Does anyone else not care about Microsoft surface tablet?

[remixedcat]

well I want it to be affordable and I want a "pro" version so I can have a full fledged media player and be able to play regular games on it as well as have photoshop on the go. so x86 based one for me.

[PGHammer]

Yes agreed... even I am not much of a tablet guy... more of a notebook guy... but this factor will hit all tablet makers...

I'm not a fan of tablets (in general) *unless* they come with keyboard-type docks (like the Transformer), and yes, I HAVE used the iPad 2 (one of the folks I support - a paraplegic - has one). My issue is NOT the touch support in general, but the virtual keyboard and UX/UI that is actually (believe it or not) WORSE than Modern UI (at least IMHO). Unless iOS 6 markedly improves the UI/UX over iOS 5, I'll recommend that she pass on iOS 6.

Due to my disdain for dockless tablets, I'm looking at semi-legacy laptops and notebooks as Windows 8-driven *travelbooks*.

Okay - I can hear the question from here - what's a *semi-legacy* notebook or laptop?

It's basically a laptop or notebook that used to run either Vista or 7 (preferably x64) that has a decent HDD and either has - or can be upgraded to - at least 4GB of RAM.

What will it be used for? It will be - in my case - basically a portable office (which is why it will have Office installed).

No gaming (other than browser-based gaming); however, it does need decent audio.

Yes - it will get Windows 8 put on it (hence my preference that it had run Vista or 7 x64 previously).

[nub]

I don't get the draw of tablets. A laptop isn't that much bigger and provides a more feature rich experience. My phone already provides me with nearly the same capabilities as a tablet. Why do I need another device? I'm not dropping the laptop for a tablet. Doing so would be a HUGE step down. But I guess normal people only care about consuming worthless dribble and a tablet fills their needs.

[Matthew_Thepc]

LOL, sorry I'm a little late to be responding to the OP, but I just saw this today :D

It's just one of the first Windows RT tablets, the first of many, from many different companies. I don't see anything special that differentiates it from the Windows RT tablets that other OEMs will product.

The 'speciality' of the Surface, IMO, is that it's made by the same company that makes the OS, a la Apple. The software and hardware work together as beautiful on the Surface as they do on the Lumia 900/920 (which, IIRC, has like 75% of the windows phone market right now). Also, historically, PC makers have screwed up on making good, innovative hardware that works for longer than a day after the warranty expires.

When it is compared to the iPad, there is such a fuss that it has a "keyboard" integrated into it's case. Well guess what, just look online and you will find millions of different keyboard cases for iPad and Android. There is nothing special going on here.

but none that are 3 millimeters thin that fit in with the tablet so perfectly as it does on the Surface. Not to mention the integration with the OS that the keyboard has - for instance, when you connect a blue TouchCover to your Surface, your Start Screen background changes to blue. It may not seem like a big thing in the whole scheme of things, but it's little things like that that make consumers think "WOW, that's a great product" instead of "oh, cool, another mediocre tablet from a manufacturer who's interested in making the most profit," like they have been saying with most Windows computers and tablets out there now.

It seems that Microsoft have attached a lot of hype to a product they have been working on called "Surface", which the name over to this (which is not the same "Surface" product they have been hyping) and then the tech sites seem to be getting their panties in a bunch over it when really it is just another product that isn't more special than anything else. If this was the real "Microsoft Surface" they have been working on for years that may be different, but this is just another tablet.

About (now, this is my own experience, so don't quote me on it) 0.00001% of average consumers have heard of the original Surface (now called PixelSense), and the people (or, really, companies) that had used the original Surface are smart enough to figure out that a 10 inch tablet != a table.

[Matthew_Thepc]

But I guess normal people only care about consuming worthless dribble and a tablet fills their needs.

pretty much, yeah :)

An iPad is simply so much more convenient than a laptop - if I'm a consumer, and I want to look up a YouTube video/news article/facebook post/etc., it's a lot easier to reach onto the living room table, wake up the tablet, and run the app instead of taking the time to turn on/wake up then log into a laptop, fire up Internet Explorer, then navigate to the website in question.

But, of course, in work and stuff, people need full keyboards, and that's where hybrids like the Surface, Lenovo YogaPad, etc. come in. When they need to do work, they open the keyboard and start doing stuff. when they're at home and wanna consume content, they just use the tablet portion.

[Raa]

I was interested until I heard it could be a lot of money...

[PGHammer]

I don't get the draw of tablets. A laptop isn't that much bigger and provides a more feature rich experience. My phone already provides me with nearly the same capabilities as a tablet. Why do I need another device? I'm not dropping the laptop for a tablet. Doing so would be a HUGE step down. But I guess normal people only care about consuming worthless dribble and a tablet fills their needs.

Tablets vs. smartphones - tablets have larger displays than phones (often far larger, even in the 7" screen size) - hence a greater fit for some of the things phones (especially smartphones) are used for in terms of content consumption.

Tablets vs. laptops, notebooks, and x86 netbooks - here, it comes pretty much down to battery life and physical size; tablets are lighter than notebooks and laptops by far, and also have far greater battery life. The tradeoff is the opposite of tablet vs. smartphone - tablets have smaller screen sizes than notebooks of today; even than semi-legacy or legacy laptops from the era of Windows XP.

Price - tablets cost more than smartphones, but typically less than a new notebook or (in some cases) x86 netbook. It's an *in-between* device

Hybrids - Matthew_Thepc - Your point about hybrids is dead-on; it also explains the Eee Transformer. Also, the other issue with semi-legacy notebooks and laptops is their condition; unless you know the seller and the specific notebook or laptop in question, quality can be a crapshoot in this area - even for refurbished notebooks and laptops. That is why folks are buying new tablets, as opposed to refurb notebooks/laptops.

[kevpan815]

Yes. My dad Loves the Original IPad I gave him a year ago when I bought myself an IPad 2 Last Year, and now I LOVE my IPad 3 even though it's the cheaper WIFI Only Model, just like my Original IPad and IPad 2 were WIFI Only. My dad just simply hooks his Original IPad up to his Comcast Wireless Router and connects to the Internet Wirelessly. I just simply hook my IPad 3 WIFI Only up to my Verizon Wireless Apple IPhone 4S (Soon to be IPhone 5) 3G Personal Hotspot 2 GB Cap for $20/$20 for every 1 GB Overage. I also set my Verizon Wireless Usage Controls to Prevent me from going Over! Just FYI!

[+virtorio MVC]

As far as tablets go, it's the most interesting to me. That said, I really hate using tablets.

The keyboard/trackpad add-on makes it usable, but if I'm only using it with that attached then I should just have a laptop.

[mjhannaf]

I will be getting a Pro version when it becomes available. I would be surprised to hear any better hardware announced between now and early 2013 if what's been announced by OEM's is anything to judge by.

[Wyn6]

Yes. My dad Loves the Original IPad I gave him a year ago when I bought myself an IPad 2 Last Year, and now I LOVE my IPad 3 even though it's the cheaper WIFI Only Model, just like my Original IPad and IPad 2 were WIFI Only. My dad just simply hooks his Original IPad up to his Comcast Wireless Router and connects to the Internet Wirelessly. I just simply hook my IPad 3 WIFI Only up to my Verizon Wireless Apple IPhone 4S (Soon to be IPhone 5) 3G Personal Hotspot 2 GB Cap for $20/$20 for every 1 GB Overage. I also set my Verizon Wireless Usage Controls to Prevent me from going Over! Just FYI!

I don't get your post. And, I'm not trying to troll ya here. But, are you advertising for Verizon and/or Apple? Maybe the "Yes" at the beginning of your post was in answer to the OP's original question? Sorry. I just don't understand the purpose behind it. Were you attempting to be, in some way, funny?

[kevpan815]

Apparently I must have misread the Topic of this Post. I would also mention that due to my Mental Disorder I tend to Ramble Off Topic Sometimes. If my post was indeed Off Topic then I Apoligize.

[rhianntp]

Going to be too expensive for the ones that can run windows programs... and RT tablets arent going to be cheap enough either really... so does the tablet market need another player with their own store? nope... FAIL :)

[SharpGreen]

It's just one of the first Windows RT tablets, the first of many, from many different companies. I don't see anything special that differentiates it from the Windows RT tablets that other OEMs will product.

When it is compared to the iPad, there is such a fuss that it has a "keyboard" integrated into it's case. Well guess what, just look online and you will find millions of different keyboard cases for iPad and Android. There is nothing special going on here.

It seems that Microsoft have attached a lot of hype to a product they have been working on called "Surface", which the name over to this (which is not the same "Surface" product they have been hyping) and then the tech sites seem to be getting their panties in a bunch over it when really it is just another product that isn't more special than anything else. If this was the real "Microsoft Surface" they have been working on for years that may be different, but this is just another tablet.

I care less about the Pro version then I do the RT version, since tablets like the Pro version have existed for several years now.

I will also only be interested in it if the price is not outrageously high, if its, say near $300 then I'll be interested...any higher and I won't care one bit.

[rhianntp]

Not to mention shafting traditional desktop and laptop users along the way ... this is gonna be entertaining to watch unfold

[kevpan815]

What I should have said is that I am very satisfied with my Existing Tablet and have no plans on buying a Microsoft Tablet.