Can price cuts and going small save Windows RT?

Microsoft is in the midst of an all-out blitz to save Windows RT, using price cuts and promoting smaller-sized devices. Will that be enough to revive the floundering Windows 8 offshoot, or will Windows RT go the way of Microsoft Bob?
Can Microsoft's price cuts and other promotions save RT? To put it simply: No. People don't want a halfway version of Windows, and device manufacturers don't want to spend money on building a device that won't sell.

Can price cuts and going small save Windows RT? | Computerworld Blogs
 
Well, the trick to saving RT, I believe, is to educate people what's the difference between RT and windows 8.

My first MS hybrid was an RT device. I was pretty happy with it, actually. Most of the criticisms of the RT devices I dare say are invalid, because they demonstrate a gross misunderstanding of what RT is. You really have to try to use it in real life to appreciate how well these devices are compared to android and iOS. People often complain that RT devices don't run legacy apps. When iOS came out, I don't remember anyone complaining that it couldn't run Mac apps.

The reason I think RT has failed isn't because of how capable or incapable the OS is, but because of people's ignorance.

As I was saying, I was pretty happy with my RT device. Then one day I needed to print out something. Was too lazy to drag my ass upstairs to the home office to the PC. So, I tried to connect my RT device to the wireless printer. Says no driver in the list for this printer. Annoyed, I went and plugged in the usb and searched for drivers. Again, none was found. I called Samsung (maker of my printer) tech support. The first tech support guy kept linking me to the windows 8 driver for the printer. I kept telling him I had the RT. He then said something that made my jaw dropped. He said RT and 8 were the same thing, so driver for one should work for the other. I spent about 10 minutes trying to explain to him the differences between RT, mainly the processor architecture. He was unconvinced because after all he's the techie and I was suppose to be the ignorant tech illiterate.

I finally asked to speak to another tech guy. So, he transferred me to someone else. I explain to this second guy the situation and I needed driver for this Samsung printer compiled for RT. He linked me to the windows 8 driver and told me 8 and RT were the same so I could just double click on the exe file. Again, I tried to explain to him the difference between RT and 8 and he kept insisting over the phone that RT and 8 were the same and he was the tech guy between the 2 of us.

I politely thanked him and hung up.

I still needed printing support for my RT device, so I decided to go to MS for help. Couldn't find a number, but I did find an email. So, I emailed MS for help on this. I wrote out a very detailed explanation of what I needed. I know these guys are busy playing video games all day, so I even summarized what I needed in an easy to read table.

Got a reply the next day from an MS tech support. He linked me to the printer driver built for windows 8. I replied reminding him that I had an RT device, not 8. The next reply from him was jaw dropping.

Now, remember that this was coming from an MS tech support, not some backwatered office in Africa.

The MS tech guy replied to me telling me RT was the same as windows 8 and that the exe file he linked me to should work for both RT and 8.

I was speechless, so I wasn't able to formulate a reply. Later that day, I got another reply from him. This time, he apologized for the "misunderstanding" and said he could not find a driver for me built for RT. I think someone must have told him his mistake.

I'm talking about 2 Samsung tech support people and 1 MS tech support. They all insisted that RT and 8 were the same and that apps compiled for one would work in the other. And I was the guy seeking help. Any other person calling in would have been like the blind leading the blind.

RT has no future. Regular people don't know the difference between RT and 8. And tech companies don't know the difference between RT and 8 so there's no manufacturer support for RT. Heck, even MS personnel don't know the difference between RT and 8, so good luck trying to get adequate support for RT.

RT is destined to die a meaningless death because the clowns at MS decided not to educate people properly on what RT is.
 

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I'm talking about 2 Samsung tech support people and 1 MS tech support. They all insisted that RT and 8 were the same and that apps compiled for one would work in the other. And I was the guy seeking help. Any other person calling in would have been like the blind leading the blind.

RT has no future. Regular people don't know the difference between RT and 8. And tech companies don't know the difference between RT and 8 so there's no manufacturer support for RT. Heck, even MS personnel don't know the difference between RT and 8, so good luck trying to get adequate support for RT.

RT is destined to die a meaningless death because the clowns at MS decided not to educate people properly on what RT is.

The only thing that killed Windows RT was M$ naming it Windows just dropping that one word from the name would have cause it to sell better than it did. People expect that if it is named Windows it is suppose to run legacy programs a big M$ mistake naming it Windows RT. Naming it Surface RT would have sold better.
 

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    Around 13 million employes
I'm talking about 2 Samsung tech support people and 1 MS tech support. They all insisted that RT and 8 were the same and that apps compiled for one would work in the other. And I was the guy seeking help. Any other person calling in would have been like the blind leading the blind.

RT has no future. Regular people don't know the difference between RT and 8. And tech companies don't know the difference between RT and 8 so there's no manufacturer support for RT. Heck, even MS personnel don't know the difference between RT and 8, so good luck trying to get adequate support for RT.

RT is destined to die a meaningless death because the clowns at MS decided not to educate people properly on what RT is.

The only thing that killed Windows RT was M$ naming it Windows just dropping that one word from the name would have cause it to sell better than it did. People expect that if it is named Windows it is suppose to run legacy programs a big M$ mistake naming it Windows RT. Naming it Surface RT would have sold better.

Agreed.

Again, I've used RT. It feels great. Much better than iOS and android. Much more responsive on less quality hardware than its android counterpart. If it had gotten the support it deserved, RT might actually took off in an explosive manner.
 

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To a lot of people its an unknown quantity? If it can stick around long enough it may gain some traction.
 

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    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
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    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
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    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
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I have played with it and I think it is a great concept and have decided that my next tablet will be RT. 'Metro' still sucks on everything that isn't a tablet or phone...
 

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    Pair of 750 GB
I have played with it and I think it is a great concept and have decided that my next tablet will be RT. 'Metro' still sucks on everything that isn't a tablet or phone...

The Modern/Metro appeal is very subjective, I actually think it's pretty neat (makes me want to get a touchscreen monitor - but not because I find it difficult with a mouse).

Even if 8 Pro sells way way way more than RT, it still has the same Windows store; then if developers start making apps keeping the number of Pro users in mind it will still benefit RT - and then one day RT will have a reasonable number of apps to be relevant.

If they hadn't used the 'Windows' name it would have certainly avoided a lot of the confusion, and it should have been way cheaper since the beginning itself.
 

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    Windows 8
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    Opera
    Antivirus
    None
What about the stories of 8 inch tablets getting free versions of Office?!? Why do I need to pay every year for mine and others get it for free just because I have a 17 inch all in one????
 

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    Windows 8
What about the stories of 8 inch tablets getting free versions of Office?!? Why do I need to pay every year for mine and others get it for free just because I have a 17 inch all in one????
Because M$ has already suckered you in to Windows 8. LOL
 

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    512 gb ssd
    Other Info
    Around 13 million employes
[h=1]Microsoft's weird plan for boosting tablet sales is born to fail[/h]
Microsoft's two-pronged plan to boost sales of Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets includes cutting costs and including free versions of Office. But it's an oddly conceived strategy. Here's why it's bound to fail.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the price cuts will cover RT tablets as well as full-blown Windows tablets. No details about the exact cuts were revealed.
That part of the plan makes sense. Cut prices and you'll likely gain some market share -- Economic 101. I'm not sure it's a big winner, though. iPads are anything but cheap, and they've sold quite well. The more important part of the equation is offering a product that people want.
Microsoft has included a version of Office Home & Student 2013 on the RT-based Surface. That's done approximately nothing for the struggling RT platform. IDC's most recent survey found that found that in the past quarter, Surface had a miniscule 0.4% of tablet sales, with only 200,000 shipped.
I'm not alone in thinking that Office won't spur sales of Windows 8 tablets. Analysts agree with me. Wes Miller of Directions on Microsoft said to Computerworld about putting Office on small tablets:

Microsoft's weird plan for boosting tablet sales is born to fail | Computerworld Blogs
 

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    512 gb ssd
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    Around 13 million employes
Free versions of Office for small tablets while forcing others to pay yearly for it is going to bite MS in the ass.
 

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Free versions of Office for small tablets while forcing others to pay yearly for it is going to bite MS in the ass.

Maybe not. Most people that I know who use a tablet will then use what they created on the tablet and modify the document on a laptop /PC which will need the full version
 

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    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 640M 2 GB
    Screen Resolution
    1600X900
    Hard Drives
    Pair of 750 GB
You have a point BR. We will have to see how it plays out.

One can use Libre office for most things (probably everything the vast majority are likely to want ) - MS is trying to stop people becoming aware of that. They are also very concerned about Google docs.
 

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    7/8/ubuntu/Linux Deepin
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    PC/Desktop
What about the stories of 8 inch tablets getting free versions of Office?!? Why do I need to pay every year for mine and others get it for free just because I have a 17 inch all in one????
Because M$ has already suckered you in to Windows 8. LOL

:roflmao: Oh wait a second? :doh:
 

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    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
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    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
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    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
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    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
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I'm still trying to understand HOW Office 2013 can be used on the Desktop on an 8 inch screen. Seriously, a piece of copy paper is probably wider than the whole 8 inch tablet itself.

Either that version of Office they're throwing in SPECIFICALLY for 7 or 8 inch tablet PCs is in fact, a WinRT suite, or some SERIOUSLY reworking of the suite to suit that small of a screen. You can't take a Desktop software like that and just shrink it down smaller like that. Ten inches is small enough, smaller? Wow!
 

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    Logitech K750 wireless solar powered keyboard
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    Internet Explorer 11
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    Windows Defender, but I might go back on KIS 2014
Outlook wouldn't be usable for me. Excel would be a pain too. External monitor?
 

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  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
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    PC/Desktop
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    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
I had the Windows RT Surface and love it, and then returned it in five days. With few decent modern apps, and the lockdown on browsers, the options are very limited for its use. Not to mention, change the name. It would be smarter if you renamed your ARM OS to match your phone OS (which means changing your phone OS name as well.) Yea, I know, Apple does that, but you know what, it works! That will remove the confusion in the market. Confusion leads to inaccurate expectations which leads to angry customers which leads Microsoft to where it is today.
 

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    AMD 7350
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    IE10
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    Microsoft Security Essentials
Office is fine to use on a 10 inch screen with it set to touch mode.

Eight inches and smaller however...ehhh...
 

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    Windows 8.1 Pro
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    AMD FX 8320
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    Crosshair V Formula-Z
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    16 gig DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS R9 270
    Screen Resolution
    1440x900
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Seagate Barracuda (starting to hate Seagate)
    x2 3 TB Toshibas
    Windows 8.1 is installed on a SanDisk Ultra Plus 256 GB
    PSU
    OCZ 500 watt
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    A current work in progres as I'll be building the physical case myself. It shall be fantastic.
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    Arctic Cooler with 3 heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K750 wireless solar powered keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Touch Mouse
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, but I might go back on KIS 2014
Why they didn't just settle for Windows Tablet 8 I don't know. I'm not touching RT with a barge pole til I can run the likes of Opera on it. And I'm sure there are countless waiting for things like iTunes!
 

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    Windows 8
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    1920x1080
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    128GB OCZ Vertex 4 SSD
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    Logitech DiNovo Mini
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    BT Infinity 65 Mbps
Why they didn't just settle for Windows Tablet 8 I don't know. I'm not touching RT with a barge pole til I can run the likes of Opera on it. And I'm sure there are countless waiting for things like iTunes!

itunes won't EVER come to Windows RT in the form of a WinRT metro app. apple already suck as it is when it comes to software coding, ESPECIALLY when that means coding on Windows. Don't think twice that they're going to develop for a platform that will beat out the ipad.

Just ask all the android tablet users how their itunes experience is going.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS
    CPU
    AMD FX 8320
    Motherboard
    Crosshair V Formula-Z
    Memory
    16 gig DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS R9 270
    Screen Resolution
    1440x900
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Seagate Barracuda (starting to hate Seagate)
    x2 3 TB Toshibas
    Windows 8.1 is installed on a SanDisk Ultra Plus 256 GB
    PSU
    OCZ 500 watt
    Case
    A current work in progres as I'll be building the physical case myself. It shall be fantastic.
    Cooling
    Arctic Cooler with 3 heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K750 wireless solar powered keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Touch Mouse
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, but I might go back on KIS 2014
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