I think it may come down to pricing. All of the decent tablets with decent memory (iPad, Xyboard, Xoom) run in the $500+ range.
If they can create a tablet that is Kindle priced and doesn’t require service contracts with a provider (Imagine a $99 WiFi w/ no service contract from a wireless carrier) it would break open a lot of markets.
one report says they have 85.00 cost to vendor for win8 built in - so 99.00 is going to be hard.
That already exists for around $250... I bought my Sprint Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 used, but I have seen the new Galaxy Tab 7+ which has a more powerful processor and internal memory but no cellular connectivity advertised for $250. Of course there are larger Galaxy Tab models that cost more.
I bought my Galaxy Tab 7 used six months ago through Ebay for $200. I have never actually used it with Sprint. According to the forums many others are using them on Boost Mobile who supposedly has an “unlimited Internet plan” for $15 a month. It is extremely compact, has WiFi of course, the battery lasts all day even when you are using it to surf the net, two cameras so you can video conference or take halfway decent pictures, has a great screen, bluetooth, an HDMI adapter that cost me $20, GPS, Micro-SD memory expansion, a fast processor, and so far every program I have downloaded for it has been compatible.
I was actually planning on buying a Color Nook, or Kindle Fire to read Ebooks on, but found great Android GPS software for our airplane. I bought an inexpensive yoke mount and it fits and works much better than my Garmin Aviation GPS that cost many times more. That is not actually a fair comparison because the Garmin was purchased 20 years ago and has only about a 2.6” monochrome display.
This thing has been so much more useful than I thought it would be. I already had unlimited internet access through Sprint on my phone. I use the phone as a wireless hotspot and use the tablet for surfing when I am at work or on the road. I also bought a little combo bluetooth keyboard/case for $20 so that I can type out messages more quickly. It just looks like a little day planner.
All the reporting I've been reading suggest that the pricing may be $1500 to $2000, unlikely to be below $1000. Low end will not be available until late Fall. The Pro version of Surface will not be available until early 2013. Looks like MS is not selling a competitive product against the sub-$500 market. And it will be late to market.