HotelUser
09-12-2012, 04:13 PM
Back when people thought the Surface would be between $200 and $350 ish I thought it would do well, but after that bubble was burst I guess it hasn't been doing so good. I've seen a few reports like this: http://hothardware.com/News/Analysts-Slash-Surface-Sales-Estimates/
We've always known that Microsoft's Surface had an uphill fight (http://hothardware.com/Reviews/Microsoft-Surface-with-Windows-RT-Review/) ahead of it. Launching a new version of Windows based on an entirely different CPU architecture was a dicey move, as was the decision to push Redmond's own vision for the hardware. In some ways, Microsoft's bets have paid off; the $499 Surface tablet looks and feels like a much more expensive device and the Touch Cover works remarkably well.
Other factors, however, are reportedly dragging sales downwards. Last week, DigiTimes reported thatMicrosoft (http://hothardware.com/Tags/microsoft.aspx) had slashed its Surface orders to two million, down from 4M for Q4. Other analysts predicted sales in the two million range. Today, brokerage firm Detwiler Fenton broke ranks, claiming that Microsoft's totalSurface (http://hothardware.com/Tags/surface.aspx) sales for Q4 are likely to be well under a million units. Detwiler suggests MS has moved between 500-600,000 units.
And then some reviews:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_16221&feature=iv&sr c_vid=CPMlfyQQsug&v=gQhhtvuZwVg
So that's sort of a bummer. I was happy when they announced the existence of the pro surface tablet because I think the experience would be better with all my friendly neighbourhood apps. But then this happened (http://www.ghacks.net/2012/11/30/surface-pro-price-and-battery-life-disappoint/) which really ticks me off because if I want a surface with x86 it's going to cost a lot more and have absolutely pathetic battery life.
I guess I'll have to wait a year or two for folks to expand the availability of apps for RT and to make it more functional, or I'll have to wait until the price of x86 tablets to drop and for battery life to become satisfactory.
We've always known that Microsoft's Surface had an uphill fight (http://hothardware.com/Reviews/Microsoft-Surface-with-Windows-RT-Review/) ahead of it. Launching a new version of Windows based on an entirely different CPU architecture was a dicey move, as was the decision to push Redmond's own vision for the hardware. In some ways, Microsoft's bets have paid off; the $499 Surface tablet looks and feels like a much more expensive device and the Touch Cover works remarkably well.
Other factors, however, are reportedly dragging sales downwards. Last week, DigiTimes reported thatMicrosoft (http://hothardware.com/Tags/microsoft.aspx) had slashed its Surface orders to two million, down from 4M for Q4. Other analysts predicted sales in the two million range. Today, brokerage firm Detwiler Fenton broke ranks, claiming that Microsoft's totalSurface (http://hothardware.com/Tags/surface.aspx) sales for Q4 are likely to be well under a million units. Detwiler suggests MS has moved between 500-600,000 units.
And then some reviews:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_16221&feature=iv&sr c_vid=CPMlfyQQsug&v=gQhhtvuZwVg
So that's sort of a bummer. I was happy when they announced the existence of the pro surface tablet because I think the experience would be better with all my friendly neighbourhood apps. But then this happened (http://www.ghacks.net/2012/11/30/surface-pro-price-and-battery-life-disappoint/) which really ticks me off because if I want a surface with x86 it's going to cost a lot more and have absolutely pathetic battery life.
I guess I'll have to wait a year or two for folks to expand the availability of apps for RT and to make it more functional, or I'll have to wait until the price of x86 tablets to drop and for battery life to become satisfactory.