Windows CE 5.0 (codenamed "Macallan") is a successor to

Windows CE Windows CE, later known as Windows Embedded CE and Windows Embedded Compact, is a discontinued operating system developed by Microsoft for mobile and embedded devices. It was part of the Windows Embedded family and served as the software foun ...

4.2, the third release in the Windows CE

.NET The .NET platform (pronounced as "''dot net"'') is a free and open-source, managed code, managed computer software framework for Microsoft Windows, Windows, Linux, and macOS operating systems. The project is mainly developed by Microsoft emplo ...

family. It was first released on July 9, 2004. Like its predecessors, Windows CE 5.0 is marketed towards the embedded device market and independent device vendors. Windows CE 5.0 is billed as a low-cost, compact, fast-to-market,

real-time operating system A real-time operating system (RTOS) is an operating system (OS) for real-time computing applications that processes data and events that have critically defined time constraints. A RTOS is distinct from a time-sharing operating system, such as Unix ...

available for

x86 x86 (also known as 80x86 or the 8086 family) is a family of complex instruction set computer (CISC) instruction set architectures initially developed by Intel, based on the 8086 microprocessor and its 8-bit-external-bus variant, the 8088. Th ...

, ARM, MIPS, and

SuperH SuperH (or SH) is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computing (RISC) instruction set architecture (ISA) developed by Hitachi and currently produced by Renesas. It is implemented by microcontrollers and microprocessors for embedded systems. At the ...

microprocessor A microprocessor is a computer processor (computing), processor for which the data processing logic and control is included on a single integrated circuit (IC), or a small number of ICs. The microprocessor contains the arithmetic, logic, a ...

-based systems. Windows CE 5.0 builds on previous Windows CE releases in its adoption of shared source. Since 2001, Microsoft has been steadily expanding the available Windows CE source tree with embedded system developers. Windows CE 5.0 is the most open Microsoft operating system to date, though not all of the system is available under shared source agreements. Developers have the freedom to modify down to the kernel level, without the need to share their changes with Microsoft or competitors. Windows CE 5.x is the base OS for Windows Mobile 6.0, 6.1 and 6.5. On the x86 platform, Windows CE 5.0 competes against Microsoft's other embedded operating systems,

Windows XP Embedded Windows XP, which is the next version of Windows NT after Windows 2000 and the successor to the consumer-oriented Windows Me, has been released in several editions since its original release in 2001. Windows XP is available in many languages. In ...

and its predecessor Windows NT Embedded. Platform Builder IDE for Windows CE 5.0 is the last builder tool available as standalone product.

Windows CE vs. Windows XP Embedded

According to Microsoft, Windows CE is preferable to

in situations where demanding wireless and multimedia requirements need to be met. The following are the primary considerations for “choosing the right version”: * CPU architecture: Windows CE supports an extensive array of architectures, including

, whereas Windows XP Embedded only supports the x86 architecture. * Real-time applications: Windows CE is a

, while Windows XP Embedded is not by default. * Existing Win32 applications: Windows CE cannot use Win32 binaries, libraries, and drivers without modification. * Memory footprint: The minimum footprint of Windows CE is 350 kilobytes. The minimum footprint of Windows XP Embedded is 8 megabytes, making it over 23 times larger. There is also a difference in cost.

References

* * {{History of Windows Windows CE MIPS operating systems CE 5.0

Windows CE vs. Windows XP Embedded

See also

References