4 ms·

i was a 100% windows user for a long time, even had a Windows phone in the blackberry era. Decided to switch to Apple after using iPhone 4 and original iPad. Bo

by hitgeek 11y ago

i was a 100% windows user for a long time, even had a Windows phone in the blackberry era. Decided to switch to Apple after using iPhone 4 and original iPad. Bought Macbook 4 years ago and with an SSD and RAM upgrade its still great. Gave microsoft a second chance with the flagship Lumia Windows Phone 7, and Surface RT, because I was primarily a windows dev. Needless to say, I was burned on both of those devices (buggy, very poor and limited apps, and microsoft basically gave up on both platforms within 2 years). I've since purchased an iMac, two more iPhones, and a new iPad Looking at some of the early problems with the Surface Book, I'm worried microsoft is going to drive more users away.

Kurtz79 11y ago
I'm a converted Mac user as well, but I cannot see the Book (which is a first generation product, and an impressive one as that), Surface and Windows 10 as anything else as steps in the right direction for Microsoft, and for consumers in general. Apple really needs an heavyweight competitor that can challenge them in terms of design and innovation, otherwise they will get complacent (IMHO they already are, to an extent).
- radiorental 11y ago
  Hadn't thought of it like that... Where Apple used to have their CEO 'drive' innovation - New Microsoft are replacing that motivation driver.
intended 11y ago
I think it's worth remembering that MSFT should consider itself lucky, that it has customers to drive away. The pro 1 came out only a just few short years ago, and they wrote down a lot of that product. It's really weird to say this about the guys who once were called the Borg, but I have faith in their design team. Sadly they seem to be creating an expectation that one should wait for the 3rd device in a series.
- radiorental 11y ago
  Perfect is the enemy of done From a business perspective - the end result is the same. Whether you wait for Steve to stop barking say 'ship it'. Or you ship when it's 'good enough. Apple knew where the hockey puck was heading as early as the mid 90's [1] and could probably have shipped something better than the Newton but before the iPhone. They were touch and go there for a while. Microsoft can afford to ship first and ask questions later. The end result in terms of getting the product right within a given timeframe is the same. [1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPS1DMlzz0M https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPS1DMlzz0M
- smacktoward 11y ago
  "Wait for version 3" has been the conventional wisdom about Microsoft products for decades now. (Example: Windows didn't really take off until Windows 3.1.) Their modus operandi has always been to throw stuff out there, and then if it seems to be finding a market iterate on it until it doesn't suck anymore. So in that respect Surface is just continuing the grand tradition.
pjc50 11y ago
My wife has the Lumia WP8 and the Surface Pro 3, which she's quite happy with. I agree that Surface RT is an unnecessary travesty of a concept though. Microsoft really need to pick a differentiator and advertise on that basis. Maybe two for the consumer/enterprise markets. For years the unofficial slogan was "Microsoft: because you have to use Word" or "because it's the only open games platform". Both have been badly eroded in the past decade.

by hitgeek 11y ago

Kurtz79 11y ago

I'm a converted Mac user as well, but I cannot see the Book (which is a first generation product, and an impressive one as that), Surface and Windows 10 as anything else as steps in the right direction for Microsoft, and for consumers in general. Apple really needs an heavyweight competitor that can challenge them in terms of design and innovation, otherwise they will get complacent (IMHO they already are, to an extent).

radiorental 11y ago
Hadn't thought of it like that... Where Apple used to have their CEO 'drive' innovation - New Microsoft are replacing that motivation driver.

intended 11y ago

I think it's worth remembering that MSFT should consider itself lucky, that it has customers to drive away. The pro 1 came out only a just few short years ago, and they wrote down a lot of that product. It's really weird to say this about the guys who once were called the Borg, but I have faith in their design team. Sadly they seem to be creating an expectation that one should wait for the 3rd device in a series.

radiorental 11y ago
Perfect is the enemy of done From a business perspective - the end result is the same. Whether you wait for Steve to stop barking say 'ship it'. Or you ship when it's 'good enough. Apple knew where the hockey puck was heading as early as the mid 90's [1] and could probably have shipped something better than the Newton but before the iPhone. They were touch and go there for a while. Microsoft can afford to ship first and ask questions later. The end result in terms of getting the product right within a given timeframe is the same. [1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPS1DMlzz0M https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPS1DMlzz0M
smacktoward 11y ago
"Wait for version 3" has been the conventional wisdom about Microsoft products for decades now. (Example: Windows didn't really take off until Windows 3.1.) Their modus operandi has always been to throw stuff out there, and then if it seems to be finding a market iterate on it until it doesn't suck anymore. So in that respect Surface is just continuing the grand tradition.

pjc50 11y ago

My wife has the Lumia WP8 and the Surface Pro 3, which she's quite happy with. I agree that Surface RT is an unnecessary travesty of a concept though. Microsoft really need to pick a differentiator and advertise on that basis. Maybe two for the consumer/enterprise markets. For years the unofficial slogan was "Microsoft: because you have to use Word" or "because it's the only open games platform". Both have been badly eroded in the past decade.