Microsoft Surface Pro – Jack of all trades…

…master of none….yet!

• The Microsoft Surface Pro is out in the wild but it has yet to prove Steve Jobs wrong.
• Apple’s stance on hybrid products remains clear.
• A hybrid product can do multiple tasks but because of the compromises that are inherent to its design, it will never be able to do any of them very well.
• A device designed for a single purpose will always offer a better user experience.
• Windows 8 has promised to put an end to that view by having two modes, each of which is designed to offer either a tablet, content consumption experience or a laptop, content creation experience.
• This is critical to the success of Windows 8 because this is where it really differentiates itself from Apple.
• Instead of carrying a MacBook and an iPad, the user can carry just one device and use it in different configurations based on what he or she is doing at the time.
• The Windows RT version is limited in the fact that desktop applications are in very short supply which combined with typical generation 1 issues have limited sales.
• Hence, I have had high hopes for the full Windows 8 version which should have put most of these issues to bed.
• Unfortunately, it doesn’t really fit the bill either offering neither a really great laptop experience nor a great tablet.
• Furthermore it is not cheap as the 128GB version with the detachable keyboard is going to set the user back more than $1,100.
• I believe that the aim of the Windows Surface is not to take the PC market by storm but to show the ailing PC makers what Windows 8 can offer and to push them into action.
• So far really only Samsung and Asustek have risen to the challenge and I have high hopes for the Asus Taichi which has the possibility to take Windows 8 much closer to its full potential.
• Sales of Windows 8 have been sluggish to date but once the hardware and software issues that limit the appeal of the experience are fixed, I am hopeful that there will be a replacement cycle kicking the PC market back into growth, albeit temporarily.
• At the moment it is Asustek, Samsung and maybe Lenovo making all the running and in the new world order these three look like the powerhouses of the future PC market.