I used an early Windows tablet, and it was a piece of junk. iPad is what a tablet should be. Surface is still way too heavy for a tablet (2lbs).
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Microsoft Executive Says iPad Pro Was Apple's Response to Surface
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Nobody really has to anymore. You fanboys can say whatever you want but Apple hasn't done anything revolutionary in years. All they do now is play catch up with everyone else.
As a laptop replacement, I think the Surface still wins at the moment due to its ability to run any windows program: Apple are certainly pushing the iPad Pro forwards but for a lot of people the option to replace their laptop with one simply isn't there due to the limitations of of iOS
As a tablet, however, the iPad is so far ahead of Surface it's unreal - Windows on a tablet interface is a very suboptimal experience (I speak from the experience of having had a Surface Pro, Surface Pro 2 and Surface Book)
For me, this is a quandary that will probably never be resolved: I can't do without a laptop class machine as I'm a developer and I can't ever see Apple turning the iPad Pro into a true laptop machine (it's simply not their vision for the future of computing for the masses), so for the foreseeable future I'll keep both around
As a tablet, however, the iPad is so far ahead of Surface it's unreal - Windows on a tablet interface is a very suboptimal experience (I speak from the experience of having had a Surface Pro, Surface Pro 2 and Surface Book)
For me, this is a quandary that will probably never be resolved: I can't do without a laptop class machine as I'm a developer and I can't ever see Apple turning the iPad Pro into a true laptop machine (it's simply not their vision for the future of computing for the masses), so for the foreseeable future I'll keep both around
Upcoming Windows on ARM will kill the iPad Pro and some of the Macbooks. It also has the advantage of lower BOM cost by several hundred dollars. Wait for the comment at the end where she says it runs better with only 4GB DRAM than her Macbook (assuming 8GB).
Honestly, yes, that is how it looks. Lagging iPad sales, complains the iPad is a content, not creation device. Maybe Apple had the Pro in the test kitchen well before the Surface but the appearance does look like Apple was playing catch up here. Now whether the Surface is a better device than the Pro, different story. Certainly MS seems a bit scared by the 10.5 or they wouldn't have even acknowledged its existance.
Apple's response to the Surface would have been a Macbook with a touch screen and the macOS desktop software shoehorned into a crappy tablet experience. If Apple were to try to duplicate the Surface, that's what the Apple version would be, and it would suck. The iPad Pro is Apple's response to the market wanting more out of their iPads and never upgrading because the new ones haven't been doing anything differently than the old ones.
Instead of cramming legacy software on to a tablet and calling it a 2 in 1, they're modifying their more modern OS to become more and more versatile on the iPad. iOS 11 is a big step in that direction, and future iterations will add more and more features to make the iPad more and more capable. And that makes sense to me. We can't dwell on legacy desktop software forever, and at this point I'm definitely starting to think of Windows and macOS as legacy software.
Instead of cramming legacy software on to a tablet and calling it a 2 in 1, they're modifying their more modern OS to become more and more versatile on the iPad. iOS 11 is a big step in that direction, and future iterations will add more and more features to make the iPad more and more capable. And that makes sense to me. We can't dwell on legacy desktop software forever, and at this point I'm definitely starting to think of Windows and macOS as legacy software.
Don't you think competition is a good thing amongst Apple and Microsoft?
The iPad Pro sells way more than Surface does on a quarterly basis . Apple very could have likely followed suit with the Surface, but it's not a device that makes it "Better" than the iPad. Only the user defines what Makes it better. They both have their vantages/disadvantages of each other.
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The Surface launched on October 26, 2012
The first Apple Pencil (smart stylus) patent was accepted in July 2010 (reported by patently apple on Feb 3, 2011). There would be no iPad Pro without pencil.
So no, I don't think so, Microsoft
The first Apple Pencil (smart stylus) patent was accepted in July 2010 (reported by patently apple on Feb 3, 2011). There would be no iPad Pro without pencil.
So no, I don't think so, Microsoft
As for Microsoft following Apple? "We don't really look at Apple," said Gavin.
Riiiiight... and Apple is "not" why you guys got into designing your own computer hardware, creating the MS Surface, the Windows phone, and an all-in-one desktop (Surface Studio).
I tried their new Surface Pro yesterday. The tablet experience is terrible. It's really heavy, and poking at tiny screen elements designed for a mouse or a trackpad is no fun. And then, for use as a laptop, the keyboard is second-rate, the trackpad is third-rate. I assume the same is true for the stylus relative to the Apple pen.
The only positive I could see might be for graphic artists working in Photoshop or Illustrator who have the option to switch from trackpad to pen in some contexts. But that's within the overall context of the laptop and tablet experiences being terribly compromised.
On top of that, Apple still leads in quality and innovation. Retina screens, true tone, and now ProMotion, Apple leads, others follow or not. In comparison, I don't think it's an innovation to try to combine two existing product lines, both of which Apple invented.
The only positive I could see might be for graphic artists working in Photoshop or Illustrator who have the option to switch from trackpad to pen in some contexts. But that's within the overall context of the laptop and tablet experiences being terribly compromised.
On top of that, Apple still leads in quality and innovation. Retina screens, true tone, and now ProMotion, Apple leads, others follow or not. In comparison, I don't think it's an innovation to try to combine two existing product lines, both of which Apple invented.
Definitely. They're really trying to catch up to all their competitor's sales. They can't come close to the single-device numbers that Samsung are selling.
Boy, they're also so behind their competitor's in-house CPU performance. Really playing catchup with Qualcomm. I hope one of these days they make it...
I noticed the same,,, but notice that some people prefer to go back to Thinkpad... it's almost like the Surface still needs to mature more .... it's best in class at neither the laptop nor tablet, while the iPad is at least considered to best in class as a tablet... But to each their own, I run into people that really like the Surface too.
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Hmmm only one of the devices in this article is a tablet, and only one is a laptop.
Agreed. Our guys get both a laptop and iPad, so opt for a T470S and iPad Pro 12.9". They all tried Surfaces a year ago, and most have been returned. It's a poor device, and a compromise in every way.
IMO both companies are doing it right... they are using their strong ecosystem (Windows and iOS) to springboard into the other's market.
Starting from scratch and competing with Andriod or iOS in the tablet market seems risky for Microsoft. And likewise it only makes sense for Apple to leverage the strengths of their iOS ecosystem.. The only other option would be leverage the weak OSX ecosystem and 'downsize' it (for lack of better words) to make tablet more like a tablet OS.
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Starting from scratch and competing with Andriod or iOS in the tablet market seems risky for Microsoft. And likewise it only makes sense for Apple to leverage the strengths of their iOS ecosystem.. The only other option would be leverage the weak OSX ecosystem and 'downsize' it (for lack of better words) to make tablet more like a tablet OS.
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When was the last time you used a Microsoft product?
The Windows 10 Operating System can switch between a desktop / laptop experience and a true phone / tablet experience. When it enters tablet mode there is no "I wish I had a mouse or keyboard."
Apple may sell a ton of iPads, but they've seen the market share drop. Because Microsoft and other vendors created a market that didn't exist, like the iPad. The 2-in-1 market, and honestly more people prefer the 2-in-1 market.
Microsoft's Surface Line is actually incredibly beautiful, and since they use Magnesium over Aluminum it feels better to touch and rest your hand on. The brand is on par with Apple, but unlike Apple the Microsoft CEO has a vision of connecting people not devices. Tim Cook's vision is similar to how Balmer ran Microsoft.
Honestly I never thought I'd say this, but Microsoft is the Apple of the 90's and Apple is the Microsoft of the 90's. Apple hasn't innovated recently, they've followed trend. Hopefully the iPhone 8 breaks that tradition. They've made weird business decisions as well.
I honestly like both companies, but the iPad Pro is a giant iPad with better specs to compete with a 2-in-1. The commercials even say it: "I need a new gaming laptop." The iPad Pro is the answer according to Apple's commercial.
And soon the phone will be the only computer many people need. Connect a BT keyboard and get the latency of Airplay to be low enough to be usable as a monitor.
The phone screen will be used as a trackpad and the phone itself as the computer. Carry a folding keyboard and a Chromecast-size receiver and you can set up a workstation on just about any TV.
As for Microsoft following Apple? "We don't really look at Apple," said Gavin.
I believe that MS tries to create their own ideas and solutions, but come on. You can't expect anyone to believe that they don't look at what the most successful computer/phone/tech company in the world is doing.
All Apple did was add a keyboard to their already barely changed since 2010 iPad. How is that trying to compete with Microsoft? Apple never competes with anyone, they're always in their own lane looking at product categories with their own view. The Surface line of products as well as Windows 10 are both abysmal. Apple have spent many years slowly and incrementally making refinements to the iPad. The exec's response makes it sound like Apple at some point rushed something out.
They actually did invent it. Apple has a patent on the smart keyboard cover that predates the introduction of the Surface tablet. It was filed Sep 21, 2012: https://www.google.com/patents/US20140083883. The original Surface came out on October 26, 2012. It was also around this time that it was announced that Microsoft would be licensing design patents from Apple: https://www.windowscentral.com/apple-licensed-design-patents-microsoft-windows-phone.
You can't tell me that they made a patent deal, Apple files their design patent for the Smart Keyboard Cover, Microsoft launches their device with a smart keyboard looking cover, Apple is granted their patent application, and everything is fine and dandy without Microsoft licensing that thing. People really need to look into the back story of these things instead of just assuming Apple copied!
As for this article, it's just Microsoft trying to get some clickbait headlines so someone will talk about their Surface since it's being ignored now that the new iPad Pro is out. The iPad is very distinct from the Mac, and is optimized for touch above all else. Microsoft just shoved a desktop OS onto their tablet and called it a day. People have endlessly criticized this for being a sub-par experience, and the sales numbers prove it. The iPad sales have been declining, true, but Surface is worse. Microsoft's Surface revenue for their Q3, which ended at the end of April, was $831M to Apple's iPad at $3.9B. And they're Apple's only real competition in the tablet space.
You can't tell me that they made a patent deal, Apple files their design patent for the Smart Keyboard Cover, Microsoft launches their device with a smart keyboard looking cover, Apple is granted their patent application, and everything is fine and dandy without Microsoft licensing that thing. People really need to look into the back story of these things instead of just assuming Apple copied!
As for this article, it's just Microsoft trying to get some clickbait headlines so someone will talk about their Surface since it's being ignored now that the new iPad Pro is out. The iPad is very distinct from the Mac, and is optimized for touch above all else. Microsoft just shoved a desktop OS onto their tablet and called it a day. People have endlessly criticized this for being a sub-par experience, and the sales numbers prove it. The iPad sales have been declining, true, but Surface is worse. Microsoft's Surface revenue for their Q3, which ended at the end of April, was $831M to Apple's iPad at $3.9B. And they're Apple's only real competition in the tablet space.
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Loving my new Ipad Pro so far. I've been able to use it as a laptop replacement in a lot of areas. However, the surface keyboard is still the win. I realize the software probably isn't set up for it in the Ipad, but the smart keyboard needs a trackpad. Taking my hands off the keyboard to touch the screen definitely breaks the flow of work. It's no big deal surfing the web. But when I'm working and typing like crazy, I'd love to not touch the screen at all.
Oh boy. I couldn't disagree more with you. Genuinely, every single point.
I don't think we'll find any middle ground! But thank you for being courteous anyway. Good to know people here can disagree without digs or personal insults.