4 ms·

So instead of trying to outrun the Surface, they're just folding? And then do what? Their Android tablets have been a failure. Are they going to make their own

So instead of trying to outrun the Surface, they're just folding? And then do what? Their Android tablets have been a failure. Are they going to make their own tablet OS? Good luck with that, the shittiest software in history has been made by OEMs. Ever see the crap they build and bundle with Windows? The crashing and bloatware make the machine unusable. WebOS was quite decent though(though it was made by the old Palm rather than HP), but we all know where it ended up. Why don't they take it as a challenge to improve their Windows RT offerings instead of churning out the same crap from the same ODMs that everyone else is using? Their profit may be squeezed by license costs, but surely there's a place for a truly innovative product? Surface runs the exact same Windows RT that the OEMs can use. MS is not stacking the deck regarding the software.

lmm 14y ago
You can call it a failure if you want, but ASUS has made some very good, useful android tablets; likewise Samsung. They may not be matching ipad sales yet but they're gradually gaining momentum, much like android on phones a few years ago. Suppose you're one of these manufacturers and you want to make a new tablet. You can build it on android, where you get thousands of existing tablet-optimized apps, an established developer base that's increasing that number by the day, and no licensing fees (well, maybe a small patent shakedown from MS if you decide to pay them). Or you can build it on WinRT where there are no apps, no developers, and you pay MS. Why on earth would you choose the second option? It's funny you mention how WebOS went, because I expect WinRT to do roughly the same thing.
velodrome 14y ago
The OEMs are lazy and risk adverse. They just want to sell their hardware. I don't understand why the OEMs don't see the long term picture. Would they rather have a totally dominant Apple where they have no chance of selling their product? They should take the opportunity to learn from Microsoft's example and help push the platform forward with great hardware devices - by taking risks. The more they give way to Microsoft, the more more they will cripple their own business. The same can be said about Google-Motorola situation. OEMs should focus on what they are good at. Making hardware.
- JoeAltmaier 14y ago
  OEMs are run by managers, rated on meeting their this-quarter projections. Exactly the guys that don't want risk.

lmm 14y ago

You can call it a failure if you want, but ASUS has made some very good, useful android tablets; likewise Samsung. They may not be matching ipad sales yet but they're gradually gaining momentum, much like android on phones a few years ago. Suppose you're one of these manufacturers and you want to make a new tablet. You can build it on android, where you get thousands of existing tablet-optimized apps, an established developer base that's increasing that number by the day, and no licensing fees (well, maybe a small patent shakedown from MS if you decide to pay them). Or you can build it on WinRT where there are no apps, no developers, and you pay MS. Why on earth would you choose the second option? It's funny you mention how WebOS went, because I expect WinRT to do roughly the same thing.

velodrome 14y ago

The OEMs are lazy and risk adverse. They just want to sell their hardware. I don't understand why the OEMs don't see the long term picture. Would they rather have a totally dominant Apple where they have no chance of selling their product? They should take the opportunity to learn from Microsoft's example and help push the platform forward with great hardware devices - by taking risks. The more they give way to Microsoft, the more more they will cripple their own business. The same can be said about Google-Motorola situation. OEMs should focus on what they are good at. Making hardware.

JoeAltmaier 14y ago
OEMs are run by managers, rated on meeting their this-quarter projections. Exactly the guys that don't want risk.