Microsoft Details Surface Pro Pricing Amidst Reports of Poor Sales of RT Version

[Rogifan]

Is Office included in the price of Surface Pro?

[Les Kern]

it's dead. plain and simple.

[Saladinos]

Originally Posted by kalsta

Indeed. Do you think Microsoft now regrets the day Bill Gates agreed to bail Apple out with an injection of $150 million back in 1997?

Not really. If Apple would have gone bankrupt, Microsoft would have had zero commercial competition.

That's not good for a company that attracted antitrust complaints like a magnet (and who was very nearly split in to two companies by the DoJ).

[apollo1444]

Steve ballsack and company obviously didn't think this through! The tablet and the pc are two different things they obviously didn't get the message and instead tried to brainchild fusioning a product that came as a horrible abortion

[Capitalis]

Wow, have any of you haters even touched one of these things yet?

[fertilized-egg]

Originally Posted by WhoDaKat

Windows 8 is a bust, ,.. Couple that with the fact that Windows 8 is terrible

I wouldn't go that far. I have been using it for a while and feel it is the best Windows in many ways, especially in performance and the general stability. However mashing Metro and the traditional desktop was a really bad decision, one that many are crying out in angst.

Originally Posted by Capitalis

Wow, have any of you haters even touched one of these things yet?

It is even less appealing in person, at least the RT is, because compare to iPad it just still isn't as polished. Most reviewers gave pretty mixed reviews online as well unless you think all of them are "haters" as well. The Pro might be better as a "notebook with touch screen" but as a tablet I just don't see it succeed given its high price, heavyweight, still not great app ecosystem, and weak battery life.

[inhalexhale1]

I haven't read any reviews or actually used one myself, so it may be a great product.....

But I would never spend $1,000 dollars on a tablet.

[charlituna]

Originally Posted by DaMike8

900 dollars for a tablet? LOL what a joke.

Especially one with a four hour battery. And apparently you need the pen for 'mouse' functions in the non metro apps.

Something tells me this wont go like hotcakes

[Imac&SoShouldU]

Originally Posted by Capitalis

Wow, have any of you haters even touched one of these things yet?

um...The sales speak for themselves sir 😑 no haters needed.

[fertilized-egg]

Originally Posted by Rogifan

Is Office included in the price of Surface Pro?

No you have to buy it separately unlike the RT version. Then again the Office RT version has its own share of limitations.

[BSben]

I remember what a stir the announcement of the Surface caused on this forum,
how it would be the end of the iPad. So far that does seem not to be the case.
The announcement came very sudden, and I think this is where the problem lies. The Surface was rushed out in panic, without considering the damage the RT version could do to customer confidence (like realising that it does NOT run the full Windows 8). Now the Pro version seems to promise poor battery performance with a high price. Who knows what MS have up their sleeves, they seem more confident than they were with the doomed Zune thingy (that never went on sale beyond the USA and Canada).
Dropping the price would just be public humiliation, it would be admitting that it was a failure. On the other hand maybe people these days do opt for cheap over quality, if that is the case MS could still have a chance.

[Imac&SoShouldU]

Originally Posted by Saladinos

Not really. If Apple would have gone bankrupt, Microsoft would have had zero commercial competition.

That's not good for a company that attracted antitrust complaints like a magnet (and who was very nearly split in to two companies by the DoJ).

Agreed.

[MartiNZ]

Originally Posted by charlituna

Especially one with a four hour battery. And apparently you need the pen for 'mouse' functions in the non metro apps.

Something tells me this wont go like hotcakes

Yeah battery life is why I'm hopefully going to have an RT one brought back from Aus for me next week . Very much looking forward to that; only a shame the new iTunes didn't hit "metro" ><.

[BigHonkingDeal]

Originally Posted by Capitalis

Wow, have any of you haters even touched one of these things yet?

If you like to read people bitching at Apple fans.... read the Engadget board. I got bitched at for saying that I'll rather get a MacBook Air

[charlituna]

Originally Posted by Mr. Gates

Install a torrent client on your iPad, I dare you. Or any other Mac program.

You can't do it, I'll tell you why because everyone is confused :That's a big iPod touch !

This is a full OS WITH ...( W I T H ) touch

Well Billy, Apple was clear from the start that this is not a traditional computer.

And it still works better that you attempt to please everyone at the same time with so so quality on everything, then most folks with good/great quality

[LaDirection]

Originally Posted by Mr. Gates

It's not just a tablet.

It's a full blown Windows machine

That makes it sound even worst.

[Renzatic]

Originally Posted by MacAddict1978

I'm laughing my ass off... pc sales dropped 28% from this time last year when there wasn't even a new os to push sales.

Not quite that high. They fell 8% this year, which isn't pretty, but hardly a an entire quarter loss.

[LaDirection]

Originally Posted by Mr. Gates

Install a torrent client on your iPad, I dare you. Or any other Mac program.

You can't do it, I'll tell you why because everyone is confused :That's a big iPod touch !

This is a full OS WITH ...( W I T H ) touch

Yeah, torrenting on the go is HUGE.

Seriously, give up already, MS has been irrelevant for over 10 years.

[Renzatic]

Originally Posted by inhalexhale1

I haven't read any reviews or actually used one myself, so it may be a great product.....

But I would never spend $1,000 dollars on a tablet.

It's not really a tablet in the same sense as an iPad. I'm excited about it because being able to run Photoshop at 1920x1080 on a portable, light netbook/tablet with a touchscreen digitizer is pretty damn awesome to me.

That's who the Surface Pro is aimed at. It's not a device designed around light work and entertainment. It's a fairly heavy duty machine for the size.

[Consultant]

Don't forget to add the $100+ keyboard that's required for many functions.

[haruhiko]

Originally Posted by ConCat

Four hour battery life means it's a fail no matter how you look at it.

When Microsoft tells you it's 4-hour, it will be 2-hour in real life usage.

[Irishman]

Originally Posted by nfl46

Cheaper than I thought it would be. I was thinking at least 1k plus for it.

Many people were probably waiting on the Pro.

You meant to say that many MS fans were probably waiting on the Pro, I'm guessing.

[Renzatic]

Originally Posted by LaDirection

Seriously, give up already, MS has been irrelevant for over 10 years.

Really? When did this happen? I thought everyone and their grandma has a Windows machine these days.

MS has sold 40 million copies of Windows 8 by this point. That's how many iPads Apple has sold in the last year. Not to mention the nearly half billion copies of Windows 7 that have been sold up to this point. Calling them irrelevant is pretty short sighted and ignorant.

[CShort]

2 million sales for a whole new product? I'd call that a good start really. It's not like your average person on the street has seen anyone using it yet and has wanted one. It's only geeks like us that have the full exposure.

[fertilized-egg]

Originally Posted by Mr. Gates

You can't do it, I'll tell you why because everyone is confused :That's a big iPod touch !

This is a full OS WITH ...( W I T H ) touch

Originally Posted by LaDirection

That makes it sound even worst.

Exactly. I do not understand the people who try to say Surface is good because it provides "full Windows" and at the same time "disappointed" with its (alleged) 4-5 hour battery life. Guess what? You cannot have it both ways. You have to make a tough choice and decide what you'll sacrifice in order to provide the best experience. Want the full x86 experience? Then it'll be bad, very bad, as a tablet.

I already have a Windows tablet PC with Windows 8. It is heavy but unlike Surface it's fully upgradable and I can use it as a real laptop at any angle on my lap. Yes it has a stylus and it even comes with a remote for presentations. Now that is a true no compromise device.....everyone loves to complain about Apple taking away expandability and that iOS being a "toy" OS. Just get a big no compromise tablet PC...except we know it is not and the history has proven it again and again.

Microsoft's "no compromise" is one of bigger farce I've seen this year. They somehow duped everyone into thinking it is not another x86 slate, when it's exactly that.