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Microsoft Relevant Products/Services showed off new Windows 7 innovations at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference this week. The focus was how the upcoming version of Microsoft's flagship product will make it easier for hardware partners to create new experiences for Windows PC customers.

Windows senior vice presidents Steven Sinofsky and Jon DeVaan rallied hardware partners, encouraging them to begin testing their current products and building new products on the application programming interface (API).

"We've done a great deal of work in Windows 7 to enable new scenarios with our hardware partners, and we are excited by the partner innovation we have shown today," said DeVaan, who heads Microsoft's Windows Core Operating System Division. "Windows 7 presents tremendous opportunities for hardware developers. This innovation will enable our hardware partners to provide customers with even greater choice in rich computing experiences."

Hardware-Friendly Features

Among the new Windows 7 features Microsoft demonstrated are technologies that aim to optimize how customers interact with Windows PCs, manage devices, access broadband, and use wireless Relevant Products/Services.

For example, in efforts to make it easier for customers to interact with all their devices on a Windows PC, Microsoft has created a new feature dubbed Devices and Printers. It offers a single place for customers to interact with devices, browse files, or manage settings. Devices can be connected to the PC using USB, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, with setup wizards.

Device Stage is another new feature, designed to help Windows 7 customers take advantage of advanced device features. For example, Device Stage provides information on the status of mobile Relevant Products/Services phones, portable media players, cameras and printers connected to a Windows 7 PC and runs common tasks in a single window customized by the device manufacturer.

Windows 7 also promises to deliver a simpler and more reliable way to connect to the Internet using wireless modems. The process is similar to connecting to any other wireless network, and is done using the View Available Networks feature.

And, of course, there's the much-touted Windows Touch functionality that lets users control the computer by touching the screen and receiving visual feedback for tap and double-tap gestures. The Start menu, Windows Taskbar and Windows Explorer are touch-ready. Windows 7 also introduces support Relevant Products/Services for multi-touch technology that lets users zoom in, zoom out, and rotate images with fingers.

We're helping protect partner investments in Windows Vista as we build Windows 7," DeVaan said. "Our goal is to maintain very high compatibility with products designed for Windows Vista."

Microsoft's Challenges

Microsoft is making some progress with Windows 7, but the company is still in the shadows of Vista mistakes, and those perceptions, along with market realities, breed challenges for Redmond with the latest version of its operating system. One of the key challenges is giving users and businesses a reason to upgrade to Windows 7, according to Michael Gartenberg, vice president of mobile strategy for Jupitermedia.

"There are very few products I can think of; In fact, this is the only product I can think of that not only has to appeal to the CIOs of Fortune 500 companies but also to my mom as well," Gartenberg said. "Microsoft needs a marketing message that's going to work for both of those audiences. That's something Microsoft has been unable to do."

Making matters worse for Microsoft, Windows 7 is coming at a time when Apple is firing on all cylinders and its commercials are mercilessly poking fun at Microsoft and Vista, even to the point of mocking the Windows ad campaign itself, Gartenberg said. Then there's the timing issue of getting the product to market.

"Historically, Microsoft has had a hard time shipping an operating system in less than a year when they released it in beta. Well, the product isn't even in beta yet. If they do release it in that short a time span, then is this really just an updated version of Windows Vista with a different name and a different marketing message?" Gartenberg asked. "And maybe that's exactly what Microsoft needs because Vista wasn't so bad to begin with."