Microsoft's 128GB Surface Pro sells out within hours

Just hours after Microsoft Surface Windows 8 Pro went on sale Saturday, the 128GB version of the tablet sold out online.

Shoppers for $1000 tablet at the online outlets of Best Buy and Staples, as well as Microsoft's own web store, began seeing "not available" or "out of stock" notices just hours after midnight Eastern Time when the Windows 8 slate went on sale

Source

A Guy

 

[SIW2]

Wonder why MS is in a panic now then.

 

[Ray8]

I actually would prefer to interact with the Desktop with touch. From my toying around with DPI settings on Windows 8 and a touchscreen, that makes a WORLD of a difference with touch input. Targets are just sized up a notch, which is all that you really need quite honestly is that DPI change, maybe changing icon size as well but that's dependent on the person.

Typing with touch on Windows 8 is also what makes it better suited for tablets than 7, that keyboard layout in Windows 8 is honestly the very best touch keyboard on a tablet I've come across to date.

But, if you have a tablet PC running 7 and end up using it more with a mouse and keyboard than touch.....it sounds like some purpose is defeated, no? Also, Windows 8 is just SO much more better on the Desktop than 7. There is Storage Spaces to take advantage of (if you're running Pro on a tablet, you have data redundancy features, on a TABLET!), Hybrid Boot, a revamped Task Manager, Windows Defender, and just overall improvements that makes using Windows 7 almost like using a rotary dial telephone over a keypad phone.

Unfortunately, it just doesn't work that way. As posted in one of the reviews, changing the DPI settings upsets other things, so it's a kludge. This is where Microsoft erred in a big way, they should have allowed Windows 8 to work at any screen resolution and that would have addressed a number of issues. It almost seems that they have acknowledged this in a backhand sort of way, by displaying some things at 150%.

If you're suggesting that using a mouse and keyboard with a tablet is defeating the purpose, can you please ask Microsoft why they produced the click-clack keyboards. Clearly they thought that a keyboard was important, or even essential. But what do they know?

The main issue that just about everyone has with Windows 8 has nothing to do with the underlying OS and the incremental improvements that it has added to the Windows 7 baseline. And, seriously, the examples that you mention in no way affect the average user experience, or would even be evident to the average user. Certainly the click-clack suits in Funky Town would think a Storage Space was in the attic or basement of their house, and a Hybrid Boot was something you could wear to a football match and later to a cocktail party.

 

[BillWindows]

Wonder why MS is in a panic now then.

Because a Fruit Companies toys became popular.

And now it's going to get even worse, every major Newspaper and website is enthralled with what may be Apples entry into the curved screen watch market.

I can't believe that this is major news.

There will be even more people walking into posts and canals.

 

[Ray8]

Gee, I wonder how Microsoft managed to get 92% of the market with nothing worthwhile. Do you realise that Apple once had 16% of the market because of Professionals, they all left because Apple wasn't doing anything for them.

I'm talking about apps, Microsoft seems to have now abandoned that 92%, to some extent with Windows 8, saying they are all wrong. The 92% are not the future, we will create a new future for you, whether you like it or not.

 

[BillWindows]

Gee, I wonder how Microsoft managed to get 92% of the market with nothing worthwhile. Do you realise that Apple once had 16% of the market because of Professionals, they all left because Apple wasn't doing anything for them.

I'm talking about apps, Microsoft seems to have now abandoned that 92%, to some extent with Windows 8, saying they are all wrong. The 92% are not the future, we will create a new future for you, whether you like it or not.

Microsoft has never abandoned anybody, that would be Apple again, that's why the Pros deserted them. If they are deserting people why even allow Windows to run at all, there is virtually nothing you can do on Windows 7 that you can't on Windows 8.

If you don't like the future no one is saying you have to stay with MS, you can go out and buy a nice cheap $3000 MacBook Pro and $1100 128GB iPad. Or put Mint on your dual monitors and run Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Office.

it is their business and I'm pretty sure they would have liked to just patch up Windows 7 every year, but that was never going to happen with Google and Apple sniffing around.

 

[Ray8]

I guess that's why so many are trying out Windows 8 and going back to Windows 7. The people want what they know, like and are comfortable with. No one like to be forced into situations that they don't like or want. But hey! What do people know, they're just dumb computer users that can't see the future.

 

[BillWindows]

And here as well.

.



I think the following seems to be appropriate here.


. We Seek Out People Like Us to Avoid ChangeBecause new information bothers our brains, we tend to find friends and form groups that reinforce our beliefs—whether they're correct or not. When many people agree, it's easy to discount the opinions of others in the face of undeniable logic. This occurs because of a phenomenon known as the illusion of asymmetric insight. David McRaney, writer of the blog and book about self-delusion You Are Not So Smart, explains:




The illusion of asymmetric insight makes it seem as though you know everyone else far better than they know you, and not only that, but you know them better than they know themselves. You believe the same thing about groups of which you are a member. As a whole, your group understands outsiders better than outsiders understand your group, and you understand the group better than its members know the group to which they belong.




This lovely phenomenon gives you cause to discount conflicting information as bias and stick with what you know. Essentially, you attack the possibility of change because you think you know better than everyone else and have the friends to back you up.

 

[Ray8]

Looks like Bill has been on the turps, posting that here, there and everywhere (whatever it means). It sounds like an acknowledgement of defeat and he shall now watch all three screens of his iPods at once, contemplating farts, facebook and felines (LOL cats).

 

[BillWindows]

Looks like Bill has been on the turps, posting that here, there and everywhere (whatever it means). It sounds like an acknowledgement of defeat and he shall now watch all three screens of his iPods at once, contemplating farts, facebook and felines (LOL cats).

Read the first line a couple of times, it'll come to you, but then you also have to read the rest.

 

[Ray8]

Looks like Bill has been on the turps, posting that here, there and everywhere (whatever it means). It sounds like an acknowledgement of defeat and he shall now watch all three screens of his iPods at once, contemplating farts, facebook and felines (LOL cats).

Read the first line a couple of times, it'll come to you, but then you also have to read the rest.

I read all of it and my 'whatever it means' was sarcasm in lieu of 'what a load of crap'. Or more to the point, 'what a load of self-serving crap'. Take the reverse, and you're it.

 

[steveb]

Photoshop and Autocad on an 11 inch tablet sounds a real joy.

 

[pparks1]

One thing I do believe is that the Surface Pro is better than anything that's been done to date. It might not be 100% perfect but then neither is the opposition.

I think it more accurate to say that the Surface Pro is better for you than anything done to date thus far. I think there are many who might prefer a smaller form factor, lighter weight, longer battery life, etc. You seem to want portable Windows. Nothing wrong with that either, but it doesn't mean the Windows device is the best thing ever made across the board.

That's why I have a typecover case and a wireless mouse, for when I'm using the tablet as a PC.

And I guess for me, I rarely would use the tablet as a tablet and would always be using it as a PC. Just visiting this site would be a nightmare on a tablet unless I had a keyboard and mouse. I WAS on my phone, but after seeing all of the responses that I wanted to quote and comment on, I put my phone away and grabbed my laptop because it's the only way I could have efficiently made this post.

I don't see anything (or, didn't ... I'm not on Win8 anymore) in the Windows App store that can touch certain iPad programs I have like "ForeFlight" (a pilots charting & navigation program). With my iPad, paper charts and approach plates have been rendered obsolete.

You have hit the nail on the head. I don't think many Windows folks get the very specialized App support of the iPad. If you are just using the iPad to surf the web or read your email, then it's probably nothing special. But the fact that the iPad device is more or less the "universal standard" means you can damn well believe you will get some very specialized app support. I do some audio work on the side, running mixing boards and such...and YEP...there are iPad apps that allow you to remotely run the front of house boards or monitor boards while standing on stage working with the musicians. I attend some audio classes every week and there are about 15 of us who regularly attend. Most have MacBooks, iPad's and iPhones. Some have all 3, with them, every week. I'm the only one there who only brings an Android phone. I take my notes using a pen and a notepad.

I've got 3 iPads, I don't see anything really fantastic about them, they crash more than my Android tablet, Apps crash, Safari used to crash numerous times per day, WiFi dropouts, slowdowns for no reason at all etc. Its not because there's anything wrong with a specific iPad it happens to all 3.

Wonders to myself why you have 3 iPads. I know a lot of people who use iPads daily and I don't hear them complaining of this level of problems with them. I've been in many classes and trainings where people run the slideshows and such from their iPads and things have run very smoothly.

I don't mind the iPad, but I don't think I'll be buying anymore Apple stuff in the future, it's not that good.

That is why i have never purchased an Apple product myself. There always seems to be a better product, that fits me better and almost always costs less.

I actually would prefer to interact with the Desktop with touch. From my toying around with DPI settings on Windows 8 and a touchscreen, that makes a WORLD of a difference with touch input.

Well, I know that YOU would. But you are different. As it stands today, personally I don't want touch on a desktop at all. It only slows me down. Perhaps down the road a few years when things have changed, it will be better. But we aren't even close today for me to personally want to touch. Even after spending a couple of weeks setting up All in One touchscreen systems, from both HP and Acer, I can honestly say that they all left me disappointed. But I remember you practically drooling all over yourself after playing with the AiO's at Best Buy..so clearly we have different responses to the same technology.

That's because YOUR thinking of a tablet is the one that apple wants to you think of: low powered, long battery life, and forces you to use different and multiple devices.

I'm thinking about any tablet that I have ever used. I've had to setup iPad's (both full size and mini) at work, I've used Android tablets at work (nexus 7, samsung tab 7's and 10's). I've used Blackberry Playbooks at work (my coworker is a huge Blackberry fan and he has a couple of them), I've used Windows 7 tablets in the office (even the cheap chinese knockoffs)....and they all leave me feeling frustrated and annoyed.

And I don't think multiple devices are necessarily bad. For example, why in the world would i ever want to use a surface pro as a book reader? It's HEAVY (compared to my kindle), the backlight is fatiguing (compared to a kindle paperwhite), it will need to be charged every 5 hours (compared to 8 weeks with my kindle), it's noisy (compared to my Kindle), and it's expensive (compared to my Kindle). Having a Surface Pro to replace a Kindle would be an absolute awful proposition if you ask me.

Wonder why MS is in a panic now then.

Yes sir. They are certainly scrambling.

Photoshop and Autocad on an 11 inch tablet sounds a real joy.

It's a matter of "it could be done", but I don't think many would actually do it.

 

[Max Peck]

I agree with your comments Max, especially with apps. Apple, especially, has consolidated its hold in a lot of professional and non-professional environments, aviation and medicine to name just two. Microsoft has always struggled to get developers on side to produce anything worthwhile. One of the things that I use my tablet for is off-road navigation and none of the major software providers cater for off-road, or on-road navigation on Windows; however, they all support Apple and Android.

Microsoft can click-clack and play Funky Town all they like, but they really need to separate the funk from the functional.

Microsoft has always been stronger in the enterprise markets and with desktop O/S software. Sometimes, honestly, I wonder why some companies just can't be content with the market they are in. They have to try and attack everything. It would have done Microsoft no harm to have simply said "Hey ... we're a PC software company and will continue to be the best at that and in the enterprise", but no ... they had to go try to take on Apple where Apple excels. I think Microsoft is in the middle of an identity crisis.

I swear by Windows as a desktop O/S. For heavy data-intensive and professional software it can't be touched. As a vendor of tablet software? Not so much.

-Max

 

[Max Peck]

I've got 3 iPads, I don't see anything really fantastic about them, they crash more than my Android tablet, Apps crash, Safari used to crash numerous times per day, WiFi dropouts, slowdowns for no reason at all etc. Its not because there's anything wrong with a specific iPad it happens to all 3.

I believe the main problem with iPads is Apple, they've got the worst software engineers on the planet. Every time they bring out an update something else goes wrong. As far as Apps go, Windows will end up with a lot more than Apple. There are a lot of good apps on the iPad but there's also a lot of rubbish. If Surface and Windows 8 start to take off developers will be jumping over the top of each other trying to get Apps ready.

I don't mind the iPad, but I don't think I'll be buying anymore Apple stuff in the future, it's not that good.

Interesting. I've found the iPads and iPhones very reliable. Perhaps the mix of applications.

As for PC, I can't imagine dumping a Windows box for a Mac. Even if it was "better" (as Apple fanboys will say) I can't see it, nor will I dump thousands of my investment in PC-related development tools and other things just so I can have an Apple-minted PC.

-Max

 

[steveb]

I agree Max. I have an iPhone and iPad. But all my computers and servers are Windows.
Microsoft are not innovators and have failed every time they have tried that route, what they do brilliantly is to refine others innovation (and buy up and suppress potential competitors). They should stick to doing what they do best producing server and workstation OSs and the back office systems to support it. They don't understand tablets, phones or the mass consumer market and should leave well alone.

 

[Chrono]

$1000 for a tablet? Eh...

Granted, I haven't looked into the specs or anything in this variation of the Surface, but that much for a Tablet is just, I can't comprehend buying something like that.

 

[BillWindows]

. Wonders to myself why you have 3 iPads. I know a lot of people who use iPads daily and I don't hear them complaining of this level of problems with them. I've been in many classes and trainings where people run the slideshows and such from their iPads and things have run very smoothly.

Originally Posted by BillWindows
I don't mind the iPad, but I don't think I'll be buying anymore Apple stuff in the future, it's not that good.

The reason I have 3 iPads is for travelling, I also have 3 Netbooks. Every time I go overseas, I buy the lightest travelling companion I can find. I have to justify them to my wife each time, I just say it will save us more money, because they're faster and easier or lighter. But they really do save me money, by looking up cheap flights hotels etc.

People always rubbish Netbooks, but they have saved me heaps of money, and I know who looks more stupid at an Airport someone with a 17" Laptop or me with a 10" Netbook. People call them cheap plastic crap, yet I've never had any problems with them, yet my iPads crash quite often.

I wouldn't use a Surface as an E Reader either, but then I don't use any of my tablets as a reader, I have a Kindle for that. Casual reading yes books no.

Look I know it sounds as if I say my iPads crash all day, they don't, but they do crash more frequently than anything else I've owned. The crashes aren't that bad, same as on Android, an app crashes, you start again, just a few seconds.

As far as typing on tablets, I'm sitting here with my iPad in one hand typing with one finger, it's amazing how fast you get. If I have to do a resume or something naturally it's the PC or Netbook.

 

[BillWindows]

$1000 for a tablet? Eh...

Granted, I haven't looked into the specs or anything in this variation of the Surface, but that much for a Tablet is just, I can't comprehend buying something like that.

128GB iPad same price if not more by the time it's usable.

 

[BillWindows]

I agree with your comments Max, especially with apps. Apple, especially, has consolidated its hold in a lot of professional and non-professional environments, aviation and medicine to name just two. Microsoft has always struggled to get developers on side to produce anything worthwhile. One of the things that I use my tablet for is off-road navigation and none of the major software providers cater for off-road, or on-road navigation on Windows; however, they all support Apple and Android.

Microsoft can click-clack and play Funky Town all they like, but they really need to separate the funk from the functional.

Microsoft has always been stronger in the enterprise markets and with desktop O/S software. Sometimes, honestly, I wonder why some companies just can't be content with the market they are in. They have to try and attack everything. It would have done Microsoft no harm to have simply said "Hey ... we're a PC software company and will continue to be the best at that and in the enterprise", but no ... they had to go try to take on Apple where Apple excels. I think Microsoft is in the middle of an identity crisis.

I swear by Windows as a desktop O/S. For heavy data-intensive and professional software it can't be touched. As a vendor of tablet software? Not so much.

-Max

Theres no way any company can just sit back in this day and age, look at Nokia, RIM, Sony, LG etc, innovate or die.

When I first got my iPads I couldn't believe how much they crashed, especially Safari. Like I said Apple sucks at software, loot at iMaps and look on the net, the forums are full of people with problematic iPhones and iPads, Macs etc. Funny thing is you'll never hear a fanboy say anything bad about them. They just work.

I'm a bit of a tech nut so I can easily see what goes on around the place, I can tell you now, Microsoft has no alternative, it has to keep trying something new or get left behind.

Oh and I agree the iPad has some awesome Apps, for me Flights Plus is absolutely amazing and there are plenty of others, but Android is not that far behind.

 

[SIW2]

You might think MS would have gone about it it sensibly, then.

I have a theory as to why this whole thing is such a mess.