After Microsoft's previewed its coming operating system, Windows 8, on a prototype Samsung tablet at a conference in Anaheim, Calif., Tuesday, some tech-savvy observers reportedly called it the downfall of Apple's iPad.

With the consistent growth in the tablet market, the iPad often has had competitors popping up in the market and disappearing without affecting its growth.

Windows has long been the dominant computer operating system in the world, though it missed a couple of beats, as consumers began turning to tablets and smartphones to work and socialize. With Windows 8, Microsoft has its eyes set on the tablet market and is aiming to regain the ground it has lost to Apple.

The prototype Samsung tablet running on the pre-beta version of OS, which is set to arrive next year, features a 1.6GHz processor, 11.6-inch screen, front and rear cameras, and HDMI port, USB port, microSD slot and a SIM-card slot. It also comes along with a charging dock with USB, HDMI and Ethernet ports, a stylus pen and a Bluetooth keyboard.

Microsoft's Windows Division President Steven Sinofsky said, We re-imagined Windows. From the chipset to the user experience, Windows 8 brings a new range of capabilities without compromise.

Windows is already a huge operating system in the market and there are millions of people who would rather go for Windows PC than any other device. The company enjoys a market share of 90 percent for desktop operating systems. When Windows 8 works with tablets, people will want a device running on a Windows operating system, Microsoft hopes.

Apart from the x86 chips from Intel and AMD, Windows 8 will also run on ARM-based processors. Thanks to their low-power, connected computing, ARM processors like Nvidia's Tegra, Qualcomm's Snapdragon and TI's OMAP have dominated both the smartphone and tablet industry.

With the possibility of accessibility of the operating system across tablet, PC and laptops, the system gives the ability to sync settings and preferences across systems, as with Windows 8's cloud services. And the interoperability with the vast universe of apps, Windows 8 tablet will have an edge over the other devices.

The Windows tablet can also offer diversity like the current array of Android tablets. Though iPad has several versions, an iPad is an iPad and the users are not left with a variety of shapes and sizes to choose.

Several vendors are lining up for the support of the Windows 8 tablet, with Samsung and Dell bringing it to the market. The price will be driven by the hardware specs of the tablet.

Microsoft has also announced that Windows 8 will come with Near Field Communication support and the company has explained the NFC usage in the Build conference.

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