Is it a problem if Windows 8 boots too quickly?

Microsoft's forthcoming operating system boots so quickly that you will miss those familiar prompts.

Windows 8 screen with "Use a device" option that allows boot on an alternative drive.

Really fast boot times on Windows 8 hardly sounds like a problem. But it is Here's why.
Startup can be so fast that you whiz by familiar sign posts that prompt for input, wrote Chris Clark, a program manager in the Windows User Experience team, today in a Building Windows 8 blog post.

"When you turn on a Windows 8 PC, there's no longer [enough time] to detect keystrokes like F2 or F8, much less time to read a message such as 'Press F2 for Setup'," Clark said.

On a solid-state drive-equipped ultrabook, for example, Windows 8 can boot in less than seven seconds. Microsoft demonstrated the fast boot last year. (And, by the way, sub-10-second boots is one reason most ultrabooks today come with SSDs.)

"We have SSD-based UEFI systems where the 'F8 window' is always less than 200 milliseconds. No matter how fast your fingers are, there is no way to reliably catch a 200 millisecond event," according to Clark. (See the FAQ explaining the difference between a BIOS and UEFI. Suffice to say, on newer PCs, including those shipping with Windows 8, UEFI is used instead of the more antiquated BIOS.)

Microsoft's solution, in short, kills the F8 key prompt -- or any other hard key prompts.

For example, when booting to an alternative USB drive or network, Windows 8 UEFI-based devices will get a screen (see image above) with a "Use a device" button alongside other boot options.

And what about older systems, you ask? "Legacy hardware that was made before Windows 8 will not have these new UEFI-provided menu features," Clark wrote. "The firmware on these devices will continue to support...messages such as 'Press F2 for Setup'...There is still time for keystrokes like this to work...on these legacy devices," according to Clark.

Windows 8 'Advanced options' screen.

Windows Startup Settings: a unified boot options menu.

In the image directly above, Microsoft has added Windows Startup Settings. These include items such as "disable driver signing" and "debugging mode," as well as Safe Mode and several other options.

Dell preps 10.8-inch Windows 8 tablet, says report

Dell's Windows 8 tablet reportedly packs PC-like features: a 128GB SSD and 2GB of memory.

One of Dell's current 10-inch Windows 7-based Latitude business tablets. The 10.8-inch Windows 8-based 'Dell Latitude 10' also appears aimed at business customers.

Dell's upcoming Windows 8 tablet will break the 10.1-screen-size mold, spanning a roomy 10.8 inches, according to a report. And it's targeted at business -- a market that Microsoft and its coterie of Windows device makers know well.

The "Dell Latitude 10," as reported by Neowin, has some brawny PC-like specs, including a 128GB solid-state drive and up to 2GB of memory -- which, by the way, is what Dell currently offers on its 10.1-inch Latitude ST, also targeted at corporate "enterprise" customers.

A source familiar with upcoming Windows 8 tablets and hybrids told CNET today that the Dell Latitude 10 cited by Neowin "seemed very accurate" and added that Dell is also coming out with a Windows 8 hybrid laptop-tablet aimed at consumers. (See Dell's Inspiron Duo for reference.)

(Update: Dell XPS 12 convertible is also coming in late 2012.)

But getting back to the Windows 8 Latitude tablet. Here are some salient specs, as reported by Neowin: 

·        OS: Full Windows 8 operating system running on Intel. 

·        Display: 10.8-inches, 1,366x768, capacitive, multi touch with optional stylus. 

·        Processor: Intel dual-core "Clover Trail" Atom processor. 

·        Memory: up to 2GB. 

·        Storage: up to 128GB solid-state drive. 

·        Battery: swappable 2 cell/4 cell 30/60 WHr. 

·        Cameras: dual cameras, 2.0MP front, 8.0MP rear. 

·        Weight: 1.57 pounds/710g. 

·        Thickness: 0.4 inches/10.5mm. 

In case you didn't notice, a nice feature is the removable battery. "We are hearing that the smaller battery will get 6-8 hrs of battery life and the larger battery will get 10-12 hours," Neowin said.

Michael Dell had a lot to say on Tuesday, during the company's earnings conference call, about tablets, hybrids, and ultrabooks for the Windows 8 launch later this year.

"We're totally lined up with Windows 8. You'll see us introduce tablets," Dell said.

But touch-based devices won't be cheap and business-oriented products like the Latitude tablet may be too pricey for most consumers to stomach.

"But what I can tell you is that we think that the touch-screen products will certainly cost more. They're more in the price points and price bands that we tend to operate in," Dell said.

Updated on May 25 at 12:40 a.m. PDT: adding Dell XPS 12 convertible discussion.

Video:- http://youtu.be/2ordHLoXImQ

Bunch of Windows 8 devices coming from Dell

You'll need a new ultrabook, tablet, or hybrid to take advantage of Windows 8, says Michael Dell.

A Dell hybrid laptop announced back in 2010.

Dell is preparing a raft of tablets, hybrids, and ultrabooks for the Windows 8 launch later this year.

"The addition of capacitive touch capability into Windows 8, we think, will be a welcome addition...and will have a full complement of products at time of launch," Michael Dell said today during the company's first-quarter 2013 earnings conference call, in response to an analyst's question.

"We're totally lined up with Windows 8. You'll see us introduce tablets," he added.

And he suggests that Windows 8 touch-centric interface means that current PCs will not be a good fit.

"This is a transition where you generally are going to need a new PC, whether it's a tablet or an ultrabook with touch or a notebook with touch or a PC with touch or some derivative hybrid of all of the above type of products," he said.

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·        Dell's first quarter, outlook: Uh-oh

Needless to say, Dell wants to sell you a new PC, but he may have a point because of the heavy emphasis Microsoft is placing on the Metro touch interface.

And touch won't be cheap, echoing sentiment that Intel has also expressed. "But what I can tell you is that we think that the touchscreen products will certainly cost more. They're more in the price points and price bands that we tend to operate in," Dell said.

Analysts say Dell is, in effect, responding to Apple. "Dell acknowledges the Apple effect," Barclays Capital analyst Ben Reitzes said in a research note today.

Dell's plans to bring out tablets "suggest to us that Apple continues to disrupt the traditional PC market," Reitzes said, referring to Apple's popular iPad.

The PC maker reported first-quarter earnings of $635 million, or 36 cents a share, on revenue of $14.42 billion, down 4 percent from a year ago.