Windows on Arm is arguably as successful as ever: you can buy multiple Arm-based Windows laptops and tablets, and those devices can run almost the full range of Windows apps available thanks to x86-to-Arm code conversion. However, Windows on Arm is still only a fraction of the entire Windows ecosystem, and native Arm apps for that platform are still relatively rare.
Today at the Build developer conference, Microsoft made several announcements aimed at supporting Windows on Arm. The first of these is Project Volterra, a Microsoft-branded mini desktop powered by an unnamed Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC. More relevant to developers who already own Arm hardware, Volterra will be accompanied by a fully native Arm developer toolset.
According to a Microsoft blog post, the company will release versions of Visual Studio 2022 and VSCode, Visual C++, Modern. NET 6, the classic platform. NET, Windows Terminal, as well as the Windows Subsystem for Linux and the Windows Subsystem for Windows. Android. Native Arm versions of these applications will allow developers to run them without the performance penalty associated with translating x86 code to run on Arm devices, which is especially useful given that Arm Windows devices typically lack sufficient performance.
Pre-release versions of these tools will become available “in the next few weeks.”
As for the Volterra hardware, we know it runs on a Qualcomm SoC with an embedded Neural Processing Unit (NPU), “best-in-class AI computing power”and supports the Qualcomm Neural Processing SDK. Microsoft is promoting it as a solution for testing AI and machine learning applications, although depending on other specifications, it can also be a good general-purpose development tool for Windows on Arm applications.
Microsoft’s reveal video revealed that Volterra uses a standard NVMe SSD and that it will include an active cooling fan, which suggests slightly more expandability and performance than we’ve seen in other Windows-on-Arm developer boxes. It also has a decent array of ports for its size, with three USB-A ports, a mini DisplayPort, an Ethernet port on the back, and two USB-C ports (one of which is used for power) on the side. Its stackable black body is also made from “recycled ocean plastic”like the Ocean Plastic Mouse that the company introduced last year.
Project Volterra will be available “later this year”for an undisclosed price.
This isn’t the first hardware Microsoft is offering developers to try out Windows on Arm. Last year, the company listed the ECS LIVA QC710 for $219 on the Microsoft Store, targeting app developers. Despite its small size and affordable price, 4 GB of RAM, a weak Qualcomm 7c processor, 64 GB of internal memory, and a mediocre selection of ports did not give developers enough room to warm up. It looks like Volterra can fix some or all of these shortcomings.
One thing that’s holding Windows on Arm right now is the lack of great hardware, or more specifically, the lack of great chips that can match or beat Intel and AMD performance while delivering better battery life. None of Qualcomm’s Windows PC chips were as fast as the Apple M1, let alone the faster M1 variants. We may not see Qualcomm’s first class M1 competitor until late 2023, well after Volterra’s planned release.