Microsoft Surface Tablet announced

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xtop said:
that's not really what they said, unless you're seeing a different article.



http://money.cnn.com/2012/06/18/technology/microsoft-windows-tablet/index.htm?hpt=hp_c2
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It wasn't an article. I was watching the channel at work and they had the headline that (Almost verbatim) Windows version to be priced at 1,000.00.

From my office it's hard to hear but they had an analyst on regarding whether it was an IPad killer or somesuch.

EDIT: Not challenging btw. I would go off your quote more for the record.
 
The surface is pro is almost like everything we thought the original ipad would be.
 
The more I look at it, the better and better the Pro version is.

With the iPad3, I had to search high and low to make it fit my needs and it ultimately doesn't. Thus, it's use is now browsing and a handful of apps. I still enjoy it and don't regret it one bit. It's a very nice product.

However, the Surface Pro will simply decimate it for productivity reasons. I expect a lot of orgs to roll these out for their sales teams and other people who travel frequently.
 
harSon said:
The only thing that concerns me, and its pretty much out of Microsoft's control, is the device's (tablet) software catalog. There's only so much Microsoft can do on that front, and unless the device catches on in a big way, that's always going to be an aspect that iOS and Android find themselves superior within.

Having owned a Zune HD, I was always jealous of the iPod touch in that regard, considering it's supported software was an absolute joke despite being an AMAZING dedicated MP3 player. I'm not sure how Windows 7 Phone is at the moment, but I'd imagine that its software support is pretty laughable in comparison to the competition.
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I'm sure W8 will fare much better compared to Zune and WP7, but yeah... I don't see the app catalog going anywhere near what's currently available on ios and android, for at least an year or so... Hopefully, having giving the tools to the developers so much in advance as Ms did does translate at a handful of useful apps by the time win8 launches...
 
sangreal said:
Maybe, but there haven't been any comparably thin (or simple) convertibles announced yet
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don't get me wrong, i like the pro version. I think MS as a company should have had a little more foresight into developing a metro version of Office to coincide with this big push, instead of what they are going to do for the first release.


Mudkips said:
Thankfully you have a keyboard and trackpad, and can hook up a real keyboard and mouse if you want.
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oh, there is a trackpad on the cover? i thought it was just a keyboard. then forget it.
 
LukasTaves said:
I'm sure W8 will fare much better compared to Zune and WP7, but yeah... I don't see the app catalog going anywhere near what's currently available on ios and android, for at least an year or so... Hopefully, having giving the tools to the developers so much in advance as Ms did does translate at a handful of useful apps by the time win8 launches...
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Metro being streamlined into the base os actually increases the odds of support. They will stil have a huge userbase of users on a desktop. Unlike Zune which had its own ecosystem separate from anything most people had
 
Glad to see MS paying more attention to eye-catching little details like Apple. When you snap on the keyboard cover the desktop theme changes to match the color of the cover. I love little touches like that, and it's stuff you only get when you attack hardware and software together.
 
Android, you've done a decent job warming up the market as a placeholder. Now it's time to get to business. This feels like the tablet we've all, well not all, but most of us have been waiting for. A tablet that's more than just an internet & ebook device. The pro tablet sounds amazing.

Apple might be the ones forced to copy the competition this time around, how long do you think it'll be before we see an iPad with OSX?
 
eznark said:
Yeah, hopefully a lot of companies see this and improve upon it. Why is that a bad thing?

Also, don't they have Office metro application for the arm based PC's?
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Office is one of the reasons the desktop exists on Windows RT machines. There is no Metro version of Office, so they just ported the desktop suite to ARM and called it a day. Given the relationship the Office division has with the Windows division, I guess it's because Office for iPad had a higher priority.
 
Yo Gotti said:
Android, you've done a decent job warming up the market as a placeholder. Now it's time to get to business. This feels like the tablet we've all, well not all, but most of us have been waiting for. A tablet that's more than just an internet & ebook device. The pro tablet sounds amazing.

Apple might be the ones forced to copy the competition this time around, how long do you think it'll be before we see an iPad with OSX?
Click to expand...
I definitely think that this is the first product in a LONG time that will force Cupertino to sit up and take notice. I'll be really interested to see what they do next.
 
brotkasten said:
Office is the reason why the desktop exists on Windows RT machines. There is no Metro version of Office, so they just ported the desktop suite to ARM and called it a day. Given the relationship the Office division has with the Windows division, I guess it's because Office for iPad had a higher priority.
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Ah, interesting. After using pages and slides or whatever it's called on the iPad I can understand why making a portable/touch friendly solution is not really worth it.
 
Honestly Surface Pro is the kind of hardware that Microsoft built Windows 8 for. This is them basically throwing their hands up in the air and saying they'll build the damn thing themselves if none of their OEM partners will do it.

Both tablet and desktop functionality, an OS that can transition between both, and a sandbox app environment that will eventually be available across all their devices whether it be phone, desktop, laptop, tablet, or console. WinRT is going to be everywhere and that is their pitch to App developers.
 
This is all about the Pro model. Basic surface is just a run of the mill tablet with microsoft's os instead of android or ios. But the pro model... i say it again, if the writing experience works as demoed on stage... man...
 
Yo Gotti said:
Android, you've done a decent job warming up the market as a placeholder. Now it's time to get to business. This feels like the tablet we've all, well not all, but most of us have been waiting for. A tablet that's more than just an internet & ebook device. The pro tablet sounds amazing.

Apple might be the ones forced to copy the competition this time around, how long do you think it'll be before we see an iPad with OSX?
Click to expand...

well put
 
Yo Gotti said:
Android, you've done a decent job warming up the market as a placeholder. Now it's time to get to business. This feels like the tablet we've all, well not all, but most of us have been waiting for. A tablet that's more than just an internet & ebook device. The pro tablet sounds amazing.

Apple might be the ones forced to copy the competition this time around, how long do you think it'll be before we see an iPad with OSX?
Click to expand...
Bitmap Frogs said:
This is all about the Pro model. Basic surface is just a run of the mill tablet with microsoft's os instead of android or ios. But the pro model... i say it again, if the writing experience works as demoed on stage... man...
Click to expand...

Oh, yeah. Oooh, ahhh, that's how it always starts. Then later they reveal the price and there's running and screaming.
 
how long do you think it'll be before we see an iPad with OSX?
Click to expand...
Building an OS that can work on both tablets and desktops is... not something you can pull out of a hat. It took a long time for Microsoft to get Windows 8 and they're not only betting the farm on it they're risking the desktop goodwill they build with Windows 7 and they're letting Windows Phone 7 die in favour of Apollo (which I bet my left nut is a WindowsRT device) and the jury is still out on how Windows 8 will actually do. And they are still risking confusion between the RT only devices and the full Windows 8 ones.

If this actually works the way Microsoft wants and Windows 8 does indeed beat both iOS and OSX at the same time then this will have been a software marvel and one of the best tech plays ever.
 
To all those saying this is what they wanted, did you not see the offerings at Computex? Why is this so drastically different. If I wanted to be productive with a keyboard attatchment, I'd must rather have something like the Asus Transformer Book that is a full keyboard with extra battery in it than this.
 
Azih said:
Building an OS that can work on both tablets and desktops is... not something you can pull out of a hat. It took a long time for Microsoft to get Windows 8 and they're not only betting the farm on it they're risking the desktop goodwill they build with Windows 7 and they're letting Windows Phone 7 die in favour of Apollo (which I bet my left nut is a WindowsRT device) and the jury is still out on how Windows 8 will actually do.

If this actually works the way Microsoft wants and Windows 8 does indeed beat both iOS and OSX at the same time then this will have been a software marvel and one of the best tech plays ever.
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I see no point in making a fully featured Apple OS tablet. I could see them going deep into the "creative" market and creating a tablet device with Wacom like capabilities that is priced at a premium level. It's a natural companion to things like their towers that are mainly used by video people (it seems).

The full OS is an enterprise play and honestly, that hill is way too steep and the margins too thin for Apple to try and compete there.
 
impruv said:
To all those saying this is what they wanted, did you not see the offerings at Computex? Why is this so drastically different. If I wanted to be productive with a keyboard attatchment, I'd must rather have something like the Asus Transformer Book that is a full keyboard with extra battery in it than this.
Click to expand...

I think the transformer style of laptops are basically the same as the Pro Surface (not as sexay though). It's just this is the first time people are seeing how the Metro+Desktop concept of Windows 8 would actually work in a real scenario. Plus I don't think the Transformers have the stylus.
 
Yo Gotti said:
Apple might be the ones forced to copy the competition this time around, how long do you think it'll be before we see an iPad with OSX?
Click to expand...

I can't see them bringing OS X to a tablet. In the consumer market, the majority of tablet buyers pretty much want to avoid the old desktop paradigm, which is why they buy a tablet in the first place. In enterprise? Well, enterprise has a pathological hatred of Apple, so they don't see it being worth the effort, and any professional will just buy a laptop anyway.

But, I can see them evolving the feel of iOS. Live content on your main screen is pretty appealing, as long as there's very strict restrictions on how it's allowed to be gathered/presented. Battery life and data usage are the main concerns of having too much going on in this way.
 
Bitmap Frogs said:
This is all about the Pro model. Basic surface is just a run of the mill tablet with microsoft's os instead of android or ios. But the pro model... i say it again, if the writing experience works as demoed on stage... man...
Click to expand...

It's the other way around.

The Pro model is the Microsoft equivalent Retina Macbook Pro. A glowing beacon of what is to come, but it's not quite there yet (weight and heat issues namely).

I am willing to bet there will be a 90% to 10% split in favor of the RT model when it comes to sales. In a few years, when the tech will be ready, the Pro will certaibly be the best option for someone looking for a complete computing experience on a tablet.

Then again, the consumers will have to decide if they actually want a full computing experience on a Tablet.
 
lunarworks said:
I can't see them bringing OS X to a tablet. In the consumer market, the majority of tablet buyers pretty much want to avoid the old desktop paradigm
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This is true and the one of the reasons why the iPad is successful. It isn't bloated. There were tablet/laptop combos that had Windows XP waaay before the iPad came out and they weren't successful.
 
shorty_symd said:
This is true and the one of the reasons why the iPad is successful. It isn't bloated. There were tablet/laptop combos that had Windows XP waaay before the iPad came out and they weren't successful.
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Because they were windows xp which was not built for tablets and those tablets were not built and optimized for windows by Microsoft
 
impruv said:
To all those saying this is what they wanted, did you not see the offerings at Computex? Why is this so drastically different. If I wanted to be productive with a keyboard attatchment, I'd must rather have something like the Asus Transformer Book that is a full keyboard with extra battery in it than this.
Click to expand...

Like I said before:

As they say: The Devil is in the details.

And details is what MS nailed with this, not only is beautifully crafted, the little touches like the sound of the stand, that Vapor thing construction, the simple yet awesome idea of the cover, the 22 grades of inclination of the cameras, that venting solution and many more makes this really a premium product than not a single OEM has even been close to match.
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That and the plus that this being the "official" product means a lot of support from accessories makers so the odds is that you could find a transformer dock alternative for this.
 
planar1280 said:
Because they were windows xp which was not built for tablets and those tablets were not built and optimized for windows by Microsoft
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Yup. Absolutely correct. So will OS X work on the iPad? perhaps a modified version of it but that would be pointless. Might as well stick to iOS.
 
ConfusingJazz said:
Hrmm, something has been bothering me about the kickstand. I hope its adjustable and not always at a certain angle, or I could see it being a problem.
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It's not adjustable. The kickstand opens at 22 degrees so that the slanted side of the tablet will lay flat on the table. The rear-facing camera is also slanted at 22 degrees so that if you use it on the table, it will point forward, not diagonally.
 
Kurdel said:
It's the other way around.

The Pro model is the Microsoft equivalent Retina Macbook Pro. A glowing beacon of what is to come, but it's not quite there yet (weight and heat issues namely).

I am willing to bet there will be a 90% to 10% split in favor of the RT model when it comes to sales. In a few years, when the tech will be ready, the Pro will certaibly be the best option for someone looking for a complete computing experience on a tablet.

Then again, the consumers will have to decide if they actually want a full computing experience on a Tablet.
Click to expand...

Nah, I think Metro will evolve to a point where desktop applications will have viable Metro versions that will make the desktop versions unnecessary. Be that on an x86 or ARM.

The first glance at if that will be possible is the upcoming Metro Office for iOS.
 
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