3 ms·

I understand the point you are making, but the fact is without the app ecosystem a tablet like that is just going to be third place to the iPad and Android tabl

I understand the point you are making, but the fact is without the app ecosystem a tablet like that is just going to be third place to the iPad and Android tablets. They need to offer a compelling reason to purchase a surface over those other brands of tablets. The windows desktop with a decent selection of apps (because of the removed signature lock) would offer that. The thing is I don't actually specifically want a pro. All I want is a device that I can create content on. For me, creating content means I want it to run Visual Studio, Photoshop and Blender, along with some toolchain type apps like Git, Dropbox and Filezilla. These apps are just not ever going to appear as Metro apps. So currently, I choose to buy a laptop for half the price of a Surface pro. The problem is the competition they have targeted. They've pitched the RT against the IPad and Androids and it loses on functionality, and they've pitched the pro against Laptops and it loses on price. An unrestricted RT would win against the IPad/Android on functionality and the win against the laptop on size and flexibility while matching it on price.

city41 13y ago
I have a Surface Pro and I don't feel it competes against laptops at all. Its screen is too small to use the desktop for any period of time. The keyboard (both the touch and type variants) are terrible for doing any real quantity of typing. The trackpad is clunky and primitive, using your finger on the screen itself is also a poor substitute for a real mouse. And finally, you have to have a steady, solid surface to use it in "laptop" mode. On the train? On the couch? Forget it, tablet form is your only option. I really like my Surface a lot. However I feel it has two use cases: a very powerful (and quite nice) tablet (really, metro is wonderful!) or as a desktop with a monitor, keyboard and mouse attached. At work we are a Mac shop, being able to take something out that is tablet sized but becomes a full fledged Windows PC by borrowing the needed peripherals from the Macs is really awesome.

city41 13y ago

I have a Surface Pro and I don't feel it competes against laptops at all. Its screen is too small to use the desktop for any period of time. The keyboard (both the touch and type variants) are terrible for doing any real quantity of typing. The trackpad is clunky and primitive, using your finger on the screen itself is also a poor substitute for a real mouse. And finally, you have to have a steady, solid surface to use it in "laptop" mode. On the train? On the couch? Forget it, tablet form is your only option. I really like my Surface a lot. However I feel it has two use cases: a very powerful (and quite nice) tablet (really, metro is wonderful!) or as a desktop with a monitor, keyboard and mouse attached. At work we are a Mac shop, being able to take something out that is tablet sized but becomes a full fledged Windows PC by borrowing the needed peripherals from the Macs is really awesome.