Windows 7: Windows 7 slates "this Christmas," touch optimizations in 2011

Speaking in London today, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said that Windows-powered slates would be seen this Christmas. Whether by design or by accident, he stopped short of saying they would actually be available to buy by Christmas. He also neglected to specify who would be making the devices, though one company known to be bringing a slate PC to market is HP.

Later in the day, Ballmer also announced that Microsoft is going to include some (as yet unspecified) touch optimizations for Windows 7 next year, and that a full slate interface will come with Windows 8.

This announcement should put the kibosh on last week's analyst claims that it wouldn't be until mid-2011 that Windows tablets started to ship—as should the fact that there are already Windows 7 slates shipping, albeit not from any major OEMs.