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This sort of size is necessary to support a tablet which isn't hopelessly tethered to a PC. The iPad avoids a big recovery image by requiring you to restore it

This sort of size is necessary to support a tablet which isn't hopelessly tethered to a PC. The iPad avoids a big recovery image by requiring you to restore it from your PC. You've offloaded this function onto an (arguably) more capable device. But how much external storage can you buy for the cost of a whole PC. For some users who don't create a lot of content, the Surface realistically could be their only device, and being able to restore it without a PC is a lot of convenience.

whalesalad 14y ago
This is no longer the case with iCloud. All of my 'iDevices' are now untethered from my computer. When I bought my iPhone 5 they actually made me wait for the iCloud restore to complete before I could leave the store. Backed up my iPhone 4 before jumping the train to the Apple store. Walked in, purchased the new one, iCloud sync, walked out with virtually the same data I walked in with on a faster and prettier device =)
- alanctgardner2 14y ago
  But can they restore from a problem state without a PC? I honestly don't know, but I suspect Apple's approach to a recovery partition is still 'Run iTunes' or 'Talk to a Genius'. Which is less good for, say, my grandma than me being able to restore from a hidden partition. User data can still be backed up to the cloud; that's probably a good thing generally.
- adaml_623 14y ago
  " they actually made me wait for the iCloud backup to complete before I could leave the store." Are you being positive about Apple devices or not. Because that statement could be taken two ways.
- w0utert 14y ago
  Same here. When my iPhone 5 arrived I basically turned it on, chose 'restore from iCloud backup', waited a few minutes, and presto: all my apps and their data, settings, text messages, address book, call log, etc, all transferred from my old 3GS. I still had to sync all my music from iTunes though, but I don't see how the Surface would be able to do this without requiring to be 'tethered' (iTunes has WiFi sync) to a PC.
  - numo16 14y ago
    >I still had to sync all my music from iTunes though, but I don't see how the Surface would be able to do this without requiring to be 'tethered' (iTunes has WiFi sync) to a PC. By storing your music in Skydrive, this removes the need to 'tether' to a PC
- manmal 14y ago
  Restoring the firmware in DFU mode is not possible without a laptop. But, it's uncommon and I think you can let Geniuses at the Apple store do that for you.
- drivebyacct2 14y ago
  Is this being touted as an Apple feature that Android retroactively stole 3 years in the past yet?
  - potatolicious 14y ago
    Downvoted. Nobody mentioned anything about Apple being first, merely that this feature exists and is useful.
  - micampe 14y ago
    I wish. Unfortunately the backup and restore situation was miserable three years ago and still is today.
cmelbye 14y ago
"This sort of size is necessary to support a tablet which isn't hopelessly tethered to a PC." Are you implying that iPad is hopelessly tethered to a PC? Have you used an iPad? As of iOS 5, there are very few reasons that one would need to be "hopelessly tethered to a PC" in order to use their device. Backups, music and app purchases, and contact and calendar syncing are all completely untethered. As for restoring firmware, in reality that's something something that an average user does extremely rarely, if at all. iOS has a "Reset All Content and Settings" feature which deletes everything off the device and reboots it into a completely fresh state. If somehow, an average computing user like my grandmother has managed to get her iPad to the point where it truly needs a restore, any Apple Store would be more than happy to assist her. In that scenario, what sense does it make to carry around a copy of the iOS 6 firmware on the tablet?
- alanctgardner2 14y ago
  The only problem is, going to an apple store isn't an option for a lot of people where I live (Canada). When I travel, I bring my tablet, which does support USB host mode, but doesn't run iTunes. I know its a rare case, but its also incredibly frustrating when the answer to a problem is to drive three hours or mail your primary computing device away for a week. Frankly storage is cheap, and Apple has made a business of overcharging for it. They advertise their lowest capacity at a reasonable price, but the upgrades are extortionate. If apple charged more reasonably, maybe we wouldn't be so afraid of using that storage to handle reasonable edge cases like this.

whalesalad 14y ago

This is no longer the case with iCloud. All of my 'iDevices' are now untethered from my computer. When I bought my iPhone 5 they actually made me wait for the iCloud restore to complete before I could leave the store. Backed up my iPhone 4 before jumping the train to the Apple store. Walked in, purchased the new one, iCloud sync, walked out with virtually the same data I walked in with on a faster and prettier device =)

alanctgardner2 14y ago
But can they restore from a problem state without a PC? I honestly don't know, but I suspect Apple's approach to a recovery partition is still 'Run iTunes' or 'Talk to a Genius'. Which is less good for, say, my grandma than me being able to restore from a hidden partition. User data can still be backed up to the cloud; that's probably a good thing generally.
adaml_623 14y ago
" they actually made me wait for the iCloud backup to complete before I could leave the store." Are you being positive about Apple devices or not. Because that statement could be taken two ways.
w0utert 14y ago
Same here. When my iPhone 5 arrived I basically turned it on, chose 'restore from iCloud backup', waited a few minutes, and presto: all my apps and their data, settings, text messages, address book, call log, etc, all transferred from my old 3GS. I still had to sync all my music from iTunes though, but I don't see how the Surface would be able to do this without requiring to be 'tethered' (iTunes has WiFi sync) to a PC.
- numo16 14y ago
  >I still had to sync all my music from iTunes though, but I don't see how the Surface would be able to do this without requiring to be 'tethered' (iTunes has WiFi sync) to a PC. By storing your music in Skydrive, this removes the need to 'tether' to a PC
manmal 14y ago
Restoring the firmware in DFU mode is not possible without a laptop. But, it's uncommon and I think you can let Geniuses at the Apple store do that for you.
drivebyacct2 14y ago
Is this being touted as an Apple feature that Android retroactively stole 3 years in the past yet?
- potatolicious 14y ago
  Downvoted. Nobody mentioned anything about Apple being first, merely that this feature exists and is useful.
- micampe 14y ago
  I wish. Unfortunately the backup and restore situation was miserable three years ago and still is today.

cmelbye 14y ago

"This sort of size is necessary to support a tablet which isn't hopelessly tethered to a PC." Are you implying that iPad is hopelessly tethered to a PC? Have you used an iPad? As of iOS 5, there are very few reasons that one would need to be "hopelessly tethered to a PC" in order to use their device. Backups, music and app purchases, and contact and calendar syncing are all completely untethered. As for restoring firmware, in reality that's something something that an average user does extremely rarely, if at all. iOS has a "Reset All Content and Settings" feature which deletes everything off the device and reboots it into a completely fresh state. If somehow, an average computing user like my grandmother has managed to get her iPad to the point where it truly needs a restore, any Apple Store would be more than happy to assist her. In that scenario, what sense does it make to carry around a copy of the iOS 6 firmware on the tablet?

alanctgardner2 14y ago
The only problem is, going to an apple store isn't an option for a lot of people where I live (Canada). When I travel, I bring my tablet, which does support USB host mode, but doesn't run iTunes. I know its a rare case, but its also incredibly frustrating when the answer to a problem is to drive three hours or mail your primary computing device away for a week. Frankly storage is cheap, and Apple has made a business of overcharging for it. They advertise their lowest capacity at a reasonable price, but the upgrades are extortionate. If apple charged more reasonably, maybe we wouldn't be so afraid of using that storage to handle reasonable edge cases like this.