Microsoft ditches ARM for Intel with new $499 Surface 3, its latest iPad competitor

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  • Reply 21 of 111
    A tablet. That is no good as a tablet. Rather get an iPad.

    A laptop that's no good as a laptop. Rather get a MacBook

    Actually tried the surface pro 2 for 2 weeks to open my mind to another approach. Was an exercise in frustration.

    Let's get this out of the way the surface is not a workhorse. And ms needs to rethink that pronto.
  • Reply 22 of 111
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Lord Amhran View Post

     



    I saw a few people with their Zunes but more often than not I'd see Microsoft employees with iPods. The Zune always seemed to be a problem in search of a solution.


     

    True - I guess I made it sound like they were all carrying Zunes. I should qualify that to say that I still saw mostly iPods, but I would always see several disheveled nerdboys carrying Zunes when they'd get off at Redmond. I thought it was good they took that much pride in their company, but then again, these are the same nerds that I'd always see out at lunch with their blue badges prominently displayed as if the rest of the world would worship them for ruining the computer industry with their mediocre software.

     

    On a side note, I see the 253 was discontinued about five years ago. I guess that I don't notice those sorts of things now that I work at home :) 

     

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Conrail View Post

     

    We have a Surface Pro at work, and they are nice.  The hardware seems solid and it's the perfect device if you have occasional need for both a laptop and a tablet.


     

    I've actually heard almost-universally good things about them. Even Alex Lindsay who has always blasted Microsoft has praised them. If only using Windows didn't make me want to beat my head against a wall. Of nails. Rusty nails. Pointy-side out.

  • Reply 23 of 111
    I own both a 15" MBPR and a Surface 3 Pro. Hands down, I use my SP3 Pro more. It's a fantastic device. My only complaint is the resolution (it's waaaaay to high for such a small screen). I would prefer the resolution on this new Surface. The new surface seems pretty compelling for consumers, as you get a full blown PC for the price of an iPad. The Surface line is very sturdy too. I accidentally dropped my SP3 on a tile floor from about 5' in the air. I was terrified I'd killed it (I know a Macbook would not survive such a fall) but my SP3 took the it with little more than a ding on the case. No cracks, significant bends or performance issues after the fall. I can't speak to the new Atom's performance, but my i5 SP3 has been able to easily handle everything I've thrown at it, and I'm a power user.

    Ditching RT is the best thing MS could do. It was a neutered OS, and did nothing more than segment the market. I think MS' strategy for the surface line is it's best hardware move since the XBox family.
  • Reply 24 of 111

    Try the SP3.  You might be surprised.  If only they could get a decent appstore.

  • Reply 25 of 111
    sockrolidsockrolid Posts: 2,789member

    Originally Posted by Conrail View Post

     

    We have a Surface Pro at work, and they are nice.  The hardware seems solid and it's the perfect device if you have occasional need for both a laptop and a tablet.


     

    The phrase "damning with faint praise" springs to mind here.

  • Reply 26 of 111
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Lord Amhran View Post

     



    I have to say Win10 looks pretty good actually. I'm certainly not going to jump ship to Windows (although I do dual-boot to Win7 for playing games and some light school work with Word) but this looks YARDS better than Sinofsky's disaster of Win8


     

    Yeah, I'm running Win10 on my SP3.  Love it!  The only thing I don't like about it is the constant updates/changes that they make to the OS with no notification... but that's the price you pay for running a beta OS.

  • Reply 27 of 111
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by sog35 View Post

     

     

    15 posts since 2011.

     

    Blocked.


    So.... since I don't post a lot my opinion is irrelevant?

  • Reply 28 of 111
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by djames4242 View Post

     

     

    Isn't that funny? I used to take the 253 to work (back when my office was in Redmond) and I saw all sorts of minions with their Zunes. I never once saw one in the wild, other than on that bus.




    Been there, done that.  I'm actually on my way back up today.  It's so weird going from being as close as I am to Cupertino and seeing coffee shops all lit up with the glowing Apple logo, to head up there where you'll forget how many people still work for Microsoft.

  • Reply 29 of 111
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tsunami78 View Post

     

    Try the SP3.  You might be surprised.  If only they could get a decent appstore.




    Indeed. Hopefully, with Microsoft's universal apps strategy more apps will be made available for whichever devices run the OS. So far, the good apps are still for the phone only. 

     

    N.b. Many here squirm when the 'opponent' gets the praise it deserve. I wouldn't sweat it. These people are apparently the ones with the issues.

  • Reply 30 of 111
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Benjamin Frost View Post



    Microsoft doesn't get tablets and they never will.

     

    Actually I think they are really nailing it here.

    1) Don't compete head to head with Apple when it comes to mobile.

    2) Don't compete head to head with Apple when it comes to consumer.

    3) Product differentiate.

    4) Establish the brand and build now for the technology that's coming.

     

    When the Surface first came out, I knew they were going to dump ARM/RT at some point.  Now what they have is a slightly underpowered tablet, but it will meet the needs of those who want a PC as a tablet... Something that Apple doesn't offer.  It's a niche market, and personally, I prefer a MacBook Air, but the Surface is hitting a target demographic without going up directly against Apple.

     

    Keep in mind in a couple of years the technology is going to radically change.  While Intel always has a tick-tock product cycle that keeps up with Moore's Law, they shifted gears a while ago to really focus on mobile (which they had ignored).  The results of this effort will be a huge increase in performance and efficiency.  We'll also start seeing 3D flash storage coming online and things like USB-C will have a huge impact as well.  In other words, imagine the Surface being able to meet the PC needs of the majority of people while offering more than all-day battery life, being significantly thinner, and being almost indistinguishable from having a desktop when connected via one single thin reversable cable that also charges the device and can be easily daisy chained to a large monitor, drives, etc...

     

    I have a hard time seeing that as something nobody would want.

  • Reply 31 of 111
    19831983 Posts: 1,225member

    This tablet seems to be quite compelling, for the business market anyway (quite affordable and fully compatible with Windows and Office). The same market Apple is making major inroads into with the iPad. The upcoming iPad Pro should be even more compelling for this market.

  • Reply 32 of 111
    The end goal of the evolution of the Microsoft tablet is a crippled x86 Windows laptop. Good to know.
  • Reply 33 of 111
    This device with Windows 10 could work out very well for Microsoft. Especially when compared against the upcoming $1299 MacBook.
  • Reply 34 of 111

    It sounds like a decent Ubuntu tablet laptop

  • Reply 35 of 111

    Unpleasant interface aside, is the new Surface usable, as sold?  Or slow and sluggish?

  • Reply 36 of 111
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    slurpy wrote: »
    A fucking ATOM running Windows, with only 64GB storage and 2GB RAM? Sounds like a fucking nightmare. Good to know Microsoft has learned nothing. 

    According to some people on forums about the new MacBook, Core-M is the same as Intel Atom.
  • Reply 37 of 111
    It seems this thread is attracting Microsoft shills.
  • Reply 38 of 111
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,384member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by sog35 View Post

     

     

    15 posts since 2007.

     

    Blocked.


     

    I've scanned his posts, and he doesn't seem like a troll, apart from the high Surface enthusiasm. 

     

    However, comparing an i5 to an atom is ridiculous on his part. Windows running on Atom is torture. 

  • Reply 39 of 111
    "Microsoft says the new Atom processor provides users with 10 hours of video playback."

    I thought the MS Slab o' Crapo was designed to create content; not consume it!? Come on, MS, how many minutes will it run a graphics-intensive application before sending up smoke signals and spinning up internal fans to howl like a Dyson vacuum cleaner..?

    No word yet on, "Will it Blend, will it Bend, or [I]how well it will hide that you're getting serious work done on an iPad hidden behind Slab o' Crapo propped up with a crutch..."[/I]
  • Reply 40 of 111
    "Microsoft says the new Atom processor provides users with 10 hours of video playback."

    I thought the MS Slab o' Crapo was designed to create content; not consume it!? Come on, MS, how many minutes will it run a graphics-intensive application before sending up smoke signals and spinning up internal fans to howl like a Dyson vacuum cleaner..?

    No word yet on, "Will it Blend, will it Bend, or how well it will hide that you're getting serious work done on an iPad hidden behind Slab o' Crapo propped up with a crutch..."

    It's actually fanless lol.
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