Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Microsoft Debuts 84-Inch Surface Hub Touch Display, HoloLens Augmented Reality Headset

With that massive tablet, I can't be the only one thinking "full sized digital pinball machine", am I?
 
poppy10 said:
It's called innovation. Nobody is seriously expecting this or the holo lens to be mass market sellers, but the concepts are intriguing and could lead to other avenues.

Way before the iPad or even the iPhone, the original Microsoft Surface tabletop computer was shown off in early 2007. It had previously little-known features like multi touch, touch to zoom and other now commonplace ways to interact with the device. Sure nobody bought one, but the concept pushed forward the whole industry.

Microsoft Surface multimedia coffee table: http://youtu.be/SRU3NemA95k
Click to expand...

I think you are giving the Microsoft Surface too much credit.

I went to a school with a computer lab that sported several of them. The idea was that it would allow the pupils to engage in collaborative research work. In reality, the software and interface were horrible. It was more of a gimmick than anything else, and despite what the principal told us, I daresay it was more of a white elephant than anything else.

It's hard for a concept to push anything forward when nobody is aware of it, much less cares a crap about it or be interested in leapfrogging it.
 
The original table-top Surface didn't do well for the same reasons that the touch laptops of the day didn't, lack of any apps that really took advantage of it.



But these days, there are tons of touch apps ready and waiting.



Will this Surface Hub Touch succeed? Depends on which market you look at. Certainly not in consumer space, or at least not for a very long time.



Same with the hologram goggles. It will depend on developers getting on board, pricing it for the kind of market you really want it in and then working towards something similar that can be priced in the consumer space. But for those that insist it is vaporware, well you're just flat wrong. It is being used right now.
 
There are 2 things I'm very excited about and that is HoloLens and Oculus. I will be buying them as soon as they come out. They are game changing devices. I'm actually surprised Apple does not have a VR device in the works. The possibilities of these devices are fantastic.
 
Gildarts said:
You're kidding me right? It failed within a 6 months period. I don't know where you're from but here in the Netherlands according to Dutch law the product is assumed to be factory faulted if it displays faultiness within a 6 month period after purchase. And I don't have to tell you about the two year Warranty period for EU Law.

You think Apple is not a panel expert? They may not design the panels but they know what is and isn't quality stuff. iPhone 6/6+ have the best smartphone panels in the industry. iMac 5K and you're telling me Apple doesn't know their stuff?
Click to expand...

Well, if the law is on your side, well go and see Apple and get a replacement. Stop whining to me. That's it.

Apple couldn't QA that. Then can only go by the reputation of the panel maker. Even good suppliers have panel failures. This is the fact of the matter.

You're putting this failure as a huge failing on Apple's side when then can't predict this, just mitigate.

If you go there, they can just replace the panel or the device. If they don't do it (which I would doubt if the law is on the client's side and the defect is sufficient (very minor defects are not taken into account by those kind of laws)), then you have something to complain about.

You can continue arguing with yourself, because I've said all I'm going to say on this subject.
 
pmarinac said:
I think you are exactly right. Microsoft has done this thing before--the release of windows decimated any hope that the Mac would be a dominant platform. Can the release of windows 10 do the same for the IOS platform? Is it too late for MS? Is it too late for Apple?

MS has a leg up on Apple in a big way by releasing a single operating system that functions on all platforms. That's transformational. When will OSX be available for the iphone? Holographic computing, even more transformational. Imagine the applications. Tied in with Cortana? These are interesting times indeed.

This has got to have heads at Apple wondering why they are spending so much time on fashion accessories. Useful, cool, but not transformational. Unless they've got something else in the wings. It's was a decline in relevance that got MS to put it's nose back the grindstone and innovate. This will surely light a fire under Apple's ...
Click to expand...

Lets hope so. :)
 
blucurv said:
Unlike Google and MS, Apple tends to announced products that they feel are ready for consumers. They don't announce demo prototypes that may never make it to the market. I know for a fact that MS does this all the time.
Click to expand...

What in the world have you been smoking?

iCloud Drive
iCloud Photo Library

You really think these two products were ready for consumers when they were released? Don't forget about iWork on the web being in "beta" for 2 years.
 
nagromme said:
With AR being more applicable to (some) workplaces than to everyday life, and with Microsoft offering stereo 3D to do the job better than Google Glass, I could see HoloLens finding a successful niche with a long time to grow.
Click to expand...

I see a different long term vision. They don't want to compete with Google Glass. It's not an all-day everyday item that you'll have on. It's specific to tasks.
What is Microsofts largest money maker... gaming. Holgram Halo or GTA? I think that's their longer term vision for more consumer use of hologram technology. If they can nail that, then it won't be a niche. They have the possibility (with Windows/desktop integration as well) as making XBOX the defacto entertainment system.
This is so far ahead of anything that any other company has right now. It took an extra version for them to make Kinect better. This will probably be the same.
 
tdale said:
Apple vs MS were two very different beasts, now it isnt, two cool, great beasts with not that much differenrt about each other. yes one does HW ones does OS, but the models and attitudes and cool factor are getting closer now
Click to expand...

You raise some interesting points, especially about the perception that Microsoft and Apple are similar.

However, I disagree with "attitudes and cool factor are getting closer now". It's like when people say Google is getting good at design and will eventually beat Apple.

Every part of Apple reflects it's philosophy. All of their products are premium, simple, beautiful, heavily criticised, highly profitable, and loved by consumers.

Like Steve Jobs once said "we're organised like a startup. We're the largest startup on the planet".

Very few companies would have had the nerve to leave out NFC from their phones. Or keep their phone screens small for so long. Or ditch the optical drive. Or ditch Flash. Or keep a platform going that rivals Android, with such few devices.

A solid example of this is Microsoft's brand new browser. It's a good sign, but they still don't have the balls to leave out Internet Explorer entirely. Compare that to Apple ditching Aperture. They basically said "We know some of you won't like this, but we're going to put our energy behind Photos for OS X, because we believe it's the best thing in the long run".
 
If I can use HoloLens to play Final Fantasy XIV, I'm buying one! :eek:


ThunderSkunk said:
Meanwhile in Cupertino, where Apple's sitting on more money than most countries have, they've...

...determined after years of making 11" notebooks and 13" notebooks, that really, they should make 12" notebooks.


Awwwesooome.
Click to expand...

Yeah but it's going to really blow your mind: they've innovated once again and it's going to be 0.95mm thinner! :rolleyes:
 
blucurv said:
It's rather annoying how some folks consider MS innovative for showing off a prototype of what may never happen, even though Apple has filed for patents that describe technology like the HoloLens since 2006: http://thenextweb.com/apple/2012/07/03/new-patent-shows-apple-is-at-least-thinking-about-wearable-computing-devices-like-google-glass/


Also, the tabletop never made it to consumers, just like the Courier was shown off before the iPad was ever announced. Where are they now. I'm sure I'll be asking the same same questions in a couple of years regarding the HoloLens.

Unlike Google and MS, Apple tends to announced products that they feel are ready for consumers. They don't announce demo prototypes that may never make it to the market. I know for a fact that MS does this all the time.
Click to expand...

Patents aren't the same as Proof of Concept.

MS and Google do a lot of Proof of Concept work. Which is fine because you shouldn't require a definitive path to mass monetization to start work in the R&D lab. Pretty much everything Google X Lab does gets the greenlight without a monetization strategy. They just get the OK to create, and end up inventing some of the coolest stuff out there. Same with Microsoft Research and all the white papers they turn out.

Far as the Courier, it's pretty clear it eventually became the SP. Only difference is they removed the dual screen and did a full Windows integration.
 
The 84-inch surface Hub Touch is really nothing new - - it's just the latest evolution of the SMART Board interactive presentation screens that have been around for 20 years now. They are a tried and true great technology for teachers/salespeople etc, but they're nothing to get specifically excited about at this point in time.
 
thekeyring said:
You raise some interesting points, especially about the perception that Microsoft and Apple are similar.

However, I disagree with "attitudes and cool factor are getting closer now". It's like when people say Google is getting good at design and will eventually beat Apple.

Every part of Apple reflects it's philosophy. All of their products are premium, simple, beautiful, heavily criticised, highly profitable, and loved by consumers.

Like Steve Jobs once said "we're organised like a startup. We're the largest startup on the planet".

Very few companies would have had the nerve to leave out NFC from their phones. Or keep their phone screens small for so long. Or ditch the optical drive. Or ditch Flash. Or keep a platform going that rivals Android, with such few devices.

A solid example of this is Microsoft's brand new browser. It's a good sign, but they still don't have the balls to leave out Internet Explorer entirely. Compare that to Apple ditching Aperture. They basically said "We know some of you won't like this, but we're going to put our energy behind Photos for OS X, because we believe it's the best thing in the long run".
Click to expand...


They can't afford to leave out Internet Explorer entirely. Unlike Apple, they have 90% of the business market which relies on IE compatibility. Has nothing to do with nads.
 
bbeagle said:
These look like cool devices, however....

This is MAC rumors - these two devices (an 84 inch touch display and a reality headset) have NOTHING to do with Apple. Apple doesn't compete with these types of devices. This article should NOT be on this site.

Watches, sure. Tablets, sure. Phones, sure. Talk about Windows 10? Sure. But not every drone helicopter story, or anything that Apple is not doing.
Click to expand...

bradkrischel said:
It's pretty clear this site has evolved into a rumor and news site that focuses on Apple-related information as well as news regarding their competitors. Should MacRumors give up their brand/domain because they have the capacity to cover more information these days even when the main focus of the website is still Apple-related news? MacRumors isn't just about Mac rumors.
Click to expand...

Renzatic said:
Apple's a quiet company that plays its cards close to its chest, with a fairly small selection of hardware and software. While the occasional rumor does pop up, there's not that much info passing around to sustain an Apple related enthusiast site throughout the year. You can only bring up the iPad Pro, the Apple Watch, or the 12" retina MBA before it starts getting kinda redundant and boring.

Hence why you see news about the competition. It gives people something to talk about during the Apple rumor mill downtime.

So why do they continue to call the site Macrumors? Because Mostly Macrumors Plus Some Other Stuff Other People Are Doing doesn't roll off the tongue quite as nicely.
Click to expand...

I was responding to bbeagle's post as shown above. You and I are basically saying the same thing. To me, it makes A LOT of sense to cover competitor news like this. One day Apple might have a product that directly competes with something like this, so to write it off only because Apple CURRENTLY doesn't offer a similar product seems like a mistake. With Microsoft being a direct competitor in other areas, it only makes sense to cover this as news on MacRumors.
 
poppy10 said:
It's called innovation. Nobody is seriously expecting this or the holo lens to be mass market sellers, but the concepts are intriguing and could lead to other avenues.

Way before the iPad or even the iPhone, the original Microsoft Surface tabletop computer was shown off in early 2007. It had previously little-known features like multi touch, touch to zoom and other now commonplace ways to interact with the device. Sure nobody bought one, but the concept pushed forward the whole industry.

Microsoft Surface multimedia coffee table: http://youtu.be/SRU3NemA95k
Click to expand...

The Surface table was announced in May of 2007. The iPhone was announced in January of 2007. It was announced after the iPhone. What did it push forward?

Microsoft Surface 1.0, the first version of PixelSense, was announced on May 29, 2007 at the D5 Conference.[2]
Click to expand...
 
iPadCary said:
Game? What game? Apple isn't into AR or VR.
Or perhaps you mean "game"=innovative devices.
The truth is exactly what I said it is:
Apple is a company that only shows stuff that will actually be sold,
while Microsoft is a company whose hardware history is rife with ballyhooed gizmos
that end up never seeing the light of day [Courier, etc.] or are outright failures [Kin, etc.].
Click to expand...


Originally Posted by tdale View Post
The truth is you really don't want MS to beat Apple at their own game.

I meant the game of being cool, innovative, and making good products.

The was MS is going, all they lack is a bountiful app store.
 
There is a part of me that wishes Apple would release a giant wall mounted ipad, perhaps even allow it to work in a table top mode. Link them up and instant "airdrop" between them.
 
I don't get it. HoloLens is sci-fi **** right there. How can you apple fanboys be so sour about it?

I love my apple products, but frankly, HoloLens looks amazing. If apple made it, half of people here would be up in arms.

be excited for a product once, not only about who made it.
 
macduke said:
Because none of the nerdy head things have sales numbers to back it up.
Click to expand...

The Hololens probably won't be a huge consumer market breakthrough that matches the likes of the iDevices. It's something that'll mostly find its niche in the commercial/creative segments, where it has the most appeal and use.

But that doesn't make it any less awesome. Cuz it is awesome.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back