Ballmer admits Microsoft Surface tablet 'just a design point'
Microsoft Surface tablet
Image credit: Microsoft
At their Worldwide Partner Conference, CEO Steve Ballmer says partners are still the most important hardware providers, Surface just an example of "stunning Windows devices" to come.
This doesn't mean Microsoft is out of the hardware business, because Ballmer also said they were in it to stay. "We may sell a few million," he said, out of maybe 375 million tablets sold in a year. The plan is to provide a bold product to galvanize partners to step up with iPad-beating products (AllThingsD).
Pressure will be on Microsoft and Windows 8, since Apple's updated OS, Mountain Lion, should hit the streets three months before Windows 8. Since major PC makers have yet to impress with a tablet powered by Windows 8, Microsoft's Surface may fight Apple all by itself on the tablet battlefront.
Good strategy
I'm also running W8 on a laptop and liking it. It will be great on a tablet and do well in the market.
Basically it's a very welcome change.
jim 45 on channelregister.co.uk
Im convinced the surface is vaporware or "just a design point", never intended to be manufactured by MS the same as Intel's Ultra book design was intended to drum up excitement to compete with the MB Air.
dmarcoot on appleinsider.com
Clueless
The only way the MS Surface will kill the iPad is if it drops on one!
ukgnome on channelregister.co.uk
Message = we're desperate to compete with Apple, but got no F***ing clue as to how to do it. Our first attempt pissed off the people we need so now we're backpedalling.
thanxal on allthingsd.com
Didn't I read just a few hours ago that Steve Balmer said Microsoft would be competing in all areas with Apple? That means manufacturing computers of all kinds.
Smallwheels on appleinsider.com
The manufacturers who don't think Microsoft is doing this to make money, and that they will do this in the future at a much larger scale, are very, very naive.
warcaster on allthingsd.com
I don't think OEMs are buying this line. MS is doing damage-ccntrol here. But really, there's no place OEMs can go *but* to MS.
Quadra 610 on appleinsider.com
Clock ticking
And the consumer market long ago gave up thinking Microsoft was either cool or relevant. It almost sad...
Ralph Megna on allthingsd.com
Very few Windows developers currently have access to Windows RT systems for development/testing, only 3 months before RT launches.
qwarty on channelregister.co.uk
At what price point would a Microsoft Surface tablet tempt you? Or, if you're not excited, how cheap would the price have to be?
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