Microsoft believes there is room for its own middle- to lower-end laptop computer, even as Google's Chromebook has done quite well and taken over a large proportion of the market.
The company says it is ready to get moving on similar computers called Stream that will undercut Chromebooks in terms of cost, and should have all the bells and whistles the average computer user needs.
According to reports, the Stream will cost only $199 and Microsoft will partner with HP on getting the new device to the market. This comes along with reports that Toshiba and Acer are working on their own similar budget laptops that will be priced at $249. While Toshiba's offering is to feature an 11.6-inch display, the Acer laptop is to be much larger, with 15.6-inch display.
While rumors abound over the HP Stream to be launched with Microsoft, no specific details of the device have yet emerged.
But if the price holds up, it could put a little crinkle in Google's domination of the cheaper end of the laptop market, items which cost between $200 and $300. The cheapest Windows laptops on the market at the moment run around $400.
While these cheaper models do not offer the power that higher-end laptops do, they are an option for those who don't need a laptop for more than browsing and word processing. Current Chromebooks must also have constant Internet access, meaning the device doesn't function properly unless connected.
The new move into the low-end laptop market could be a push toward getting Wall Street on board, after delays in a number of products has seen the company falter somewhat. But Microsoft's chief salesman Kevin Turner, chief operating officer, believes that the run of options coming from Microsoft will be a precursor for more greatness.
"We are beyond the 'attach and license' world, where we had a 90 percent penetration of PCs ... the world has shifted and evolved and we now have to measure ourselves in the total device space," he said at the Worldwide Partners Conference in Washington, D.C.
By heading into new realms, Microsoft should be able to diversify further and continue to innovate as the general population's needs are voiced.
"We have a much bigger chance to grow business, but also a new reality in which to grow. In a world of 14 percent device share, we have a new mindset: you have to have a challenger mindset. Everyone has to have a challenger mindset," added Turner.
