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Microsoft Surface: the first serious iPad competitor? (Targeting the corporate tablet market)
CS Monitor ^ | 06/22/2012 | Husna Haq

Posted on 06/23/2012 9:11:37 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

Watch out, Apple. Microsoft’s mystery announcement is out of the bag and it’s giving the iPad a run for its money.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer unveiled Microsoft Surface, a new tablet that heads a “whole new family of Microsoft computing devices,” Ballmer announced at the mystery event at the Milk Studios in Hollywood, Calif., Monday afternoon.

From what we’ve seen and heard, the Surface tablet is perhaps the first serious competitor to Apple’s iPad tablet. What’s more, it’s got the capability of a PC – as good for creating content as it is for consuming, according to Ballmer’s highly anticipated announcement and demo.

The 1.8-pound device will have a 10.6-inch Gorilla Glass 2.0 screen with a thickness of 9.3 mm. Like the iPad, it’s got a magnetically-connected magnesium case that doubles as a kickstand for viewing video – and it also has a full multi-touch keyboard, a major advantage for users who want a more versatile tablet.

Another advantage? The Surface tablet also comes with Microsoft Word, a full-size USB drive, and can run a full Windows desktop, making it a true tablet computer. It will run on Windows 8. The tablet also comes with digital ink so users can use a magnetic stylus to write on it.

Microsoft hasn’t yet released price points on the Surface tablet, which will be available in later this year, probably timed to the holiday season.

As for e-reading, the Surface tablet may not be ideal: at 10.6 inches, it’s more unwieldy than most books. Readers who want a device solely for reading would probably be better off with a Kindle or Nook. E-reading wasn’t featured at Microsoft’s Monday’s demo.

This device, however, is poised to take a chunk out of the tablet market, especially the corporate tablet market.

(Excerpt) Read more at csmonitor.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Computers/Internet; Society
KEYWORDS: ipad; microsoft; surface; surfacetablet; tablet

1 posted on 06/23/2012 9:11:46 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
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To: ShadowAce

Tech list Ping...


2 posted on 06/23/2012 9:18:57 PM PDT by CedarDave
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To: SeekAndFind
Microsoft Surface: the first serious iPad competitor?

Hopefully it'll be more useful than that.
3 posted on 06/23/2012 10:09:42 PM PDT by AnotherUnixGeek
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To: AnotherUnixGeek

I wouldn’t count on it even being that good


4 posted on 06/23/2012 10:20:30 PM PDT by Nifster
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And, of course, in the launch demo... it freezes:

http://www.wimp.com/newtablet/


5 posted on 06/24/2012 12:25:23 AM PDT by D-fendr (Deus non alligatur sacramentis sed nos alligamur.)
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To: SeekAndFind
Watch out, Apple. Microsoft’s mystery announcement is out of the bag and it’s giving the iPad a run for its money.

That's a bit premature, considering the Surface isn't even shipping yet.

6 posted on 06/24/2012 10:34:48 PM PDT by LexBaird (Tyrannosaurus Lex, unapologetic carnivore)
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To: SeekAndFind

RT is pointless.

Pro is very cool, useful, and WWAAAAAAAAAAAAAY overpriced.

600 vs 1000 what will a person do?

but the $300 android whatever...


7 posted on 06/25/2012 3:53:56 PM PDT by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
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To: Nifster

assume is is THAT good. it does EVERYTHING as advertised and it is better than an apple tablet.

it is $1000. it does not exist in the market at that price point. it is too expensive to be a player.

think betamax. better but more expensive.


8 posted on 06/25/2012 3:56:45 PM PDT by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
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To: LexBaird
That's a bit premature, considering the Surface isn't even shipping yet.

It hasn't even shipped yet, and from the looks of it, the Applebots are already afraid of it.

9 posted on 06/25/2012 4:01:14 PM PDT by tacticalogic ("Oh, bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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