Windows 10 devices smaller than 8 inches won’t have a desktop

Contrary to certain rumors, Microsoft won’t be killing off the desktop when it launches Windows 10, at least not entirely. Apparently, the company won’t be offering a desktop option for Windows 10 devices that have a screen that’s smaller than eight inches and these devices won’t be able to run legacy applications. 

Prognostications about Microsoft killing the desktop in Windows 10 are coming true—but only for the smallest of tablets. New tablets with screens smaller than 8 inches will not ship with a classic desktop, and won’t be able to run legacy Win32 (read: desktop) applications according to Joe Belfiore, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s Operating Systems Group. These devices will instead run something very similar to the phone version of Windows 10 that Microsoft showed off last week.