5 ms·

I think they've pulled the rug from under other HW vendors, and that is well-deserved (for the vendors). MS essentially made the ultimate Windows PC (tablet, pe

I think they've pulled the rug from under other HW vendors, and that is well-deserved (for the vendors). MS essentially made the ultimate Windows PC (tablet, pen, long battery life, powerful GPU if needed), after waiting for the partners for years.

JustSomeNobody 11y ago
Arguably, the vendors needed it.
- cwyers 11y ago
  Yeah, the high-end Windows laptops these days are all mostly Apple knock-offs. No wonder everyone who's serious wants the real thing instead. So Microsoft made a hero laptop that isn't a MacBook knock-off. Now the Windows OEMs will start knocking it off instead.
  - HNcow 11y ago
    Not even good Apple knock-offs. The build quaility on machines like things like the ASUS Zenbook is no where near Apple, and business machines are always think/bulky. This thing is amazing.
melling 11y ago
I guess moving to USB-C is asking for too much?
- strictnein 11y ago
  Unfortunately, they chose to support 99.9(999?)% of existing USB cables instead.
  - melling 11y ago
    You can always make that argument. If you want progress, you need to Think Different. Intel and Microsoft have enough muscle to get 100 million PC's shipped in 12 months wth a new standard. Of course, no one said that they only have to ship USB-C.
    - WorldWideWayne 11y ago
      I guess if you think that walled gardens and locked down platforms are "progress", then you really are thinking differently because you have to basically swallow that pill if you want to enjoy the occasional hardware progress that is seen with fruitier companies. Of course real progress, to me, means that there is a good standard and everybody uses it. Remember when cell phones all had their own type of charging adapter? I'm so happy now that most manufacturers use micro-usb. Everybody except Apple of course because they're always too busy trying to invent something that will keep you locked in.
      - melling 11y ago
        I'm sorry, I guess by referring to Apple I confused the point. You went off on some pointless irrelevant rant. How about I mention Google instead? http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2478157,00.asp http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2478157,00.asp http://www.androidcentral.com/google-says-look-out-more-usb-c-chromebooks-and-android-phones http://www.androidcentral.com/google-says-look-out-more-usb-... USB-C is an open standard that is not controlled by Apple.
        WorldWideWayne 11y ago
        Oh no, "melling" thinks my response was pointless and irrelevant - what to do? Does anyone else find it hilarious that this is coming from a guy who cares about USB-C which is largely pointless and irrelevant in this thread? You got all the responses and downvotes that you deserve.
        melling 11y ago
        It is irrelevant this year. Next year it'll ship on tens of millions of PC's. It's certainly not a deal breaker but it would have been a nice to have this year on a small form factor device. It also doubles the throughput of the older standard. It's a $1500 device so people who buy it will probably be using it in 4-5 years. I'd rather spend $20 on an adapter cable now and be able to support the better standard next year.
- tempestn 11y ago
  That would have been nice to see, since I expect these will have amazing longevity otherwise. Ideal might have been one USB 3.0 and one USB type-c. (Along with adapters in both directions if we're talking really ideal.)
richardboegli 11y ago
Its like Microsoft's Google Nexus series....
- dogma1138 11y ago
  The Google Nexus never seemed to pull the rug under anyone, they weren't a best selling device in most circumstances. The Nexus devices were often also available straight from their vendor at the time in the same form or a slightly different model. And most importantly the Nexuses were always sourced from on of their partners, here MSFT is directly competing against their partners.
  - scholia 11y ago
    Suspect you might just be a tad over-negative about this. First, Microsoft doesn't own any factories so the business is going to a partner (probably Pegatron). Second, Microsoft partners can sign up to sell and support the Surface Pro range. Dell and HP have already done so. Shipping thousands of Surface Pros into businesses, imaging them, and supporting them on-site and remotely is the part of the PC business with margins, which are rather thin on Windows hardware. Also, Microsoft isn't competing in the mainstream Windows market, where device prices are typically $200 to $500. In fact, it's mainly competing against Apple, which is arguably a good thing for the rest of the Windows ecosystem....
brudgers 11y ago
The bread and butter of other hardware vendors is not laptops starting at 1500 dollars. Microsoft is making the Surface line Windows' flagship. It's directly competing with Apple on hardware quality and features and most importantly ecosystem. Microsoft is building cattle that will make people who want pets happy while making life easy for enterprise's cattle ranchers.

JustSomeNobody 11y ago

Arguably, the vendors needed it.

cwyers 11y ago
Yeah, the high-end Windows laptops these days are all mostly Apple knock-offs. No wonder everyone who's serious wants the real thing instead. So Microsoft made a hero laptop that isn't a MacBook knock-off. Now the Windows OEMs will start knocking it off instead.
- HNcow 11y ago
  Not even good Apple knock-offs. The build quaility on machines like things like the ASUS Zenbook is no where near Apple, and business machines are always think/bulky. This thing is amazing.

melling 11y ago

I guess moving to USB-C is asking for too much?

strictnein 11y ago
Unfortunately, they chose to support 99.9(999?)% of existing USB cables instead.
- melling 11y ago
  You can always make that argument. If you want progress, you need to Think Different. Intel and Microsoft have enough muscle to get 100 million PC's shipped in 12 months wth a new standard. Of course, no one said that they only have to ship USB-C.
  - WorldWideWayne 11y ago
    I guess if you think that walled gardens and locked down platforms are "progress", then you really are thinking differently because you have to basically swallow that pill if you want to enjoy the occasional hardware progress that is seen with fruitier companies. Of course real progress, to me, means that there is a good standard and everybody uses it. Remember when cell phones all had their own type of charging adapter? I'm so happy now that most manufacturers use micro-usb. Everybody except Apple of course because they're always too busy trying to invent something that will keep you locked in.
    - melling 11y ago
      I'm sorry, I guess by referring to Apple I confused the point. You went off on some pointless irrelevant rant. How about I mention Google instead? http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2478157,00.asp http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2478157,00.asp http://www.androidcentral.com/google-says-look-out-more-usb-c-chromebooks-and-android-phones http://www.androidcentral.com/google-says-look-out-more-usb-... USB-C is an open standard that is not controlled by Apple.
      - WorldWideWayne 11y ago
        Oh no, "melling" thinks my response was pointless and irrelevant - what to do? Does anyone else find it hilarious that this is coming from a guy who cares about USB-C which is largely pointless and irrelevant in this thread? You got all the responses and downvotes that you deserve.
        melling 11y ago
        It is irrelevant this year. Next year it'll ship on tens of millions of PC's. It's certainly not a deal breaker but it would have been a nice to have this year on a small form factor device. It also doubles the throughput of the older standard. It's a $1500 device so people who buy it will probably be using it in 4-5 years. I'd rather spend $20 on an adapter cable now and be able to support the better standard next year.
tempestn 11y ago
That would have been nice to see, since I expect these will have amazing longevity otherwise. Ideal might have been one USB 3.0 and one USB type-c. (Along with adapters in both directions if we're talking really ideal.)

richardboegli 11y ago

Its like Microsoft's Google Nexus series....

dogma1138 11y ago
The Google Nexus never seemed to pull the rug under anyone, they weren't a best selling device in most circumstances. The Nexus devices were often also available straight from their vendor at the time in the same form or a slightly different model. And most importantly the Nexuses were always sourced from on of their partners, here MSFT is directly competing against their partners.
- scholia 11y ago
  Suspect you might just be a tad over-negative about this. First, Microsoft doesn't own any factories so the business is going to a partner (probably Pegatron). Second, Microsoft partners can sign up to sell and support the Surface Pro range. Dell and HP have already done so. Shipping thousands of Surface Pros into businesses, imaging them, and supporting them on-site and remotely is the part of the PC business with margins, which are rather thin on Windows hardware. Also, Microsoft isn't competing in the mainstream Windows market, where device prices are typically $200 to $500. In fact, it's mainly competing against Apple, which is arguably a good thing for the rest of the Windows ecosystem....

brudgers 11y ago

The bread and butter of other hardware vendors is not laptops starting at 1500 dollars. Microsoft is making the Surface line Windows' flagship. It's directly competing with Apple on hardware quality and features and most importantly ecosystem. Microsoft is building cattle that will make people who want pets happy while making life easy for enterprise's cattle ranchers.