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Microsoft engineers pitch for Windows handheld mode

M

Marees

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Sep 28, 2018
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Microsoft is aware of the problems running Windows on the Steam Deck and other similar handheld Windows PCs, and at least some developers inside the company have spent time thinking of ways to address them. That’s the thrust of a leaked presentation (posted in two parts by Twitter user _h0x0d_) about a new “Handheld Mode” for Windows, developed as part of an internal Microsoft hackathon in September 2022.


Microsoft employees have shown off a concept for what an optimized Windows user interface could look like on Valve's Steam Deck handheld PC, and by extension, how Windows gaming would operate on that system. In a leaked video posted online by Twitter user h0x0d (via The Verge), the pitch details all of the problems that Steam Deck users have with trying to get Windows running on the handheld hardware, and it originates from a Microsoft Hackathon that was held in September 2022.

This internal event, where employees pitch ideas to Microsoft higher-ups in order to get support for them, saw the team present a prototype operating system for the Steam Deck. Led by senior UX designer Dorothy Feng, the launcher allows for games to be opened up from multiple storefronts such as the PC version of Game Pass, Steam, Epic Games Store, and more. Other improvements include an optimized keyboard and a floating taskbar.


As presented, Handheld Mode includes several components: a new first-time setup screen that simplifies driver installation and setup; an improved touchscreen keyboard that fits better on a 7-inch screen and can be controlled Xbox-style with the built-in buttons and joysticks; a simplified Nintendo Switch-esque game launcher; and improved OS-wide controller support thanks to the open source Steamdeck Windows Controller Driver (SWICD) project. The presentation also calls for other changes to Windows' default behaviors, like always opening apps in full-screen mode when in Handheld Mode, better UI scaling for small screens, and "mapping of controls to common Windows functions."


While this project may never ship, it’s encouraging to see Microsoft employees pushing for it to happen. Microsoft was quick to support Xbox Cloud Gaming on the Steam Deck, but we’ve heard little about its Windows ambitions for handheld gaming outside of this leaked presentation.
A number of Switch-like handheld gaming devices from GPD and OneXPlayer or even the Ayaneo 2 have been relying on Windows without an optimized UI from Microsoft. That means companies have to build their own interfaces and launchers to make Windows more controller and handheld friendly.
There are signs that we’ll start to see even more Windows handheld devices soon, too. Asus just announced its ROG Ally, which aims to go head to head with the Steam Deck and is powered by a customized Ryzen APU from AMD and Windows 11. A Windows handheld mode certainly make a lot of sense right now.

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/l...g-could-look-like-on-steam-deck/1100-6513227/

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/202...-make-it-work-better-on-steam-deck-style-pcs/
 
Now port it as a trimmed down, lose the fat Desktop OS as well...ditch all the old 32bit legacy crap and ancient drivers and release it for those of us with modern hardware :)
 
MrGuvernment said:
Now port it as a trimmed down, lose the fat Desktop OS as well...ditch all the old 32bit legacy crap and ancient drivers and release it for those of us with modern hardware :)
Click to expand...
They'll happily do that and throw in worse spyware/tracking software, ad generating bloatware, and locked down you don't own shit on their software features that would make Google and Apple envious. :)
 
MrGuvernment said:
Now port it as a trimmed down, lose the fat Desktop OS as well...ditch all the old 32bit legacy crap and ancient drivers and release it for those of us with modern hardware :)
Click to expand...
But that's what we've wanted for the 20 years. I mean they'll have to leverage it to gamers somehow. We used to have to upgrade the OS to get the newest DX version. Despite games being made on DX9 for like 10+ years....
 
They should've thought about that back in the UMPC days!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra-mobile_PC

If some of those devices look vaguely familiar, it's because if you swap out the thumb keyboards for gamepad controls and Windows for a heavily customized Linux, you get the Steam Deck. Well, that and integrated graphics that aren't complete garbage, too.

MrGuvernment said:
Now port it as a trimmed down, lose the fat Desktop OS as well...ditch all the old 32bit legacy crap and ancient drivers and release it for those of us with modern hardware :)
Click to expand...
If "ditching all the old 32-bit legacy crap" means "breaking 32-bit games and other existing software" as Apple casually did with macOS Catalina and later, that's a hard no for me.

Part of the fun of PC gaming, at least on Windows, is that you can run closed-source, binary-only games from literal decades ago just fine, maybe with a little tweaking on the more finicky titles and outright emulation if you start diving into Win9x and older. You can't really do that on other OSes because they keep changing too much at a low level; I would not be surprised if UT2004's Linux installer right on the DVD just broke if you ran it on a modern distro nearly two decades later, for example.

I'm pretty sure current versions of Windows require a 64-bit CPU and native UEFI boot anyway, so they wouldn't even run on older hardware - supporting that stuff with drivers and such would be pointless. This is even before I get into Windows 11's arbitrary BS with alleged CPU requirements and TPM 2.0 requirement for no other real reason than to coerce people who don't know how to bypass the checks to buy new computers.
 
NamelessPFG said:
I would not be surprised if UT2004's Linux installer right on the DVD just broke if you ran it on a modern distro nearly two decades later, for example.
Click to expand...

Yeah, good luck with that. Probably have better luck running it on FreeBSD with the Linux emulator.
 
toast0 said:
Yeah, good luck with that. Probably have better luck running it on FreeBSD with the Linux emulator.
Click to expand...
Or running the Windows version with Proton/WINE + DXVK/etc., for that matter.

It's quite telling that game developers find that making Linux versions nets you 5% of the sales for 95% more support tickets, as one of them put it, and Proton just lets them put out a Windows version that simply works better in the ever-changing Linux environment (where devs just change kernel API calls on a whim and expect everyone to update their drivers to match) than a native build could ever hope to.

Proton may have singlehandedly made the Steam Deck the first Steam Machine worth buying, even moreso than its UMPC-esque form factor. (Anyone else remember Steam Machines and early SteamOS?) You generally don't have to think if your massive library of Steam games will run, because most of them will.
 
NamelessPFG said:
They should've thought about that back in the UMPC days!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra-mobile_PC

If some of those devices look vaguely familiar, it's because if you swap out the thumb keyboards for gamepad controls and Windows for a heavily customized Linux, you get the Steam Deck. Well, that and integrated graphics that aren't complete garbage, too.


If "ditching all the old 32-bit legacy crap" means "breaking 32-bit games and other existing software" as Apple casually did with macOS Catalina and later, that's a hard no for me.

Part of the fun of PC gaming, at least on Windows, is that you can run closed-source, binary-only games from literal decades ago just fine, maybe with a little tweaking on the more finicky titles and outright emulation if you start diving into Win9x and older. You can't really do that on other OSes because they keep changing too much at a low level; I would not be surprised if UT2004's Linux installer right on the DVD just broke if you ran it on a modern distro nearly two decades later, for example.

I'm pretty sure current versions of Windows require a 64-bit CPU and native UEFI boot anyway, so they wouldn't even run on older hardware - supporting that stuff with drivers and such would be pointless. This is even before I get into Windows 11's arbitrary BS with alleged CPU requirements and TPM 2.0 requirement for no other real reason than to coerce people who don't know how to bypass the checks to buy new computers.
Click to expand...

in that case then it would not be the OS to use for people who want to play such old games, or use such old apps. There are plenty of us who do not play such old games or use such old apps and thus a trimmed down lose all the "legacy" stuff might be nice and more efficient and stream lined, not to mention potentially more secure OS.
 
MrGuvernment said:
in that case then it would not be the OS to use for people who want to play such old games, or use such old apps. There are plenty of us who do not play such old games or use such old apps and thus a trimmed down lose all the "legacy" stuff might be nice and more efficient and stream lined, not to mention potentially more secure OS.
Click to expand...
So you like things the way Apple does it - get on the latest OS for all the latest security enhancements and features, and screw you if your existing software is incompatible, go buy something else that is.

Heck, if security is the impetus, that's what consoles are for, since they're not intended for you to run custom firmwares or unsigned code in general. They also generally are not designed to have backwards compatibility, though they may be capable of it if it's easy enough to implement.

I can understand modernizing the underlying codebase in ways that may break old programs not written in a system-friendly manner. Windows itself went through this when it kicked the DOS-based 9x/Me architecture to the curb in favor of NT (everything from Windows 2000 to 11 and beyond is a descendant of NT), and yet again when 64-bit versions had to drop 16-bit executable support because x86-64 long mode inherently doesn't work with virtual 8086 mode. I'm actually impressed that modern Windows has as much backwards compatibility as it currently does, at least on x86-64.

For those cases, just give me some kind of sandboxed compatibility/emulation environment if that's what they really have to do, make it optionally installed so it's not taking up resources if you don't need it, and don't pull an Apple and just remove it entirely within two to four OS versions (Classic Mode, original Rosetta for PowerPC binaries on Intel).
 
This is happening by the end of this year

Marees said:

Microsoft is combining ‘the best of Xbox and Windows together’ for handhelds​

Microsoft’s VP of ‘Next Generation’ says changes are coming in 2025.
by Tom Warren and Sean Hollister

Microsoft has done compact modes for Xbox apps on Windows that are focused on improving the handheld experience, but it’s a lot like putting lipstick on a pig instead of addressing the core experience. “I think we’ll have a lot more to share later this year,” teases Ronald. “I think it’s going to be a journey and I think you’ll see a lot of investments over time that you’re starting to see already, but we’ll have a lot more to share later this year.”


“I think, at the end of the day, our goal is to make Windows great for gaming on any device,” says Ronald. “The reality is the Xbox operating system is built on top of Windows. So there’s a lot of infrastructure that we built in the console space that we can bring to the PC space and really deliver that premium gaming experience on any device.”

Specifically, Microsoft has to tackle a lot of the very basics of making Windows more friendly to controllers and getting that Xbox experience to really drive things instead of the taskbar, Start menu, and other elements. “There’s just certain things in Windows that were not designed for if you don’t have a keyboard and mouse, like thumbstick support or joypads and stuff like that,” Ronald admits.

“There’s fundamental interaction models that we’re working on to make sure that regardless of the operating system details it feels very natively like a gaming-centric device and a gaming-centric experience.”

Ronald says the goal is to put an Xbox experience at the center — “not the Windows desktop that you have today.”

https://www.theverge.com/2025/1/7/24338778/microsoft-xbox-handheld-pc-gaming
Click to expand...
 
Nice to see MS taking the handheld space more seriously - hoping we get a true 'game mode'-style interface. I gotta admit, I'm not really feeling the desire or need to switch from Linux to Windows on my gaming handheld - however, if down the line Xbox software becomes compatible with these new Xbox handhelds - I'd take a closer look. Playing a 'Series S' version of a Xbox game on a handheld seems like a decent time to me.
 
Marees said:
This is happening by the end of this year
Click to expand...
I'm picturing a clownshow version of Steam's Big Screen mode locked to the Windows app store with forced integration of adware and spyware, including AI-enabled keylogging and screen capturing. No wonder MS pushed so hard for 45 TOPS minimum. SteamOS is just looking better and better. If Linux had something as good as Virtual Desktop for PCVR and Proton support for VR games were just a little better, I'd have switched already. Maybe Deckard will be the thing that makes it happen. At least I use my Macbook for general computing and the Windows box is just for gaming and encoding, so I'm not giving MS any good data to harvest.
 
arthur_tuxedo said:
I'm picturing a clownshow version of Steam's Big Screen mode locked to the Windows app store with forced integration of adware and spyware, including AI-enabled keylogging and screen capturing. No wonder MS pushed so hard for 45 TOPS minimum. SteamOS is just looking better and better. If Linux had something as good as Virtual Desktop for PCVR and Proton support for VR games were just a little better, I'd have switched already. Maybe Deckard will be the thing that makes it happen. At least I use my Macbook for general computing and the Windows box is just for gaming and encoding, so I'm not giving MS any good data to harvest.
Click to expand...
45 TOPS on an NPU sounds like a lot of memory bandwidth being used.
 
Asus is the launch partner for the xbox themed windows handheld

Marees said:
the Xbox work that has hit the headlines this week is actually called Project Kennan, not Keenan. I’m told that Kennan is the codename for a handheld that is being manufactured by Asus, and it’s part of a larger effort from Microsoft to unify Windows and Xbox towards a universal library of Xbox and PC games.

I’m told that Asus is one of the launch partners for these efforts, with an Xbox-branded handheld likely to debut later this year. I say likely because a lot of this platform work is still ongoing, so until Microsoft officially announces it, timelines could change.


Some of this platform work is codenamed Project Bayside, part of an Xbox UX framework that is designed to ensure there’s a common Xbox UI across multiple devices to help combine Windows and Xbox. Together, Kennan and Bayside represent some of the work that Ronald was hinting at, opening up the benefits of Xbox to the broader Windows ecosystem.


Windows Central reports that Microsoft is working on a “premium successor” to the Xbox Series X alongside its own Xbox handheld that is tentatively slated for release in 2027. I’m fully expecting Microsoft’s next Xbox console to be a lot more PC-like, so the Kennan and Bayside projects will likely give us an early look at how the next-gen Xbox will take shape on the software side, at least.

These Xbox platform changes could also help fend off the threat of SteamOS. I wrote last year that Microsoft is now in a handheld gaming PC race, with Valve allowing device makers to offer SteamOS on their handhelds instead of Windows. Microsoft has been slow to respond to the Steam Deck, particularly around improving the Windows experience on handhelds like Asus’ ROG Ally. Valve opening up SteamOS last summer and then Lenovo introducing its own SteamOS-powered handheld in January will have sounded the alarms inside Microsoft, because if one Windows OEM has already been tempted by SteamOS then what’s stopping more of them from switching?

This is particularly relevant beyond the emerging market of handhelds, too. Valve is now in a far better position to make its console-like Steam Machines a reality, thanks to the success of the Steam Deck and its Proton work. If OEMs get comfortable with SteamOS on their handhelds, the next logical step is a demand for SteamOS on something more like a miniature PC or game console.


https://www.theverge.com/notepad-mi...icrosoft-xbox-handheld-project-kennan-notepad
Click to expand...
 
NamelessPFG said:
So you like things the way Apple does it - get on the latest OS for all the latest security enhancements and features, and screw you if your existing software is incompatible, go buy something else that is.

Heck, if security is the impetus, that's what consoles are for, since they're not intended for you to run custom firmwares or unsigned code in general. They also generally are not designed to have backwards compatibility, though they may be capable of it if it's easy enough to implement.

I can understand modernizing the underlying codebase in ways that may break old programs not written in a system-friendly manner. Windows itself went through this when it kicked the DOS-based 9x/Me architecture to the curb in favor of NT (everything from Windows 2000 to 11 and beyond is a descendant of NT), and yet again when 64-bit versions had to drop 16-bit executable support because x86-64 long mode inherently doesn't work with virtual 8086 mode. I'm actually impressed that modern Windows has as much backwards compatibility as it currently does, at least on x86-64.

For those cases, just give me some kind of sandboxed compatibility/emulation environment if that's what they really have to do, make it optionally installed so it's not taking up resources if you don't need it, and don't pull an Apple and just remove it entirely within two to four OS versions (Classic Mode, original Rosetta for PowerPC binaries on Intel).
Click to expand...

I am just more for a stream lines OS with less bloat and old things lying around, give options... but I know it would not happen because the resources required to run 2 windows versions legacy vs X years support only, just would not be worth it.

If i used much older software, which I do not, then I may have different view, but I do not, as do most people, most computer users do not have much older software around, they install and let things update, free, or have paid apps.
 
MrGuvernment said:
Now port it as a trimmed down, lose the fat Desktop OS as well...ditch all the old 32bit legacy crap and ancient drivers and release it for those of us with modern hardware :)
Click to expand...
Some of us need the 32 bits for old games.
 
What's funny is all you need to do is get rid of the start button, make all settings, account, Windows search all nice big tiles on the desktop, make app icons tiles, change the 'start' key to be a Windows search/command button. Make half and corner-screen snapping default instead of dragging windows around and pretty much everything you can do on desktop Windows suddenly becomes handheld-friendly.

It's what they should have done for win 8 instead of trying to make wholly separate metro and desktop experiences.
 
And with Asus and their history of their poorly done handheld and the failure issues they refused to admit to or fix....
 
Update:

Marees said:
Its here

This is how Microsoft is combining Windows and Xbox for handheld PCs​

Two new Xbox Ally devices introduce Microsoft’s much-needed improvements to handheld gaming PCs.
by Tom Warren
Jun 8, 2025, 10:40 PM GMT+5:30

Microsoft and Asus have just announced two ROG Xbox Ally devices that include a new full-screen Xbox experience for handhelds. After promising to combine “the best of Xbox and Windows together” for handhelds earlier this year, Microsoft is now revealing exactly how it is overhauling the Xbox app, Game Bar, and Windows itself to better compete with SteamOS.

https://www.theverge.com/news/68201...pc-combination-features-rog-xbox-ally-devices


The Xbox full-screen experience is very much the compact mode of the Xbox app taking full control of the ROG Xbox Ally devices, instead of the familiar Windows desktop and taskbar. “When the player boots into the full-screen experience there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn’t get loaded,” says Beaumont. “We’re not loading the desktop wallpaper, the taskbar, or a bunch of processes that are really designed around productivity scenarios for Windows.”


“Some of our early testing with the components we’ve turned off in Windows, we get about 2GB of memory going back to the games while running in the full-screen experience.”

“If you’re booting your device into the full-screen experience and you’re putting it down and it’s going to sleep, it draws one third of the idle power draw than if it was booting the same device into the [Windows] desktop experience,”


Sones says Microsoft is “working closely with leading storefronts to have them optimize their full screen experience,” to make it easy for everyone to play a full library of PC games from Steam, Epic Games Store, and elsewhere.
“The aggregated gaming library within Xbox on PC will be available for all Windows 11 devices,” says Sones, so you’ll soon be able to see all of your Steam games within the Xbox app on any PC.


“The Xbox full-screen experience will first come to the ROG Xbox Ally and the ROG Xbox Ally X, and our next focus will be updating the in-market ROG Ally and the ROG Ally X,” says Sones. “Similar full-screen Xbox experiences will be rolling out to other Windows handhelds, starting next year.”
Click to expand...
 
Yeah, that's sounding very good - hoping MS and ASUS can pull it off. She looks very chunky, but also very comfortable. I typically get a grip for my handhelds, but don't think I'll need one for the Ally 2. If this new OS feature is also compatible with other handhelds (namely the og ROG Ally), I'd move away from Bazzite and give it a whirl.

I feel like if this is successful, this is the OS that will be powering the next gen Xbox PC's.
 
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