I’m not one to go negative, but when I saw that Microsoft was including HEVC in Windows 10, scheduled for release in 2015, I just had to laugh. Over two years after Windows 8 shipped, I still use it only when I absolutely have to. The most ardent recommendation I make to friends buying a new Windows computer is to “downgrade” to Windows 7 if at all possible.
Assuming that the same product designers are on Windows 10, this means that many users will avoid “upgrading” to that as well, perhaps pushing out mass market acceptance of Windows 10 until 2017. Certainly we’ll be on codec next, whatever that is, by then.
On a more positive note, yesterday I wrote for Streaming Media that both Apple and Google had made major moves with HEVC on iOS and Android respectively, but not in Safari or Chrome (but could they be close behind). In all seriousness, if Apple, Google and, yes, Microsoft, include HEVC decode in their browsers, it would go a very long way towards quickly enabling HEVC usage for the masses.