different from last year, but it may be a different colour…
Windows
Sadly, Windows 10’s excitement has run out. With no new features on the horizon, and with the development of Windows 10 itself slowed to more of stability improvements, it seems this is what we’re stuck with. Half-implemented features such as Dark and Light mode, UWP apps and frameworks, and Fluent Design seems to be what we can expect for Windows 10 for the foreseeable future.
Sure we were teased with an update to the Start Menu and Live Tiles, but Microsoft employees on Twitter have made it very clear that that was only a design video, and nothing to get excited about.
Windows 10 works. It’s OK. A solid 7/10. It’s still my platform of choice for obvious reasons, yet it still has many bugs that are still hanging around from the days of Vista. Even going backwards in others. Take the search for example. It will direct me to the web instead of my local files, and even though everything on my NVMe drive is indexed, will run stupidly slow. File Explorer doesn’t show thumbnails, and crashes when sorting photos. Bluetooth is limited to 16-bit 44khz and no more. Control Panel still exists, and Admin Tools such as Device Manager are ripped straight out of XP/Vista.
Alas, Windows 10 is stuck where it is. I can only assume that it will take Mac OS doing something new and exciting to get Microsoft to refocus on Windows in any capacity.
Windows 10 remains Windows 7.5. And it looks as if that is not going to change any time soon. A pity for sure. We could have gotten a truly modern OS, if only Microsoft were more willing to take a risk or two with Windows.
Office
Ah yes, Office – the programs everyone grows up with.
Last year we got a flurry of icon redesigns. And then nothing. Apart from the Ribbon in Office 2007, Office itself has not changed much. Outlook still looks like Outlook 95, Word and Excel remain solid if boring apps. In fact, for me, the only two Office apps worth getting excited over these days is OneNote and Teams.
Even then, OneNote is going backwards with Microsoft recently stating they are going back to OneNote 2016… I wish this were a joke. OneNote 2016 is going to be OneNote 2020 and have Dark Mode. Instead of pushing the OneNote UWP app forward with features to bring it up to par with where OneNote 2016 left off, they are reviving a dead app for who knows what reason.
The Microsoft Office of the Marketing Adverts seems a joy to use. With ease, and fluidity, and all the services under a unified User Interface. And yet in real life, Word is still Word.
I’ll admit, the backend of Office is getting a little exciting with the shift to Microsoft 365 using the cloud and Machine Learning to improve each aspect in all sorts of little ways. I mean, who knows – lots of little improvements may make a substantial change…
Now you have my thoughts, tell me yours – what tech are you most excited about in 2020?
