Multi-OS emulator for mobile

Bochs is a free utility application for mobile devices from developer Lyubomyr Lisen. It’s a multi-platform emulator that lets users run all kinds of operating systems, complete with CPU architectures, I/O support, and a custom BIOS to facilitate it all.

Compared to similar solutions like ExaGear Windows Emulator or Dolphin Emulator, Bochs features wider OS scope and support that it can run. Users can even go back to the early days of computing to get a glimpse of what kind of experience they offered. It also has multiple operating modes depending on their needs.

All-in-one emulation

It used to be that PC emulation was reserved for the most capable machines with powerful hardware and specifications. Nowadays, even mobile devices can run emulators with relative ease and quite well. If you’re looking to try multiple operating systems across various platforms, then Bochs is one option to consider that supports all kinds from different hardware combinations and eras.

This tool can emulate various hardware configurations from both Intel and AMD CPUs, common I/O devices, and a custom BIOS to run it all. As for operating systems, you can test out multiple versions of Microsoft Windows, DOS, and even Linux. From there, you can do all types of tasks and explore features that a particular OS or version is capable of.

In addition, as long as your device can handle it, you can even install and run native programs for testing purposes. Having said that, the experience of running such applications has been inconsistent and unreliable. Also, if you plan on plugging in storage devices, file format support is very limited, and there’s a high chance it won’t even be recognized at all.

Nice concept, limited application

All in all, Bochs’ concept of being a multi-platform emulator is great, but the execution still needs work for it to become truly useful. Running programs can be hit-or-miss, and the poor file format support holds it back. Hopefully, these things can be addressed in the future. For now, it’s just untapped potential that is only good for simple tasks and exploration.