Microsoft Unveils ‘Surface’ Tablet in iPad Challenge

Los Angeles. Microsoft on Monday unveiled a Surface tablet computer as the technology titan steps in with its own hardware to take on Apple’s market-ruling iPads.Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer described the iPad challenger as a tablet that “works and plays” when he showed it off at a press event in Los Angeles.


Surface is also the name of table and poster-sized touch screen computers that Microsoft has pitched to the business market for use in restaurants, shops, bars and other venues.A tablet demo video online at microsoft.com/surface/ promised the tablet was “coming soon.”

A version of Surface running on Windows RT software tailored for ARM mobile device chips measured 9.3 millimeters thick and weighed 676 grams.It boasted a 26.9 centimeter high-definition screen and will be available with 32 or 64 gigabytes of memory, according to Microsoft.

A tablet model powered by Windows 8 Pro software measured 13.5 millimeters thick, weighs 903 grams and will be available with 64 or 128 gigabytes of memory.“It’s a whole new community of computing devices from Microsoft,” Ballmer said. “It embodies the notion of hardware and software really pushing each other.”
Surface featured a flip-out rear “kickstand” to prop it up like a picture frame and a cover that, when opened, acts as a keypad so tablets could be switched into “desktop” mode for work tasks.
Microsoft did not specify when the tablet would be available but it is likely to be timed with the release of Windows 8 software later this year.“This product marks a crucial pivot in Microsoft’s product strategy,” said Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman Epps.

“It puts the focus on the consumer rather than the enterprise,” she continued in a blog post. “And it lets Microsoft compete with vertically-integrated Apple on more even ground.”

Microsoft could be “its own worst enemy” in the tablet market if it overwhelms people with gadget options and specs such as chipsets instead of following Apple’s lead and keeping choices simple, the analyst warned.“Consumers aren’t used to thinking about chipsets,” Rotman Epps said.

“Choice is a key tenet of Windows, but too much choice is overwhelming for consumers,” she continued. “Apple gets this, and limits iPad options to connectivity, storage, and black or white.”

Microsoft, which built its fortune by specializing in software and leaving the job of making computers or other devices to partners, has had mixed results from its hardware ventures.

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