Surface RT Price Hacked Across The Board, Could Stay

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stevejnb

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They had better keep it there... And make new Surface RT's cost that much. THEN put them on sales on top of that. The product simply isn't compelling to many people at its current iPad-esque price point. The thing isn't even a horrible product, it's just not a compelling product at that price.
 

LORD_ORION

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More likely it's gone to be with Zune...

Nobody likes Metro, and nobody is accepting a walled garden from MS. Especially developers who are abandoning ship.
 

eodeo

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How is winRT better than random Chinese OS that looks like some other OS but has no actual software for itself? Why would anyone buy winRT? Can it do anything else than check email and listen to music?
 

BringMeAnother

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They should indeed empty their inventory. Once the Bay Trail tablets arrive, the Surface RT will be even more irrelevant than it is. At least I'm hoping.
 

BringMeAnother

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I'm curious to know, what random Chinese OS? Why they'd develop their own OS when Android is free?
 

eodeo

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I was referring to the Chinese iPhone copies. They look like an actual iPhone from both exterior and a quick glance at the UI/icons. They can place calls, listen to music... the basics- but have no actual external software to distinguish themselves from the slightly advanced calculator into an actual smartphone category.

They were made with one thing in mind- to look like something they aren't.

I'm pretty sure you can check emails with RT. I doubt their "smart" status, but not that MS implemented the crudest of the basics- like checking email. Also, I've never used outlook, and I dont plan to start now.
 

stevejnb

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eodeo,

The main advantage to Surface RT tablets over Android/iOS is the regular Windows driver support - tens of thousands of USB devices, printers, etc - that Android and other types of machines likely won't have, along with Windows style multi monitor support, along with actual Office and not some half-arsed app. Personally, I feel that an RT device might actually outstrip Android and iOS devices as productivity devices at the same price point. At $350, I'd consider one over an iPad, though I still favour much cheaper Android tablets because of the cost advantage paired with the much more varied app store - clear advantage in everything but straight up productivity.

That being said, if you compare an RT tablet to a full Windows tablet, it's still a clear second best for productivity, and if you want productivity, you generally don't want to compromise.
 

stevejnb

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eodeo,

The main advantage to Surface RT tablets over Android/iOS is the regular Windows driver support - tens of thousands of USB devices, printers, etc - that Android and other types of machines likely won't have, along with Windows style multi monitor support, along with actual Office and not some half-arsed app. Personally, I feel that an RT device might actually outstrip Android and iOS devices as productivity devices at the same price point. At $350, I'd consider one over an iPad, though I still favour much cheaper Android tablets because of the cost advantage paired with the much more varied app store - clear advantage in everything but straight up productivity.

That being said, if you compare an RT tablet to a full Windows tablet, it's still a clear second best for productivity, and if you want productivity, you generally don't want to compromise.
 

eodeo

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Productivity? In what? Word processing? Powerpoint?

I do 3d/vfx and when I'm on the go, its teamviewer, full win x64 or bust for my productivity. I guess if you have a burning need to write a document and feel like android/iOS version of the Office is lacking, RT could be better- even though I seriously doubt that.

I just looked it up- there is a teamviewer for RT. I guess RT does have some software support, then. I'm still not sure why I'd prefer RT over android, even if it wasn't more expensive than say- nexus 7. Even if it was cheaper.

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And drivers... for what? Its a tablet- you cant put in a geforce and be good to go with the driver support. iOS/android support most mice/keyboards. What else is there? Why would you connect an external web cam or printer(?) to a tablet? What good do thousands of drivers supported do? I guess I have a limited imagination since I cant think of a good reason...
 

stevejnb

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Granted, there are different types of productivity, and the kinds of productivity I'm referring to are tied of MS office and similar software suites. Word, Powerpoint, Excel, etc. Productivity isn't solely tied to that though - being able to plug into various devices and have your device work is big. Printers, other monitors, and a whole host of USB devices - this is an area where a profile of Windows drivers has a pretty significant advantage over iOS and especially Android.

Personally, I used an Android tablet (Le Pan II) for a notetaking, document writing and otherwise, device for almost two years, and prior to that an ipod touch for simple note taking. I've tried Officesuite Pro, Documents to Go, and Kingsoft office. All three were problematic copies of MS Office

For me, productivity means hopping from classroom to classroom and having my device quickly and easily plug into a host of different projection devices and monitors and oftentimes printers, with a reliable word processing suite and presentation software. Multitasking is rather important too and, as of Android 4.0, I haven't found any way to get multiple things up on the same screen, whereas it's quite easy in RT.

My comments on productivity are from my personal experience and, even taking away the desktop mode from my Acer Iconia W700, I'd probably still prefer a Windows RT platform to straight up Android for my type of productivity. Both are a joke compared to Windows Pro tablets though.
 

stevejnb

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eodeo,

The main advantage to Surface RT tablets over Android/iOS is the regular Windows driver support - tens of thousands of USB devices, printers, etc - that Android and other types of machines likely won't have, along with Windows style multi monitor support, along with actual Office and not some half-arsed app. Personally, I feel that an RT device might actually outstrip Android and iOS devices as productivity devices at the same price point. At $350, I'd consider one over an iPad, though I still favour much cheaper Android tablets because of the cost advantage paired with the much more varied app store - clear advantage in everything but straight up productivity.

That being said, if you compare an RT tablet to a full Windows tablet, it's still a clear second best for productivity, and if you want productivity, you generally don't want to compromise.
 

ryanrich83

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Windows RT was clearly not very well thought out. They rushed it to market for the holidays while the Surface Pros were being finished. When people use Windows, they expect it to work like Windows - main thing being that it runs regular x86 programs. It is hard to justify paying the same price as an iPad for a device that doesn't offer full x86 support, and with a store that doesn't even come close to the number of apps available with iPad or Android tablets.

The Surface Pros with Windows 8 Pro is what the Surface was supposed to be. I want to get a second gen one with a Haswell CPU... Hopefully they drop the price on those too.
 

stevejnb

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Agreed in part Ryan. The way they went about introduce RT confused the heck out of a lot of people who thought it was, you know, Windows, and not Microsoft's version of an almost pure tablet interface. A lot of people got RT tablets thinking they'd be able to run the things that Windows ran only to find out that it was basically Android/iOS with a different look and a far more spartan app store.
 

Happy Lemming

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I actually bought a Surface RT 32GB with an educational discount, and now I am learning what it will and won't do. It's not a general-purpose computer. It is compact, with good battery life and a great display, and the included Office stuff is convenient. I've found some useful apps that work well. It appears to have all the functionality I need when traveling, so I will leave the laptop at home and see how the Surface performs. I quite like it, at the reduced price.
 

stevejnb

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Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't every RT tablet come with the complete Student edition of Microsoft Office, not just their web apps? Frankly, their web-apps are unreliable as hell... But I do not believe those are all Windows RT tablets come with.
 

back_by_demand

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Someone come up with XBMC for RT and I will buy one right now, as it is I continue to save for the Surface Pro - methinks when I have the cash v.2 with Haswell, thinner and longer battery life will be in the stores - no way will MS give up on this, it has vast amounts of money and lots of patience
 

stevejnb

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I know a lot of people must by now be thinking I'm hired by Acer to post, but... Go to Amazon and run a search for Iconia W700. More or less the same hardware as a Surface Pro depending on the model you get, about $150 cheaper, and you a custom fitted Bluetooth keyboard/stand with it. I've been blown away by my i5 model and I think it's a equivalent machine at a *far* better price when compared to the Surface Pro.
 

w8gaming

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The problem with RT tablet is that an Atom based tablet does everything it can do, have same or better battery life (normally it comes with a dock with additional battery), and can even run x86 applications. And until Microsoft slashes RT price lately, Atom based tablet is selling at about the same price as Surface RT. It is a poorly positioned product with no clear advantages. Another problem is that Microsoft still think Apple is their biggest enemy with their pricing strategy. It is not.
 
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