Apple iPad-60-70% of the tablet market
Androids-20-30%
Who would you go after???
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Samsung, HTC, google, Microsoft and now they are fighting with the Government of the USA
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Microsoft Releases Windows 8 Tablet Ad Highlighting iPad's Flaws, High Price [Updated]
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Androids-20-30%
Who would you go after???
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Samsung, HTC, google, Microsoft and now they are fighting with the Government of the USA
Slightly off topic but can I ask how the Surface virtual keyboard is? All the reviews, promo vids etc all show Surface being used in conjunction with either the Touch or Type covers - fair enough when it comes to Office work etc. None of them show the Surface being used in pure tablet mode - entering URLs into Metro/Modern IE using an on screen, virtual keyboard.
All the in-store demo units always have keyboard covers attached and I'm wary of setting alarms off by detatching one then attempting to browse the web, go through the motions of typing an email etc without.
They were comparing it to a Similary specked Asus. Which is totally fair. Now if they were comparing a 64 gig iPad to a 16gig Asus, your point would make sense. But they weren't.
Before I got a mac I had a Lenovo thinkpad and rather suffer the tyranny of the buggy software and the stupid uncreative MS Office 2007 I got an iPad put iWork on it and I loved it...it was easier to use and more productive...I saved hours on making presentations on keynote...I had effects that were never there on PPT. I say iWork beats MS Office anyday.
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Does only stuff you dont want to do....no fun stuff like iLife and games. The iPad on the other hand can handle pretty darn well both work stuff and your personal stuff. Also the simple UI of the iPad makes it more classy and appealing and classy, rather than the colorful bouncy Metro UI which looks plain silly and something businessmen would prefer not to use.
64gb that only under half of you actually get to use on the Surface. Plus, I think Microsoft is doing a good job to promote the iPad here, with the fact that they're telling people something not many know, that you can indeed produce presentations on an iPad.
Surface 64GB with the free space of an iPad 32GB.
Does more with 1/300th the available applications of the iPad.
Costs less while actually being twice as much if not crippled.
Yeah the surface really is amazing, it's bending reality better than Steve's distortion field ever did.
Does more with 1/300th the available applications of the iPad.
Costs less while actually being twice as much if not crippled.
Yeah the surface really is amazing, it's bending reality better than Steve's distortion field ever did.
It's not bad. I'm typing this on the Vivotab Smart and you can choose between an all text keyboard like the iPad or a split keyboard with numbers in the middle... it looks like those split ergonomic keyboards with a number pad dropped in the middle. That is a bit weird and I'd prefer just a number row at the top of a standard keyboard layout, but it works okay and I like at least having that option for entering mixed numeric/text passwords or postal codes, since shifting is a pain for those.
The keyboard pops up automatically on the Metro side, but you have to pop it up manually on the desktop side. It's nice to have the desktop, but the OS definitely feels like a merger of two separate interfaces.
One of the Penny Arcade guys on using the Surface Pro
While he admits that he prefers using his big Cintiq when he's at home, he says it's an excellent machine for doing artwork and playing games on.
I think the Windows tablets, the Surface Pro in particular, hold a lot of promise. Yeah, it's true. MS failed with tablets back in the day. But there were many, many factors for that that aren't necessarily true today. Back then, tablets were heavy pin-only affairs with a battery that barely lasted an hour, cost a ton, and could only be special ordered. Now? The higher end iCore machines only weigh 2 pounds, get 4-5 hours battery life, and can be picked up at Wal-Mart for around $600-$1000 bucks. Unlike 10 years ago, the technology is just about ripe to make the perfect PC tablet.
Yeah, they do need some work. MS needs to make Windows even more touch friendly for one, and it does need to be a little lighter while lasting longer on a charge before it can truly compete head on with the iPad. But they're not bad machines. Far from it. If you want to do something high end on a tablet, they're the only way to go right now.
...and you better get used to doing more on a tablet. With an entire generation of kids growing up around touch instead of the good old mouse and keyboard, they're only going to become more prevalent as time goes on.
edit: Welcome to the future, people...
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Appreciate the thoughts.
Currently running Win8 via Bootcamp for the handful of Windows applications I need at home with Office 2013 (which I love, along with Office 2011:mac & Skydrive).
I'm a committed OneNote user at work, Evernote at home on mac+iOS. The Surface Pro with Wacom stylus+Onenote metro and desktop+a decent virtual keyboard could well be my 'killer app'. I use Evernote very heavily on the iPad; having OneNote be as useful with a Surface in tablet mode with the stylus rather than laptop mode....
Now, if only Microsoft would update/improve their iOS OneNote app to use the iPhone 5 screen if nothing else. Parity with their excellent Skydrive iOS app would be much appreciated.
Microsoft Points Out iPad's Flaws!
Good for a laugh.
Note that Keynote on the iPad is great, and yes it is file compatible with PowerPoint. Not sure how this is a flaw
The "multitasking" would be more convincing if the demonstration had shown a user doing multiple things simultaneously. Otherwise all it is showing is more stuff on the screen.
Final "flaw" is that the iPad is good not only for serious applications but also for a lot more. I suppose that part of that "flaw" is over 100x more apps than the Microsoft tablet thing.
On the above basis, the best that Microsoft could recommend would be to buy their device and an iPad to do everything other than run Office Bloatware.
Multiple tablets anyone? No - I agree. Why bother? Keep trying, Microsoft. Competition is good, and we are patiently waiting to see some.
Good for a laugh.
Note that Keynote on the iPad is great, and yes it is file compatible with PowerPoint. Not sure how this is a flaw
The "multitasking" would be more convincing if the demonstration had shown a user doing multiple things simultaneously. Otherwise all it is showing is more stuff on the screen.
Final "flaw" is that the iPad is good not only for serious applications but also for a lot more. I suppose that part of that "flaw" is over 100x more apps than the Microsoft tablet thing.
On the above basis, the best that Microsoft could recommend would be to buy their device and an iPad to do everything other than run Office Bloatware.
Multiple tablets anyone? No - I agree. Why bother? Keep trying, Microsoft. Competition is good, and we are patiently waiting to see some.
Not really. OS X doesn't have anywhere near the amount of apps Windows has, but it has still always managed fine since nobody in their right mind would need 3,000 apps, never mind 300,000.
"Mismanaged" is an understatement. Remember, the guy in charge of Windows 8 development was fired shortly after its release.
You pretty much had the same experience I did when I first tried Windows 8. My initial thought was, "Why in the hell did Microsoft slap a tablet interface for the desktop/notebook version of their operating system? Were they trying to reinvent the wheel with this monstrosity?"
Apple is equally guilty of doing such a thing with 10.8 Mountain Lion, though, to a lesser degree. They did slap iOS user interface features into OS X but did not force the user to use it to the extent Microsoft did, luckily. Apple knew to draw the line somewhere. Of course, only time will tell with how much 10.9 will be riddled with more iOSification or if they stay true to form.
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Apple ad: This is what our product does
Others: Look how much the iPad doesn't do compared to ours. Look, LOOK at the comparison. See, we're better right? Hey, where are you going??
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Market share is decling but their sales aren't.
$100/$200 tablets will of course sell well. Its inevitable.
Others: Look how much the iPad doesn't do compared to ours. Look, LOOK at the comparison. See, we're better right? Hey, where are you going??
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Market share is decling but their sales aren't.
$100/$200 tablets will of course sell well. Its inevitable.
Surface Pro w/ keyboard = $1100
iPad w/ cover = $550
Surface Pro w/keyboard and Core i5 CPU, 4GB RAM, microSD, USB3, 64GB SSD = $1100
iPad with w/cover and A6 SoC, 1GB RAM, 16GB Flash, Lightning port, and nothing else = $550
Not saying Surface Pro is cheap, but you compare it wrong. Add those features on the iPad and see how much that thing would cost?
:not so confused:
The ASUS VivoTab Smart as shown in the ad has a free storage of 34.3gb out of the box, according to http://techreport.com/review/24720/asus-vivotab-smart-me400c-tablet-reviewed/4.
The 64gb iPad will have about 25gigs more available storage space.
The ATOM CPU in the VivoTab Smart is too slow to run any really demanding Windows programs, so while you could run Left4Dead, nobody will do it, because it's unplayable.
Metro games will probably run worse than on a Windows RT device, due to the higher demands of the real Windows 8 running on the device and the crappy GPU in the ATOM chip.
Combine that with the lack of touch-friendly regular Windows programs and the benefit of the theoretically higher number of Windows programs disappears and you have a device that has to use the small number of Metro apps - and it does that worse than a Windows RT tablet.
The 64gb iPad will have about 25gigs more available storage space.
The ATOM CPU in the VivoTab Smart is too slow to run any really demanding Windows programs, so while you could run Left4Dead, nobody will do it, because it's unplayable.
Metro games will probably run worse than on a Windows RT device, due to the higher demands of the real Windows 8 running on the device and the crappy GPU in the ATOM chip.
Combine that with the lack of touch-friendly regular Windows programs and the benefit of the theoretically higher number of Windows programs disappears and you have a device that has to use the small number of Metro apps - and it does that worse than a Windows RT tablet.
When will people get it that it is not the specs which matter but what the user can do with the device!
