Windows 8 Tablet Demos May Arrive in June

As Windows 8 Milestone 3 begins, there are reports that Microsoft may demo the OS on tablets this June.

Previous reports have indicated that Windows 8 will be modular in nature, allowing Microsoft to remove portions of the OS that's not required for mobile devices like tablets and smartphones. Now there's talk that Microsoft plans to show its tablet version of Windows 8 by the end of its fiscal year in June.

The news arrived by way of an unnamed source claiming that Microsoft plans to take a more Apple-like approach to interface design. It will also borrow from Windows Phone 7 by incorporating various concepts from the "Metro" interface.

But as Business Insider points out, Metro is based on the old Media Center UI that was shipped with Windows XP back in 2004. Unlike the Metro interface which is meant to be used with small touchscreens, the Media Center interface was developed to be viewed from ten feet away and navigated by using a remote control.

Unfortunately, no other information was provided. However the news falls in line with Microsoft's current development schedule, as the Redmond-based company just completed Milestone 2 on Monday. The next Milestone is expected to be reached by the end of July, just after Microsoft’s 2012 fiscal year kicks off.

Last month Dell supposedly leaked plans of a Windows 8 tablet called "Peju" scheduled to arrive in January 2012, just eight months after the release of its Windows 7-based tablet. It's speculated that this may not be a consumer-based product, but rather a demo machine created specifically for developers.