The REAL tablet wars are about to start

[DaFace]

Not sure if this is thread-worthy, so I'll throw it in here. As expected, Google is expanding the Nexus line to include four phones/tablets:

• Nexus 4: 8GB for $299; 16GB for $349; available unlocked and without a contract on 11/13 on the Google Play store in the U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany, Spain and Canada. The 16GB version will also be available through T-Mobile for $199, with a 2-year contract (check here for more details).
• Nexus 7: 16GB for $199 and 32GB for $249; available in the U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Canada and Japan, and also through our retail partners Gamestop, Office Depot, Office Max, Staples and Walmart.
• Nexus 7 with 32GB and mobile data: $299 and unlocked, on sale 11/13 in the Google Play store in the U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany, Spain and Canada.
• Nexus 10: 16GB for $399; 32GB for $499; available on 11/13 in the Google Play Store in the U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Canada and Japan. You'll also be able to purchase the 32GB version in more than 2,000 Walmart stores in the U.S.

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/...ree-sizes.html

[AustinChief]

Originally Posted by DaFace

Not sure if this is thread-worthy, so I'll throw it in here. As expected, Google is expanding the Nexus line to include four phones/tablet
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/...ree-sizes.html

A bit underwhelming... I was hoping for an update to the 7 and possibly a slight price drop.

The Nexus 10 sounds fantastic from what I hear. Having multiple profiles for users is a major major major plus. But was also hoping it would retail about $50 cheaper.

Selling the $499 32GB version thru Walmart should be a major boost to sales though.

Best news is that for $100 less than an iPad, you get a MUCH better device.

Better display, faster processor, better speakers, NFC, 2x the RAM and better cameras.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/...ft-surface-rt/

[WoodDraw]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

A bit underwhelming... I was hoping for an update to the 7 and possibly a slight price drop.

It did get an update,

8->16gigs
16->32gigs

And a new 3G option. Let's remember that the Nexus 7 has only been out since July, and in some countries a matter of weeks. A lot of consumers (even techy ones) think that the upgrade cycle with tablets and cellphones is too aggressive. Doing any serious upgrade this soon would be a bit brutal.


A big, overlooked part of this upgrade is the new content deals. Warner signs up finally, more content deals in other countries, and Google announces launch of a Google Music Matching system. Getting closer to parity in content.

[Silock]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

A bit underwhelming... I was hoping for an update to the 7 and possibly a slight price drop.

The Nexus 10 sounds fantastic from what I hear. Having multiple profiles for users is a major major major plus. But was also hoping it would retail about $50 cheaper.

Selling the $499 32GB version thru Walmart should be a major boost to sales though.

Best news is that for $100 less than an iPad, you get a MUCH better device.

Better display, faster processor, better speakers, NFC, 2x the RAM and better cameras.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/...ft-surface-rt/

But no SD card slot! OMFG! THE HUMANITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[007]

Originally Posted by Silock

But no SD card slot! OMFG! THE HUMANITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

AS I say for apple. It is dumb not to include one.

[Silock]

Originally Posted by Guru

AS I say for apple. It is dumb not to include one.

Cloud > SD

GuildWars is currently only available for Windows, not Android. There is a Wine-wrapper for it if you want to run it on a Mac, but getting it to run on an Android is an entirely different matter.
Hardware-wise it should run just fine, but since the OS is not compatible I can't see how you would get it to run.

[htismaqe]

Oops, I posted this in the wrong thread...

So I just had a discussion with a customer about Surface, RT, and Windows 8. They're a BIG fan and say they much prefer Microsoft's solution vs. the iPad and Android. Why?

Because it runs all the shit they already run. That's the pitch, right there.

Great new features? Maybe. But it runs Office!

I've come to realize that most of our discussion is misplaced. Of course the potential $1200 price tag is too high - for a HOME USER.

[HC_Chief]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Because it runs all the shit they already run. That's the pitch, right there.

Great new features? Maybe. But it runs Office!

That is exactly the selling point: combining the form factor, consumer capability, and laptop/pc functionality into a single device.

The iPad is a great consumer device; it was revolutionary, but really no more than a high-tech toy. The potential is absolutely there; problem is Apple has their ecosystem completely locked down. While this is a boon for them in the short term, Microsoft's bet it is a long-term bust. If the Surface can combine the form factor with the functionality of the laptop, why continue screwing around with Apple's consumer product?

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by HC_Chief

That is exactly the selling point: combining the form factor, consumer capability, and laptop/pc functionality into a single device.

That's just the thing - at a price point of over $1000, it has ZERO "consumer" capability.

My customer literally said they don't care how much it costs, it runs Windows and Office and that's what they need.

Microsoft is the RJ Reynolds of the 21st century.

Originally Posted by HC_Chief

The iPad is a great consumer device; it was revolutionary, but really no more than a high-tech toy. The potential is absolutely there; problem is Apple has their ecosystem completely locked down. While this is a boon for them in the short term, Microsoft's bet it is a long-term bust.

Microsoft envies Apple's locked down ecosystem. They're actively trying to emulate it.

Originally Posted by HC_Chief

If the Surface can combine the form factor with the functionality of the laptop, why continue screwing around with Apple's consumer product?

Because Apple's consumer product has a consumer price point. The Surface, right now, does not.

[DaveNull]

Back on topic though...sounds like Ballmer is really excited to announce those blockbuster numbers from Surface and Windows 8:

WSJ: How has the public reception been for Windows 8 and the Surface in the first few days?

Mr. Ballmer: Numerically there's not really much that's interesting to report. If you were to call the retailers, they would say, 'Hey, off to a very good start.' We're out of stock a lot of places on touch [screen] machines. I was at a dinner in San Francisco last week, and I brought out this beautiful, very thin [touch-screen] laptop, and they said, 'Wow, I never thought touch could be valuable and important in a laptop.'

WSJ: Would you prefer Apple's business model, in which it controls the hardware and the software?

Mr. Ballmer: We like our model, as we are evolving it. In every category Apple competes, it's the low-volume player, except in tablets. In the PC market, obviously the advantage of diversity has mattered since 90-something percent of PCs that get sold are Windows PCs. We'll see what winds up mattering in tablets.

Guess he hasn't heard of this iPhone thing. I hear the kids really like it.

If you find yourself a fan of what Microsoft does at all you should read this article. If you thought it was astounding that Ballmer still has a job wait until you read this. Fun part:

SPIEGEL: Microsoft's track record at anticipating technological trends hasn't always been the best. With the Surface tablet and the new Windows 8 software you are now targeting the mobile market in particular. Is it 10 years too late once again?

Mundie: My response is that we had a music player before the iPod. We had a touch device before the iPad. And we were leading in the mobile phone space. So, it wasn't for a lack of vision or technological foresight that we lost our leadership position. The problem was that we just didn't give enough reinforcement to those products at the time that we were leading. Unfortunately, the company had some executional missteps, which occurred right at the time when Apple launched the iPhone. With that, we appeared to drop a generation behind.

SPIEGEL: What happened?

Mundie: During that time, Windows went through a difficult period where we had to shift a huge amount of our focus to security engineering. The criminal activity in cyberspace was growing dramatically ten years ago, and Microsoft was basically the only company that had enough volume for it to be a target. In part because of that, Windows Vista took a long time to be born.

Now I can understand towing the company line and all. But here's the biggest shock. Let's take as read the idea that in each instance of non-PC type computers Microsoft was there first and in each instance had their lunch eaten first by Apple with the iPod, RIM with the Blackberry and Apple with the iPad.

This is my 20th year at Microsoft. Bill Gates and Nathan Myhrvold hired me to develop the company's capability in non-PC computing.

How does this asshole still have a job? Scott Forstall gets canned because iOS 6 maps is sub-par while this guy totally misses the boat on what is allegedly his entire job over and over and still gets paid? WTF?

[DaveNull]

If the Surface can combine the form factor with the functionality of the laptop, why continue screwing around with Apple's consumer product?

Probably because the ability to run Office and Windows isn't the main selling point. People like iOS because its *not* Windows. Unless you're a mid-level IT manager who hates that someone would question the selection of tools that they're mandated to use.

Xcode? WTF is that? I can get Eclipse for free too...not much use if you're writing .NET; most shops that write .NET have an ELA, meaning they will have the appropriate IDE for the job. With the "free" software you can hack your way through it, if you are lucky enough to have someone who knows how to do that, but why bother? You will end up spending more money on the effort in man hours. Same old story: save a few dollars in licenses, spend ten times as much in fumbling through defining a process to make up for not correctly investing your software budget.

You've completely missed my point...or proved it...I can't exactly tell through the fog of your ignorance of how development outside the windows enterprise world works.

The toolkit that you need to develop native OS X and iOS applications is free...no ELA needed. It's also a big reason why there is more innovative software being written for OS X and iOS at this point, unless you're talking about server side stuff.

[HC_Chief]

Originally Posted by DaveNull

Probably because the ability to run Office and Windows isn't the main selling point. People like iOS because its *not* Windows. Unless you're a mid-level IT manager who hates that someone would question the selection of tools that they're mandated to use.

Welcome to the business world.
BYOD is starting to grow, but it is slow in adoption. Surface is hitting at the right time...a device that can truly bridge the gap (Pro). The RT is just a commercial device, like the current tablet techsphere.

Originally Posted by DaveNull

You've completely missed my point...or proved it...I can't exactly tell through the fog of your ignorance of how development outside the windows enterprise world works.

The toolkit that you need to develop native OS X and iOS applications is free...no ELA needed. It's also a big reason why there is more innovative software being written for OS X and iOS at this point, unless you're talking about server side stuff.

You just reiterated my point. If you want to write code for commercial use on a locked ecosystem with severely limited integration in the business world, use the appropriate IDE. As for "more innovative", hehe, I disagree. Unless, of course, style over substance = "innovation"? That brings me back to my statement about self-absorbed hipster kids solipsisticly blogging away in coffee shops about how they're going to change the world...

[Fish]

Originally Posted by HC_Chief

Welcome to the business world.
BYOD is starting to grow, but it is slow in adoption. Surface is hitting at the right time...a device that can truly bridge the gap (Pro). The RT is just a commercial device, like the current tablet techsphere.



You just reiterated my point. If you want to write code for commercial use on a locked ecosystem with severely limited integration in the business world, use the appropriate IDE. As for "more innovative", hehe, I disagree. Unless, of course, style over substance = "innovation"? That brings me back to my statement about self-absorbed hipster kids solipsisticly blogging away in coffee shops about how they're going to change the world...

The ecosystem is changing fast. Over the last 5 years, all the upper level techs in my department have switched to Macs for their main system. Mainly because the majority of the executives at the top have switched to Mac. Supporting both PC and Mac is a requirement now, not a luxury. The Macs run OS X and Windows both, and that versatility makes them much more useful and worth the additional price.

It's so far from the self-absorbed hipster image you have in your mind, that it makes you look a little out of touch. I've introduced hundreds of iPads into our ecosystem over the last few years. And not to snobby hipsters, but shiny suit executives. If you completely shun Apple these days, you're going to significantly limit yourself in the IT field.

[NewChief]

Originally Posted by KC Fish

It's so far from the self-absorbed hipster image you have in your mind, that it makes you look a little out of touch. I've introduced hundreds of iPads into our ecosystem over the last few years. And not to snobby hipsters, but shiny suit executives. If you completely shun Apple these days, you're going to significantly limit yourself in the IT field.

I'm not in IT, and these were my exact thoughts. Do people really still think that only yuppie starbucks drinkers are rocking macs? That's kind of silly.