Microsoft Surface tablets for Windows RT and Windows 8

[MATRIX 2]

Well it looks like MS has come up with something good in the tablet arena.

http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/18/30...windows-tablet

http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/18/30...touch-keyboard

http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/18/30...rface-hands-on


http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/18/m...let-announced/

http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/18/m...-surfaces-key/

http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/18/m...windows-8-pro/

http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/18/m...rt-and-window/

http://www.engadget.com/2012/06/18/h...or-windows-rt/




Specs:

http://www.microsoft.com/global/surf...especsheet.pdf

[squirrelbo1]

Didn't it crash at the event ?


Also I still want that Fuck of table pc they demo'd few years back

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[MATRIX 2]

Didn't it crash at the event ?


Also I still want that Fuck of table pc they demo'd few years back

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

Do you have several thousand dollars for a Microsoft surface computer?

You could achieve the same thing with a good touchscreen with a custom table made for it hooked up to a windows pc.

Or take an AIO and make a custom table/enclosure for it.

[squirrelbo1]

No I don't have the money, I was kind of kidding but I would still like to have had one

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[MATRIX 2]

Tidbits from Ballmer:

http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/18/30...prime-the-pump

[keefy]

Does the keyboard somehow clip to the back of the device so it can be use as a regular tablet?

Have to get the pro version with Intel CPU for the full wndows experience so can install any no metro app to it.

[MATRIX 2]

The keyboard can fold, acting like a cover.

[squirrelbo1]

Does the keyboard somehow clip to the back of the device so it can be use as a regular tablet?

Have to get the pro version with Intel CPU for the full wndows experience so can install any no metro app to it.

It's just like the cover for the iPad

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[keefy]

The keyboard can fold, acting like a cover.

I know that and when its the cover you cannot see the screen.
does it fold to the back of the device?

It's just like the cover for the iPad

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

Not having owned one I don't understand.

[squirrelbo1]

I know that and when its the cover you cannot see the screen.
does it fold to the back of the device?





Not having owned one I don't understand.

Yeah they are like a flap and can be positioned both ontop and underneath the tablet. As well as removed and left at home. The iPad one is basically a 10" sheet of leather with cardboard inside so it has some structure.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[keefy]

Yeah they are like a flap and can be positioned both ontop and underneath the tablet. As well as removed and left at home. The iPad one is basically a 10" sheet of leather with cardboard inside so it has some structure.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

Sounds like a Blue Peter special.

[MATRIX 2]

http://www.dailytech.com/Microsoft+H...ticle25014.htm

Microsoft Hatched Surface After Watching Partners Fail to Compete with iPad


Microsoft saw its partners were needy, unwilling and unable to push the envelope in the tablet space

As the picture surrounding Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) "Surface" tablet fleshes out via interviews and leaks, one thing is for sure -- Microsoft would love to see its third-party partners succeed with their Windows 8 tablet designs, despite the fact that it's now competing with them. But the decision to compete is also a big vote of no confidence in these third-parties' ability to compete with Apple, Inc. (AAPL).

According to a new report in The New York Times, which uses a former Microsoft executive as a source, Microsoft's decision is deeply rooted in a fallout with Hewlett-Packard Comp. (HPQ) regarding the Slate tablet and subsequent disappointments from other OEMs.

I. Microsoft Predicted Tablet Market Early, Had High Hopes

In 2007 Apple shook up the market when it released the iPhone, the first multi-touch smartphone. To be fair, the market was already trending towards touch-screens, but suddenly the trend was summarized with a singular iconic device. Microsoft, which had played with touch technology in its labs and mobile products for years, took note of the increasing convergence between mobile devices and the personal computer (PC).

It baked basic touch capabilities into Windows 7, which launch in late 2009. To Microsoft's disappointment, partners expressed little interest in taking advantage of these capabilities. Initially Microsoft played with idea of a dual-screen tablet called Courier. But internal disputes and hesitance to become a first-party PC maker caused Microsoft to shelve the plans.

Then rumors of an Apple tablet picked up, and suddenly the touch-plans went from an expansion effort, to an essential effort. Microsoft was determined to not let Apple gain a monopoly in this market, which it had long recognized the merit of -- perhaps even before Apple. It contacted HP, the world's largest maker of personal computers, and what Microsoft considered a trusted partner.

And HP delivered at first. Prototypes of the Slate 500, like the one presented by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at CES 2010, were relatively attractive.

II. Slate Design is "Completely Ruined", Subsequently Flops

But both the former Microsoft executive and a former HP executive comment that the Slate 500 was "completely ruined" when it was handed over to HP's manufacturing organization. The tablet ballooned in size. To make matters worse, HP poorly integrated the touch screen with Windows 7. Users would touch the screen and face a lag before the tablet would respond. Describes the former HP executive, "It would be like driving a car, and the car not turning when you turn the wheel."

Three weeks later late Apple CEO Steven P. Jobs showed off his slick iPad, which had none of the awkward lag of the HP Slate. While the original Slate prototype was relatively good looking, it was outshone by the iPad, which featured a slick aluminum case.

The case was no small feat. Apple had to procure a large amount of high quality aluminum to make it, so it entered a large bulk purchase agreement with a mine in Australia. The former executive recalls shock at Microsoft meetings regarding just how deep Apple would dip into global supply chains to produce Mr. Jobs' "perfect" device.

And if the early Slate prototype was a bid homely compared to the original iPad, the final bloated design was downright unsightly. Microsoft was frustrated.

And it didn't help that HP blamed Microsoft. HP saw its tablet shortcomings as primarily in the software department. It complained how Microsoft's small icon size made icons hard to click and it was not a fan of Microsoft's Windows 7 touch keyboard. HP felt that the licensing fees it paid Microsoft for Windows should have been applied towards making better OS software/firmware support.

Seeing that the Slate was destined to flop in sales (and it did, after almost being cancelled), Microsoft tried to reach out to other partners. But it faced disagreements regarding price and features. "Faith had been lost," the former Microsoft executive recalls.

III. Microsoft Focuses on Surface and Windows 8

Ultimately, Microsoft decided not to devote significant resources to cultivating a Windows 7 tablet from any of its partners. Instead it focused on perfect Windows 8 for touch devices. But this time around it knew better than to trust third-parties. It was sick of their failure to compete with Apple in the tablet space, and it was sick of taking the blame for that failure.

Evidence of just how much Microsoft has learned was on display at the Surface announcement. Much like Apple bragged of its iPad's unique aluminum case, Microsoft's belated counter was built on a material it went to great lengths to secure bulk purchase agreements on -- magnesium. It argues that magnesium offers many advantages over Apple's aluminum, including superior scratch resistance. Comments Windows President Steven Sinofsky, "The case is one-of-a-kind."

Notably, nary a partner delivered that kind of dedication to their supply chain and innovative case design at Computex 2012. They instead relied on their Chinese partners to build more standard designs, although they expect to price them at similar points to the iPad and Surface. This lack of ambition is all too familiar to Microsoft and a validation of why it made a smart move with Surface.

Microsoft may say its decision to make Surface was not a slight to its third-party partners. Comments Steven Guggenheimer, a Microsoft corporate vice president, "Microsoft has tremendous respect for our hardware partners and the innovation they bring to the Windows ecosystem. We are looking forward to the incredible range of new devices they are bringing out for Windows 8."

But no matter what words it chooses, Microsoft can not hide the unspoken message -- it is dead-determined to beat Apple -- with or without its partners.

[Bligmerk]

Ummm, there are two different models, one with an ARM processor for $599 and the higher end one with the i5 for $999. Both have just Wifi. They will only be sold through the Microsoft stores. MS says the ARM unit is not x86 compatible. And they aren't going to be available until the late fall.

[keefy]

MAgnesium is highly flamable.

[Nitey]

Holy balls. $999 for the i5 one? That's the one I'd consider getting. Time to start saving I guess!

[MATRIX 2]

Ummm, there are two different models, one with an ARM processor for $599 and the higher end one with the i5 for $999. Both have just Wifi. They will only be sold through the Microsoft stores. MS says the ARM unit is not x86 compatible. And they aren't going to be available until the late fall.

Nothing is official yet.

And $599 for the RT version is not competitive when you have the current gen ipad and Asus transformer infinity at $499, the ipad 2 at $399 and googles Nexus tablet rumored to be priced at $199/$250.

Anything more than $499 is suicide, and a price closer to $399 is more ideal considering what you are getting for the money. (The ipad and asus have 1080p or better screens resolutions, hell there is even an acer tablet at $450 with a full hd screen)

Holy balls. $999 for the i5 one? That's the one I'd consider getting. Time to start saving I guess!

Th pro is competing against ultrabooks, what were you expecting?

[Nitey]

Dunno. Cheaper? Lol