Microsoft unveils Surface tablet to rival iPad

[Steve Williams]

By David Goldman @CNNMoneyTech


LOS ANGELES (CNNMoney) -- Upending one of the world's most successful business strategies over the past three decades, Microsoft has developed a Windows tablet computer of its own design.
The company on Monday unveiled the Surface, a PC tablet that runs a yet-to-be released version of its Windows operating system called Windows 8. The device is the first commercial PC that Microsoft has directly designed and sold.

The tablet features many of the now-standard tablet specs, including a 10.6 inch high-definition touchscreen and front and rear facing cameras, which all fit into a 9.3 millimeter, 1.5-pound frame.
But Surface also brings some new innovations to the tablet space. The device's cover, for instance, flips down to become a full keyboard. It features a rigid case built from magnesium, a pen that clicks into the tablet and a built-in kickstand. (Click here for our hands-on demo of the Surface.)
Microsoft is recycling -- or extending -- a brand name it has used before. The first "Microsoft Surface" device, which began shipping in in 2008, was a giant touchscreen computer aimed at retailers and other commercial customers.
Microsoft's Surface tablet will first be available on a version of Windows 8 called Windows RT. That operating system will run on microchips designed by ARM (ARMH), which are inside 95% of the world's smartphones and tablets. Another version of Surface will be designed for the fuller Windows 8 operating system, which will run on Intel chips.
Microsoft didn't give specifics, but the company said the Windows RT version will be available sometime this fall in 32- and 64-gigabyte versions and will be priced "comparably" to other tablets on the market. Apple's most basic version of the iPad retails for $499.
The full Windows 8 version will be available three months later in 64- and 128-GB versions. Microsoft plans to set its price point in the same zone as ultrabooks, which typically run around $1,000.
Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) said it will not be the exclusive manufacturer of Windows tablets.
Still, it's a radical shift for the world's largest software company.

 

[amirm]

I read the announcement yesterday. Part of me says it is motivated by a concern regarding adoption of Windows RT for mainstream companies to build tablets around them and then heavily promote them. The other reason this is usually done is for the concern that others would not do as good of a job but seeing what Samsung has done for phones for example, I am not seeing that.

The key thing here will be amount of applications and pricing. $500 tablet is not going to do it in my opinion. The only counter example for tablets against iPad has been from Amazon with $200 Fire. No other attempt has resulted in much. Problem here is that Apple has incredible buying power. The bragging rights of a part being used in Apple products is very high so I would not be surprising that some vendors are selling such parts to them below cost. That is not going to happen with Microsoft and its much lower volumes.

While I wish for Microsoft to have success here, I worry that it will not come. A keyboard and kickstand are not going to be enough to offset Apple's massive lead here. Or the fact that Google gives way its OS.

 

[MylesBAstor]

I read the announcement yesterday. Part of me says it is motivated by a concern regarding adoption of Windows RT for mainstream companies to build tablets around them and then heavily promote them. The other reason this is usually done is for the concern that others would not do as good of a job but seeing what Samsung has done for phones for example, I am not seeing that.

The key thing here will be amount of applications and pricing. $500 tablet is not going to do it in my opinion. The only counter example for tablets against iPad has been from Amazon with $200 Fire. No other attempt has resulted in much. Problem here is that Apple has incredible buying power. The bragging rights of a part being used in Apple products is very high so I would not be surprising that some vendors are selling such parts to them below cost. That is not going to happen with Microsoft and its much lower volumes.

While I wish for Microsoft to have success here, I worry that it will not come. A keyboard and kickstand are not going to be enough to offset Apple's massive lead here. Or the fact that Google gives way its OS.

Ditto.

I think a lot of people, for instance with the lower priced Samsung tablet, returned it when they found out it had a very limited number of apps.

 

[DonH50]

Microsoft's record on hardware, except for the Xbox, has not been great. Nokia's success using MS on their cell phones did not work out well for them. Hard to see MS competing effectively in the tablet space, but it is likely to come down to how much money they throw at it and for how long.

I'd be happy if it didn't take 5 - 10 minutes for W2k8 to boot on the server...

That said, MS has certainly shown some amazing demos of their touch-screen OS systems over the past few years.

 

[rblnr]

Part of me says it is motivated by a concern regarding adoption of Windows RT for mainstream companies to build tablets around them and then heavily promote them

I think enterprise is their best shot short term anyway. It's going to be uphill obviously. Nice hardware design aside, there are less apps for it than Android tablets which in turn offer a fraction of what is avail for the iPad.

Don't know how it's going to play out but remember that MS invested 300m in Barnes & Noble/Nook.

 

[Phelonious Ponk]

That's going to be a difficult space for anyone to get into, because tablets are not about incremental hardware improvements, they're about fun, useful, cheap apps, and Apple is way ahead of the game on that.

Tim

 

[ack]

Interesting coverage on http://www.reuters.com/article/2012...20120619?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews

The one feature that I thought was completely out of place - the keyboard, because it makes the whole thing more of a laptop replacement than a tablet (the two use cases clearly differ; e.g. think reading and typing on a tablet in your bed/car/coffee shop) - was well received by some:

The most striking feature of the new devices was a keyboard that doubles as the tablet cover.


"The keyboard, a simple accessory, is what makes the device most compelling, as it preserves traditional interface that we believe many users appreciate (and will demand) with the subtlety of a cover, something most users will want anyway," said Citi analyst Walter Pritchard.

 

[Steve Williams]

well there is no doubt that the touch keyboard on the ipad is very sensitive. I find that I am always going back to correct typos before I send

 

[MylesBAstor]

well there is no doubt that the touch keyboard on the ipad is very sensitive. I find that I am always going back to correct typos before I send

I don't find that What I find more annoying is the self correcting, editing function. Works when I don't want it and doesn't when I need it

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

I don't find that What I find more annoying is the self correcting, editing function. Works when I don't want it and doesn't when I need it

I turn predictive text off....it's useless.

 

[Steve Williams]

I don't find that What I find more annoying is the self correcting, editing function. Works when I don't want it and doesn't when I need it

how true.

 

[jdandy2]

I wish Microsoft luck with their new Surface. I think they're going to need lot of it. Will I be replacing my new 3rd gen iPad for the Surface? Not a chance. I think Microsoft does an amazing job creating vital and useful software. All three of my PC's run Windows 7, as well as a host of other Microsoft products, smooth as silk. Besides an iPod and a new iPad, I also have two Apple computers, an iMac I bought to keep my fiancé away from my PC's, and a G5 PowerMac in my redording studio. Their operating systems are fine, but I still prefer Windows 7 on my PC's. I enjoy both the Microsoft and the Apple arenas, but for me it is clear there is no room for the Surface in my hardware collection. I simply have no need for it.

 

[jkeny]

I turn predictive text off....it's useless.

What you need is Swype - it's a native app on Samsung Android & works great - I can even text on a small Samsung galaxy phone while walking Try doing that without Swype!

 

[jkeny]

One thing that is being overlooked here - audio!! The MS tablet will allow many more USB audio devices to be plugged in than the iPad's restricted camera kit kludge. In other words connectivity!! Something Apple don't like to hear about. Also Win 8 apparently sounds much better than Win 7 for audio. So maybe this is good news for audio types who want decent portable audio & a choice of USB transport or DAC

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

What you need is Swype - it's a native app on Samsung Android & works great - I can even text on a small Samsung galaxy while walking Try doing that without Swype!

I have that app on my Galaxy Note, but have yet to try it. I've only had it a few days and am just adjusting to the size and getting comfortable with it before I try the Swype feature.

 

[MylesBAstor]

I turn predictive text off....it's useless.

Thanks John didn't realize you could do that!

 

[MylesBAstor]

What you need is Swype - it's a native app on Samsung Android & works great - I can even text on a small Samsung galaxy phone while walking Try doing that without Swype!

Have to say have Swype on my phone and don't really use it. I find it clumsy for certain things such as a "cc" or longer words, etc.

 

[jkeny]

Have to say have Swype on my phone and don't really use it. I find it clumsy for certain things such as a "cc" or longer words, etc.

Well it turned me from a texting Luddite to someone who quiet happily writes a long text now!

 

[ack]

well there is no doubt that the touch keyboard on the ipad is very sensitive. I find that I am always going back to correct typos before I send

Of course you are right, but it just occurred to me that it's so damn easy to switch languages on the ipad's keyboard, even Chinese. Can't do that with a typical QWERTY keyboard. The more I look at the MSFT device, the more it looks like a laptop of a similar kind to me.

 

[Keith_W]

I wonder if I am alone in thinking that the raft of new announcements from Microsoft will turn the computer world as we know it upside down when Windows 8 launches in October. Remember that computing history tells us that when any OS undergoes a major update, companies that fail to keep up will be left in the dustbin of history. When Windows 3.0 was launched, it spelt the end of Lotus, Wordperfect, Borland, and dBase. When Win 95 was launched, IBM tried to compete with OS/2. It failed, and IBM exited the Desktop market.

Windows 8 in all its incarnations (i.e. desktop, Surface, Surface for Win RT, and Win 8 for phone) is easily the biggest change in UI since Win 95 was launched. It will be a massive change to how we interact with our computers, and if it catches on - it will be hugely disruptive to the entire industry.

Now here's the thing - ALL versions of Windows 8 will share software libraries and API's. Of course, lower powered hardware such as Windows 8 for phones will lack some of the API's in the full versions - but this will mean that any software written for the desktop version can easily be ported to your phone. Want an illustration as to why API's are so important? Look at DirectX. DirectX powers the games on the XBox and PC. This is why Macs have lagged behind PC's for gaming for years - because there is no DirectX support on the Mac.

Software companies will have no choice but to support Windows 8 for the Desktop. They can't afford not to - if they fail to adapt, they will go the way of Lotus and Wordperfect. And once this software is written, it will be easy to port to the tablet and phone. The enterprise support in the Windows ecosystem is very strong and unmatched by Apple, which can barely scratch the surface of the corporate world. Furthermore, the ecosystem-wide integration between all the Windows 8 products is much tighter than it is between OS X and iOS, making porting software so much easier.

Apple may be the biggest tech company in the world right now, but that means nothing. Just as they came from near irrelevance in the late 90's to the dominant position it is in now, they can fade into irrelevance just as quickly if they fail to adapt. Just look at IBM and Kodak - companies that failed to adapt to disruptive revolutions within their own industries. The same can happen to Apple.

I am amazed by Win 8 - it looks revolutionary and beautiful, and is my idea of what an OS for the future should look like. iOS and Android to me look like also-rans. I would like to see how both companies respond - will they serve up more of the same and watch their companies fade into irrelevance? Or will they announce revolutionary products of their own?