Microsoft Launches World’s First Cloud PC Windows 365 Link for $350

Introduced late last year, the compact Windows 365 Link desktop PC is now available for sale. It costs $349.99 in the US. Microsoft is pitching it as the first cloud-based personal computer. It lacks its own operating system and instead provides access to a cloud-hosted virtual machine running Windows 11.

Image source: Microsoft

Windows 365 Link uses a quad-core Intel N250 processor with a frequency of up to 3.8 GHz, 8 GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and 64 GB of UFS storage. It supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. The set of external ports includes one USB-A 3.2 Gen1, two USB-A 3.2 Gen2, one USB-C 3.2, LAN, HDMI 2.0, and DisplayPort 1.4. The dimensions of the device are 120 × 120 × 30 mm.

Windows 365 Link is available for purchase in the US ($349.99), Australia ($639 AUD), Canada ($519.99 CAD), Germany (419 EUR), Japan (68,000 JPY), New Zealand ($739 NZD), and the UK (349 GBP).

Windows 365 Link is only available through Microsoft’s commercial channels. This device is not intended for consumers, so it will not be sold in retail stores. According to the manufacturer, the main buyers of the computer will be commercial companies and government organizations. Microsoft especially notes the convenience of remote device management, quick setup, as well as automatic download and installation of updates. Windows 365 Link does not support running applications locally and only works when connected to a cloud PC based on Windows 365.

These cloud-based devices have their advantages. For example, they can offer increased security and performance compared to regular office PCs. They don’t store data locally, and a cloud PC can be configured at any time to use a more powerful processor, more RAM, or more storage.