I hope MS will be still around to launch Win9 because at the moment things are not looking good. Some of their strategies seem decidedly amateurish. Take for example the advertising that focuses on the fact that Surface comes with a kickstand. Seriously? That's the most important thing about it?? And who came up with that amazing name, "Surface"?
Then take the ever-increasing options for the consumer. Do I buy Win8 or WinRT, Metro, or Win8 Pro? Do I need a keyboard for an extra $100 or not? Do I buy an MS manufactured device or one from another manufacturer? Which chipset is better, ARM or Intel? Can I run my Win7 software on the Surface or not? And why should I pay $200-300 more for this than the alternatives (incl. laptops)?
Confused customers don't buy. It's just so much simpler to go for the latest iPad and not have to deal with any of this nonsense.
Take e.g.
this:
The 64GB Windows 8 Pro running Intel will be priced $899 and excludes the touch cover, which retails for around $100.
Compare that to the 64GB iPad from Apple, which is priced at $699. The Android-powered 64GB Samsung Galaxy Tab, meanwhile, comes in at around $889, no keypad required.
The problem for Microsoft here is that the keypad is essential on the Windows 8 Pro edition, because – as Microsoft points out in the supporting blog – Windows 8 Pro will run your existing Windows 7 apps, and those apps won’t be built for touch.
This is not MS-bashing on my part. I genuinely want them to succeed because I've invested into this relationship and I love my software on Win7. But this is increasingly looking desperate. Ballmer has looked like a disaster for quite some time. There must be something seriously wrong with their internal processes if they are not able to bring in more talented managers than the current ones who are confusing customers.
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