Microsoft to launch Windows 8 and Surface tablet The announcements represent the culmination of years of work for the company that has faced challenges to its dominance of computing from both Apple and Google. Windows 8 is designed for touchscreen computers, and is to be showcased on the first computer that Microsoft has made itself, the Surface tablet. Featuring a keyboard that Microsoft claims is the thinnest available, it will provide a unique platform for new software that offers an interface that uses 'live tiles" to give a glimpse of apps, as well as a fully-fledged version of Windows 7 so that existing programmes such as iTunes and Adobe Photoshop can still be used. The device and software will formally be unveiled in New York, where a celebration is expected to be held in Times Square. Analysts have been divided on whether Windows 8 is likely to capture the market share enjoyed by its predecessors, although critics have largely been impressed by the operating system, and how it is adapted to touchscreens. Chief Executive Steve Ballmer has said that Microsoft is "betting the company" on the success of Windows 8, although the focus for the new software will be on new PCs that feature touchscreens, rather than on users upgrading conventional laptops. The £399 Surface tablet has already sold out in the UK, and the launch of Windows 8 is also to be accompanied with new products from all the major tablet and laptop PC manufacturers. These will include new devices that offer both tablet and laptop options within the same model, enabled by new designs featuring flipover screens.