The coming of the next version of Windows in 2012, as announced by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer during a speech at a developer conference in Tokyo might just be a speculation as the company is yet to confirm on its date and OS features, reports PC World.

According to a transcript on Microsoft's site, the Microsoft chief said,We're obviously hard at work on the next version of Windows... We have a brand new user interface. We've added touch, and ink, and speech. And yet, as we look forward to the next generation of Windows systems, which will come out next year, there's a whole lot more coming.

While he didn’t give any details about the features in Windows 8, he spoke about other experiments and investments Microsoft is currently focusing on, including the Windows Azure, the natural user interface, or the notion that we really want to speak, wave and gesture, touch and mark on our computing devices.

He also spoke about implementing a hybrid cloud. Skype is just another representation of what we think is the importance of enabling a broad range of scenarios in the cloud, he said on Microsoft's recent acquisition.

He also regretted the delay in introducing Windows Phone which he wanted to come up with, a year earlier and he promised that there will be a new release at the end of this year with a set of upgrades and 500 new features.

However, the company soon began backtracking from Ballmer's statement saying that Microsoft has not officially announced any timing or naming for the next version of Windows.

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