14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has already confirmed that it’s working on bringing the full version of Windows 10 on ARM chips, and for Windows phones, this announcement opens the door for a world of opportunities, especially because such an implementation could reignite interest in the platform.
Since this project is still in its early days, concept designers across the world are trying to envision the way the full version of Windows 10 would look like on mobile devices, bringing some of the popular desktop features on the small screens of smartphones.
This concept published on Behance does just that and brings forward some ideas that could actually work, although there still are plenty of things that need to be refined here too.
First and foremost, what the creator did was to bring part of the Start menu on mobile devices, even though the original Windows Phone Start continues to be available. Furthermore, there’s also a taskbar with quick access to Cortana, Task view (although this doesn’t make much sense on a system like Windows 10 Mobile), the back tool that’s available in Windows 10 tablet mode and the system tray.
System tray on a smartphone? Not so fast
Now this is something that really doesn’t make any sense on a smartphone. The system tray is indeed super helpful on PCs, but using super-small icons on a smartphone makes them not only very difficult to see but also quite difficult to tap and use. The clock also doesn’t align with the typical mobile approach.
On the other hand, the Action Center might have its own place on mobiles, even though there are things we’d change here too.
Windows 10 Mobile already has an Action Center, but the concept creator imagines one that features a design similar to the one on the PC, and he does this for a good reason: Windows 10 is supposed to look and feel the same on all devices, so sticking with the same design might be a good way to achieve this.
In the end, this concept could serve as living proof that some desktop features might indeed have their own place on smartphones, but it goes without saying that many more refinements are needed for this approach to make sense.
