“Redstone 3 update for Windows 10 introduces x86 emulation on arm processors”

The Redstone 3 update for Windows 10 may get x86 emulation for arm processors. This would mean that Windows 10 devices with such processors, such as mobile phones, can run many Windows applications, including in Continuum, for example.

The lack of x86 support on arm processors in Windows 10 is a limiting factor for Continuum’s usability, writes Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet. She has been told by anonymous sources that this stumbling block must be overcome by Redstone 3. This update is expected to be released in Fall 2017. From then on, users should be able to run more than just UWP apps on Windows 10 devices with lean processors. The project would be called Cobalt internally.

At the moment, users of Windows 10 devices with lean processors have no choice but to turn to Universal Windows Platform. HP offers an alternative to this, for example in the form of the Elite x3, which has designed a streaming service for business users that runs x86 apps. Users with a remote desktop setup can also run x86 apps. However, x86 emulation would clearly be more efficient than these solutions. Microsoft and HP, which is also believed to be involved in the development, declined to comment to Ms. Foley.