Microsoft Unveils "Surface" Tablets

[Naples39]

I don't know, this is priced cheaper than I expected. $600 for a 32gb model is the same as the iPad.

If they truly deliver a "no comprises" tablet at price parity, that should be a pretty compelling product.

[Diablo25]

I'm keeping my eye on this...I'm interested on how this launch goes.

[Teal]

Presells are sold out...so about that 'it'll fail' stuff...

http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/10/surfac ... -sold-out/

[dbdynsty25]

Every single HP touchpad has been sold either at retail or during the fire sale. Seen one of those in the wild yet?

These will fail. Anyone can limit supply to make it seem more popular than it is. Means jack sh*t that preorders are sold out. The greatest headphones that have ever been created (V-Moda M-100) had a presale last week. Hope you were one of the first 157 people to order cuz that's it for the first run.

And what are "presells" anyway?

[Teal]

I'm looking forward to picking one up, myself. Haven't ever given a flat damn about Apple's stuff. I'm just not into the religion...

[greggsand]

I'm looking forward to picking one up, myself. Haven't ever given a flat damn about Apple's stuff. I'm just not into the religion...

Teal, free feel to join the ranks of others who love to rip apple fans (isheep, I lemmings & whatever), actually have a closet full of the stuff. I only love apple stuff until something makes me want or need it more. I just want the best thing for the best price. The 'surface' could be it, but who knows at this point?? Let us know, but it sounds like you won't have anything to compare it to if apple products give you the willys.

[FifaInspected]

Do I think the Surface is going to be a commercial success? Not so much.
If I were MS I would find a way to include them as part of their enterprise desktop licensing model and try to win market share in corporate america.

[Teal]

Greg, I don't get the 'willys' with Apple stuff...lol. I just don't put them in a category all their own, like so many do. Honestly, I don't have a problem with buying Apple's stuff-my son and I both have iPods for music while running-but they're just another competitor in the market to me. Some people think that Apple shits rainbows and I'm just not one of them. I've owned a WP7 for the last two years, and I will absolutely be getting a WP8 next month when I upgrade. I used to be all over getting iPhones and iPads and all that, but I just think there are better products on the market. This is not to say that I'm a Windows acolyte, though, either. It's just the best product for what I want to have in a phone (and I believe, in a tablet) going at the moment. True, the Apple fandom has gotten on my nerves, but I'm just not a big fan of the hoopla, and I've tried the Android route and didn't care for it, either.

[10spro]

Interested in hearing some impressions for those buying Surface.

[dbdynsty25]

Interested in hearing some impressions for those buying Surface.

I don't know a single person...and I run in a vey tech heavy crowd. I did order two iPad minis last night tho.

This surface is a guaranteed fail. Best case it's still a distant 3rd in the ecosystem wars.

[10spro]

Interested in hearing some impressions for those buying Surface.

I don't know a single person...and I run in a vey tech heavy crowd. I did order two iPad minis last night tho.

This surface is a guaranteed fail. Best case it's still a distant 3rd in the ecosystem wars.

Wow, lucky you. I hear the white minis are already sold out for pre-orders...Maybe the price on the Surface ultimately will turn the crowd away.

[dbdynsty25]

Wow, lucky you. I hear the white minis are already sold out for pre-orders...Maybe the price on the Surface ultimately will turn the crowd away.

Yeah...ordered a white 16gb wifi for the wife and a 32gb black verizon LTE for myself right at midnight. Should have enough to fund both new purchases from the sale of my 32gb LTE 3 and my wifes 16gb white ipad 2. We'll see. Can always throw in the Nexus 7 too if I need more cash, lol.

As for the surface, especially the RT version, they overpriced it for sure. It needed to be 3-4 hundred, plus another hundred for the keyboard for them to compete. Not 600 minimum. That puts it well within mid-range laptop pricing, which is rough. Now they come out with the intel based ones at a 1000 or so...those might sell because they are actual computers in a tablet form factor. That is the version I see selling well. It'll just take over for the ultrabook class of laptops.

[dbdynsty25]

http://bgr.com/2012/11/29/microsoft-sur ... +Report%29

No way, you don't say.

[greggsand]

I thought iPads were expensive, but wow, the 'surface HD' is really up there.

[dbdynsty25]

I thought iPads were expensive, but wow, the 'surface HD' is really up there.

To be fair, they are actual computers, so it's not really a valid comparison. It's actually got real laptop hardware, not mobile hardware. Price doesn't bother me...it'll still never sell.

[Teal]

It'll sell when I buy one. I toyed around with one in the ATT store yesterday, and I loved it. Really sleek stuff. At least the RT. I want the full Windows 8 device, though. It IS expensive compared to the IPad, but like db said, it's an actual computer.

[wco81]

http://www.theverge.com/2012/11/29/3...attery-life-rt

An estimated 4-hour battery life for the Surface Pros.

[dbdynsty25]

Being that my job is to test out new hardware for use on the patient floors in my hospital, I ordered a Surface Pro for "work"...so we'll see how it stacks up. Reviews aren't great, so not all that excited...but hey...a free Surface Pro is a free Surface Pro.

[Diablo25]

I messed around with one at Staples on Saturday and was impressed. It's a cool piece of technology. I think most reviews have been fair. The two big negatives seem to be the battery life (4 hours?) and the fact that the kickstand makes it near impossible to use as a 'Lap' Top. I was looking into getting one but will probably be holding off for more impressions.

I do find it ridiculous that retailers had very few units on launch day. I hope it wasn't a marketing ploy by MS to be sure to say they "sold out" on launch day. Unfortunately that is probably what happened. I heard that a lot of retailers had less than 10 units.

[Rodster]

I messed around with one at Staples on Saturday and was impressed. It's a cool piece of technology. I think most reviews have been fair. The two big negatives seem to be the battery life (4 hours?) and the fact that the kickstand makes it near impossible to use as a 'Lap' Top. I was looking into getting one but will probably be holding off for more impressions.

I do find it ridiculous that retailers had very few units on launch day. I hope it wasn't a marketing ploy by MS to be sure to say they "sold out" on launch day. Unfortunately that is probably what happened. I heard that a lot of retailers had less than 10 units.

I'm considering the Lenovo Yoga 13. That seems to have a good balance from all the similar W8 devices i've seen.

[nyisles16]

I had the Windows RT version of the Surface.. while it was "cool" in concept, if you get a Surface, you need to get the Pro version. I ended up taking it back and switching to an HP Envy x2 (Pro was a bit more expensive).. The RT version, which they don't tell you, is the stripped down version of Windows 8 - I couldn't download any programs other than from their app store, which means not matter what I tried, I couldn't get my email, or even log into my banking web site.. Much happier with the Envy now..

[wco81]

It's not stripped down so much as RT is for a different processor, which can't run Windows programs compiled for x86 processors.

The RT gets tablet battery life while the Surface Pro is said to get only 3-4 hours and has a loud fan, not to mention being thicker and heavier.

[dbdynsty25]

The RT version, which they don't tell you, is the stripped down version of Windows 8 - I couldn't download any programs other than from their app store, which means not matter what I tried, I couldn't get my email, or even log into my banking web site.. Much happier with the Envy now..

They are extremely clear on that...not sure how you missed that little piece of info.

[Aristo]

I don't want a tablet with crap battery life and excess heft to run programs better suited for a laptop. I want a tablet to be light, nimble, and focused on media consumption. I don't use mg iPad for email or anything that makes me wish I had a keyboard for.

I think the Surface Pro will fail eventually while the RT will find its niche, but never unseat the iapad, as the Zune did to the iPod.

[dbdynsty25]

I don't want a tablet with crap battery life and excess heft to run programs better suited for a laptop. I want a tablet to be light, nimble, and focused on media consumption. I don't use mg iPad for email or anything that makes me wish I had a keyboard for.

I think the Surface Pro will fail eventually while the RT will find its niche, but never unseat the iapad, as the Zune did to the iPod.

Unfortunately that's the end result for all Windows based products "other" than the already disappointing Windows 8.

The pro is actually a nice product...I've been using it for the past 5 days, and while I'd never replace my MacBook Air with it, it's fairly decent for what it's trying to do. The battery life is a real downer. The size/weight doesn't matter as it's SOOOOO much faster than the iPad or RT version...as it should be with laptop components. Oh, and it's about 100 bucks too expensive, or they should throw in the keyboard. One or the other.