Hopefully MS will lose the "we need to put Windows on everything, including embedded systems" attitude. Windows is a horrible bloated mess barely capable of successfully running on a tablet PC, much less smaller things. (And if you've ever had to /build/ Windows . . . OMG. OMFG).
There are core bits of Windows that are great; the I/O system is incredibly well done. Then then are core pieces of Windows which are incredibly shitty -- in fact, there are registry entries that /nobody knows what they do/. No one has had the gumption to clean that stuff up. But until they do, folks like Apple (who seem to have a good handle on their technology /and/ consumer design) will continue to be fierce competitors.
If they pick the wrong CEO, this could go south pretty quickly. They're going to need someone tough, who has a good horse sense about consumers and can't be snowed by engineering management trying to cover up mistakes.
BillG isn't coming back, but they need someone like him.