This is Windows 10X running on a MacBook — and it's glorious

News
By Phillip Tracy
published

The mashup we never knew we wanted

(Image credit: @imbushuo/Twitter)

Earlier this week, Microsoft released the first emulator for Windows 10X, giving the public its first glimpse at the upcoming operating system. It only took a few days for some wizard to get it running on a Mac. 

Twitter user and independent dev @imbushuo (who goes by Ben) posted a video of the operating system running on his MacBook, and it seems to perform surprisingly well. You can check out this fine work in the tweet below. 

See more

As you can see, Windows 10X is running on a 12-inch MacBook with an Intel Core m3 CPU and 8GB of RAM. Incredibly, most of the drivers work as advertised, including those for the touchpad (even gestures work!). 

Windows 10X wasn't designed for Macs. In fact, the OS was originally meant for upcoming foldable and dual-screen devices, like the ThinkPad X1 Fold or Microsoft's own Surface Neo. Recent reports suggest Windows 10X will also come to traditional clamshell devices. 

While this strange Windows 10X + MacBook mashup is a fun idea, it's not a practical one for Apple laptop users. As the dev notes, some tricks were needed to get the emulator on a Mac, but that finagling ultimately made the image unserviceable. 

Microsoft is set to launch Windows 10X this fall, so it created and released an emulator earlier this week for devs to test and optimize their apps. 

The emulator is available on Microsoft's dev tools site if you want to give it a try. 

Phillip Tracy
Phillip Tracy

Phillip Tracy is the assistant managing editor at Laptop Mag where he reviews laptops, phones and other gadgets while covering the latest industry news. After graduating with a journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin, Phillip became a tech reporter at the Daily Dot. There, he wrote reviews for a range of gadgets and covered everything from social media trends to cybersecurity. Prior to that, he wrote for RCR Wireless News covering 5G and IoT. When he's not tinkering with devices, you can find Phillip playing video games, reading, traveling or watching soccer.