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Tablets Surface 2 anyone?
- Thread starter Jessica Lares
- Start date
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The Tegra powered RT model goes a long way to addressing a lot of the issues people had with RT model previously, and it should give it enough oomph for most day to day usage that folks use tablets for (and many folks use laptops for - that being internet, office, email, casual gaming)......
That being said - $449 is still questionable and I think $399 would be better or at least throw in the touch keyboard for $449 if they really want to push this hard. The fact that you really do need to get a typing cover due to the nature of Windows over other tablet OS's - means that your really talking $550-580 for the 32GB Surface 2.
Surface Pro 2 is grand - no major changes really other than the expected haswell improvements. Sad to see that they haven't given it more 'stylus' additions such as those who use a proper wacom cintiq will be familiar with.
The biggest problem I think Surface pro 2 and surface 2 are going to have is this.....
Surface itself and indeed windows tablets haven't really taken off in any meaningful way. The new hardware is nice - but doesn't fundamentally address 'why' people are just not going for Windows tablets.
Therefore will they sell more ? or will they just sell about the same and have about the same impact as the previous models ? I suspect the later.
If you gave me one - I'd be delighted......
If I was in a store going to buy a tablet would I choose one over the leading Android tablets or the soon to be released iPad 5 & iPad mini 2 ? No. I'd likely go with the tried and tested - especially given Wacom's own pen stylus soon to be available.
That being said - $449 is still questionable and I think $399 would be better or at least throw in the touch keyboard for $449 if they really want to push this hard. The fact that you really do need to get a typing cover due to the nature of Windows over other tablet OS's - means that your really talking $550-580 for the 32GB Surface 2.
Surface Pro 2 is grand - no major changes really other than the expected haswell improvements. Sad to see that they haven't given it more 'stylus' additions such as those who use a proper wacom cintiq will be familiar with.
The biggest problem I think Surface pro 2 and surface 2 are going to have is this.....
Surface itself and indeed windows tablets haven't really taken off in any meaningful way. The new hardware is nice - but doesn't fundamentally address 'why' people are just not going for Windows tablets.
Therefore will they sell more ? or will they just sell about the same and have about the same impact as the previous models ? I suspect the later.
If you gave me one - I'd be delighted......
If I was in a store going to buy a tablet would I choose one over the leading Android tablets or the soon to be released iPad 5 & iPad mini 2 ? No. I'd likely go with the tried and tested - especially given Wacom's own pen stylus soon to be available.
Surface Pro 2 for sure... incremental upgrades but they'll make a huge difference for usability. 8GB RAM, Haswell + iGPU upgrade, better battery life. For everything I currently do with my Pro - Ableton, FF:ARR, etc - it's a huge boost
I'll never buy an RT tablet simply because there's no ecosystem and MS is incapable of creating one. I expect the Surface 2 to bomb and possibly result in another write-off. They really should just kill it outright and let the Pro thrive without being tainted
Also, the Pro release is timed with the Windows Blue release. One of the Blue's features is the ability to boot straight to the desktop, eliminating most of Metro. I don't know how much it will actually help the brand but I can speculate it would make the OS way more practical for any device without a touchscreen and for enterprise deployment.
I'll never buy an RT tablet simply because there's no ecosystem and MS is incapable of creating one. I expect the Surface 2 to bomb and possibly result in another write-off. They really should just kill it outright and let the Pro thrive without being tainted
Also, the Pro release is timed with the Windows Blue release. One of the Blue's features is the ability to boot straight to the desktop, eliminating most of Metro. I don't know how much it will actually help the brand but I can speculate it would make the OS way more practical for any device without a touchscreen and for enterprise deployment.
Eh, Microsoft should just kill rt and sell the pro for 200 less with touch cover. No point really in getting rt over an iPad or android tablet, unless your really into the ms ecosystem.
Running desktop apps was really surface main strength. Problem is you can get an refurb MBA or MBA for a hundred more doesn't make sense at all. I think maybe they should kill it its not selling well.
Whatever.
Running desktop apps was really surface main strength. Problem is you can get an refurb MBA or MBA for a hundred more doesn't make sense at all. I think maybe they should kill it its not selling well.
Whatever.
Nah, my Surface RT is good enough.
That being said, if I had 500$ of disposable income right now? I might. Who knows?
That being said, if I had 500$ of disposable income right now? I might. Who knows?
Pass, these are just simply lackluster products that arent very good. They arent selling and its simply because they are poor.
It's funny. The tablet has two features I really like: build in kickstand and a keyboard. But, I still don't care for the product because of the OS. I bet if they installed Windows 98 onto that tablet and sold it for $399 people would buy it 
Possibly surface Pro 2, but I'm not sold, still the same thickness and weight of pro 1, and even at 6 hours battery life it's still at half of what my Atom powered tablet can get. Baytrail, which is the new Atom cpu, is supposed to be an incredible upgrade, and still keep that 10-12 hour battery life, and be thin/light, and some models announced are $349 with keyboard, a far cry from the $1000+ of the Pro 2 plus keyboard.
As for the RT 2it will be dead on arrival, just as the first RT was. Pure and utter stupidness on the part of a multi billion dollar company with everything on the line, just astonishing idiocy.
Man, it's so hard to be a Microsoft fan these days.
As for the RT 2it will be dead on arrival, just as the first RT was. Pure and utter stupidness on the part of a multi billion dollar company with everything on the line, just astonishing idiocy.
Man, it's so hard to be a Microsoft fan these days.
If the surface 2 was Bay Trail, not Tegra, I'd be interested.
Atom on Windows 8.1 is a far more tempting prospect for me than ARM and RT ever will be thanks to legacy applications. MS have to show interest in RT regardless so I understand why they're pushing the ARM route.
Atom on Windows 8.1 is a far more tempting prospect for me than ARM and RT ever will be thanks to legacy applications. MS have to show interest in RT regardless so I understand why they're pushing the ARM route.
I don't agree with you on the assertion they are poor. I think there is good hardware, the problem comes down to Windows 8.
Its not really a tablet OS and neither is it a fast easy to use desktop OS. Its still an uneasy blend of the two.
Windows 8 has an identity crisis that follows through into all hardware.
Also price of the Surface Pro is a factor, the main selling point for any windows device is legacy support. Something not available in the RT model, and something that comes at comparitivly high cost in the Pro model compared to tablets (not laptops).
Add $199 each for the docking station and power keyboard that's $1300 - 1400 before tax.
As high specced as it is, for something that will give you laptop performance - $1300-1400 can buy you a better laptop....
I think Windows is much less of an issue with 8.1. It handles the dual nature of the desktop and mobile very well IMO. I think people overthink it too much, if you want a dumb tablet like the ipad boot into Metro and never look at desktop mode, but if you do need desktop mode that choice is there for you.
The price, I agree, doesn't make sense. The PRO is what should compete with the ipad, not that utter garbage RT. The Pro can easily compete if it had a Baytrail setup, others have already announced $349 baytrail tablets. Can you imagine if MS released a baytrail Surface Pro with their build quality for even $499? But instead they release the Pro 2 which will continue to be a niche product because of its battery life (its still under "tablet" type battery life), thickness, weight, and most of all the very high price.
I can somewhat agree, but at the same time all the pieces that go into to the Surface is what encompasses it as a product. While the hardware is fairly standard, the other components such as the OS, etc make it a poor product.
You can find a product with similar specs that runs a different OS and it a be great product. I dont think we can just separate the hardware from the software because that is what makes the Surface what it is.
It's funny. The tablet has two features I really like: build in kickstand and a keyboard. But, I still don't care for the product because of the OS. I bet if they installed Windows 98 onto that tablet and sold it for $399 people would buy it
You can install a DOS emulator on the Surface RT, which should handle Windows 98
surface pro 2 would be cool. Love that power keyboard. I wouldn't mind the 256/8gb ram version, but 1299 is pricey especially as an ipad replacement and as something I can take around campus a lot.
then again I would be selling/trading in my old ipad and also getting a 10% student discount.
then again I would be selling/trading in my old ipad and also getting a 10% student discount.
"Do you still think I'm pretty?"
Anyone thinking twice about getting the new Surface 2?
I absolutely would but i recently got a Lenovo Yoga 11s instead. I still think the Surface Pro is too expensive.
The Yoga needs to be updated. It's still running Ivy Bridge and the 1366x768 is terrible for today's tech.
It's not meant to replace an iPad. It is meant to replace a laptop such as the MBP in your sig.
Hugely interested in the Surface Pro 2 - with the Haswell processor, 8GB ram and a decent sized SSD, it can definitely do dual service as a tablet and a laptop replacement.
Not sure I fancy the £400 premium for the uplift from 256GB to 512GB SSD though!
Not sure I fancy the £400 premium for the uplift from 256GB to 512GB SSD though!