Surface RT vs. iPad: a Comparison 357
First time accepted submitter thetechblock writes "On Tuesday, with the release of pricing and pre-orders for the new Surface RT tablets, Twitter exploded with comparisons to the iPad. So, I decided to put together a little comparison chart to contrast two equivalent models." The comparison is interesting, but note the source; you can discount the conclusions of writer Jeff Blankenburg by as much as you want for his role as "developer evangelist" for Microsoft.
Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
Wake me up when there is a review by someone that isn't on either Apple or Redmond's payroll. This was nothing more than an advertisement.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Funny)
Wake me up when comments on Slashdot stories about Microsoft products are not filled with 90% snarky drivel.
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Try neowin? It is the anti slashdot [neowin.net] of the internet.
Of course since it is a polar opposite of slashdot, you see those who criticize METRO as flamebait and corrected as it is modern which is strange after being here. As well as posts saying Wahoo I can't wait for this Windows 8 tablet!
I read this as well as neowin because I figured the truth is somewhere in between.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
So you're saying, try reading an incredibly biased website? At least slashdot is neutral and the issue is trolls, neowin is explicitly pro microsoft.
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I'm sorry did you say neutral? Even if Microsoft discovered the cure for cancer and released it for free, /. would still find a way to put an evil spin on it.
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But of course. You see, Microsoft was only able to find the cure for cancer through their ill-gotten gains by way of anti-competitive, innovation stifling practices that have held back computing and Free Software. Why, were it not for Microsoft, the cure for cancer would have been found sooner! And cheaper! And it's be better because the source would be available. /me sighs.
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I for one would rather die than receive a cure that isn't GPL licenced.
Re:Yawn or the Cure for Cancer (Score:5, Interesting)
Actually, we've had the cure for cancer for almost a decade now.
Basically, it involves heating the cells 1 degree F internally.
That takes care of 50 percent of all human cancers.
We also have cancer-targeting ligands that allow us to provide docking receptors for targeted drug delivery, have binding tags that add phosphorescent snippets to cancer cells so we can locate any missed cancers during surgery (we actually turn out the lights and the cancer glows in the dark, it's way cool), and we have remote blood sugar measuring with wristwatch devices.
But human trials take a lot longer than you think, and we have to start with mice, which we squish flat between plates to measure cancer growth and then chop open at the end. And that makes you all squeamish. But it works.
Now .. you were saying?
Re:Yawn or the Cure for Cancer (Score:5, Informative)
Long involved biochemical reason why. Basically, the easiest way to kick in the apotosis chain is to heat the internal cell temp by approx 1 F. Heating to 1 F kills circa 98 pct cancer cells and impacts 2 pct non-cancer cells. Heating to 4 F kills 100 pct but kills 20 pct non-cancer cells, which causes organ failure and terminal death for person.
Methods for doing this vary. Trials underway right now.
Science never sleeps, it just doesn't always get attention when it says stuff, cause people get distracted by useless things like football and celebrity weddings.
Good point re fevers. Note risk factors in medical science for very old or very young in running fevers. Much higher than for 20-60 yo. Sadly, cancers crop up later in life.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Interesting)
Slashdot is extremely biased. But that is not a bad thing if you are into Unix and computer science. I thought Slashdot was moderate 10 years ago before I turned more conservative in my views and warmed up to Microsoft as I started working more and more in corporate area. MS and its products really did blow 10 years ago. Today they make sense in certain scenarios. Windows 7 is ok. Notice I did not refer to it as great :-)
Anything with MS is bashed galore here and I have been accused all sorts of names for stating why I switched back to MS Office from LibreOffice as an example.
Neowin is no different. It is filled with those who like Microsoft and those who are neutral as well. I see Android users on there too bash the surface with a few surface trolls go at it back and forth. Nothing like here on slashdot. Hairyfeet is the only user I know who does not get modded to -1 when defending Windows over Linux but he is an exception.
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I don't believe /. is neutral. There has been a very anti-MS bend here for over a decade. I was among the crowd back then, but now I think MS's monopoly has been lifted, and I think they're wising up (mostly, not completely). Here, if you actually praise something about MS, you get a very large torrent of "you shill" posts. Hell, look at people here bitching about Win RT based systems having locked BIOSes. It turns out, it's a non-issue for a couple of reasons: One, linux distros can receive a key tha
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Err....not sure why you're trying to compare how the US is to the rest of the world....we ARE talking about the US on a US
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Err....not sure why you're trying to compare how the US is to the rest of the world....we ARE talking about the US on a US centric site after all.
Another walled garden? It's Jailbreak time!
Once MS develops good products (Score:3)
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Mistake #1:
He compares it to 32 GB iPad, yet fails to mention that Windows and Office alone eat up about 12GB. So in reality, Surface is 20 GB [reddit.com] and not 32.
Obvious shill is obvious.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
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Remember, apps on the Windows RT are the metro variety, which are very light. Even on my desktop install, which has the full Office Suite, Adobe CS 6 (Photoshop, Illustrator, Indesign, Premiere), Matlab, Visual Studio, and a couple games I'm only using 19GB in my Program Files directory. I have about 65 apps installed in Windows 8 and the grand total space utilized by them is 1.5 GB. These include the dozen or so apps installed by default, which may be included in the 12GB nu
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Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
And nobody wants to have to add and remove cards all the time...
Absolutely. I would much rather to delete my music and movies, or uninstall apps so that I can free up space for something new. Inserting a microSD card is just so inconvenient.
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I don't know about most people, but I'd like to put movies, music, and documents on my tablet. That totals for me about 50GB
I have more music than will fit on an iPad but it's irrelevant since I use iTunes Match, and can play any of it at any time. Same thing for many TV shows I bought on iTunes.
Movies I only put on a few at a time, and can easily remove them... I'd have to be managing them on SD cards also. If I really felt the need I'd buy a portable HD with WiFi sharing I could just play movies from o
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
Mistake #1: He compares it to 32 GB iPad, yet fails to mention that Windows and Office alone eat up about 12GB. So in reality, Surface is 20 GB [reddit.com] and not 32.
Obvious shill is obvious.
The 20 gb size is for windows 8 pro for intel, there are no numbers yet on how bit the windows RT OS is yet.
Close to fair (Score:2)
And if he compared it to the 16GB iPad that would not have been a fair comparison because the Surface has a lot more storage. The 32GB iPad does not have 32GB of usable storage either.
The 32GB iPad has about 30GB free for data. The OS takes up only around 1GB.
So the 16GB iPad would have (to be conservative) 14 GB free for user data. That's quite a lot of space, it can hold a large number of apps/books/movies. Since a lot of people will not not need more than that, why not compare the lowest end models si
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Well, here's what my 16GB iPhone says:
Capacity: 13.5GB
I don't have a 32GB, but the parent's estimates don't seem to be too off. Of course, it's important to note that Apple reports size (in OS X, at least; not sure about iOS) in base 10, not binary. This makes the capacity reported by the OS and the capacity "guaranteed" by the manufacturers in agreement; unfortunately, other OSs use binary, so you see some discrepancy there.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
Am I missing something, or did he not even have the unit to review?
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
This was once pretty standard fare for pro-Microsoft journalists. I remember a year before Windows 95 came out that one of the Microsoft-friendly magazines published an article on Chicago extolling its virtues, with pictures showing how great it was, but with a tiny caption indicating that it was an artist's rendering. The whole article, and several like it had but one purpose, and that was dissuade people from moving to alternatives (mainly OS/2, which supported Win16 apps by this point) while Microsoft fought like hell to make a Win32 OS actually work.
It's almost the exact opposite approach to Apple, which uses its veils of secrecy, with the odd fringe lifted ever so slightly, or the odd device "accidentally" left at a bar, to build up anticipation.
Which one is better, we'll see. But it's pretty clear now that Microsoft's competitor right now isn't going to be the iPad, it's going to be the iPad Mini. Which device do you suppose will have long lines waiting to grab said device on release?
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
At least the magazines had the excuse of being written a month before they actually got delivered... this guy is running a frigging blog and his "comparison" involves reading down spec sheets and accessory lists. And he dismisses "almost no apps" and "no accessories" and "inferior screen" as not really being that important. And then the really strange part is his assumption that people will use this for Office apps? Is that what people are doing with tablets?
I've never understood the appeal of the tablets, so I don't really feel like I have a device to "root" for. My wife wanted a Kindle Fire HD, so we got one. I played with it for a few hours and she turned it on once, I think. I asked her why she made me get it and she said "to play videos for the kids in the car". Alrighty, then - glad she didn't ask for an iPad...
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I'm somewhat the same. I have my iPhone, which I do a lot of casual surfing on, and I use it as an eReader, and the size doesn't bother me too much (I'm now halfway through my reread of the Game of Thrones series, so as an eReader it works okay). But for any heavy lifting when I'm on the road, I have a cheap second hand Acer netbook I bought on eBay for $100. I can type documents, answer email, do remote administration on our servers, and it sure is more effective than trying the same on a tablet.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Interesting)
And then the really strange part is his assumption that people will use this for Office apps? Is that what people are doing with tablets?
It's a little backward to say that no one uses office-type software on tablets, when to date office-type software on tablets has been universal trash. I've been waiting specifically for something like surface to come along. Sure it's not ideally suited for touch (I argue that office applications can never be suited for touch; by their very nature they are optimized for keyboard+mouse), but the ability is there.
When I'm traveling on business, I can use full office to make light edits with touch to documents and know those changes will be 100% compatible with my colleagues working at home. When I'm stationed in the hotel, I can connect the Surface to the hotel TV and a keyboard+mouse and I have a full office suite right there. iPad cannot do this, and it's a killer feature of the Surface for me and those similarly situated.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
When I'm stationed in the hotel, I can connect the Surface to the hotel TV and a keyboard+mouse and I have a full office suite right there.
While that idea does scream "Neato!" in my head, when I think about it a little longer, it is absurd. By the time you carry around keyboard, connectors, and Surface - wouldn't you be better off with a small laptop? And then you wouldn't need to stress over whether or not you can actually jack in to the hotel TV or whether it will be in a convenient spot. Something like a Macbook Air (2.4lbs) or 3lb Ultrabook is a bit larger than a tablet, but not significantly larger than tablet+keyboard+cover+connection cables and adapters, and a lot less unwieldy.
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If you have to play Angry Birds with visible pixels, it makes baby Jesus quite irate.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Funny)
I look forward to a comparison of Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, as presented by Karl Rove.
Two equivalent models (Score:5, Insightful)
How about this for two equivalent models:
iPad 32GB with 2560x1536 pixels : $599
4xMicrosoft Surface 32GB tablets to yield a combined >2560x1536 pixel count : $1996
---
iPad looks like a much better deal to me.
Or, how about we just compare them the way a consumer will:
cheapest iPad: $499
cheapest Microsoft Surface: $499
"The iPad has a nicer screen but the Surface comes with more storage (32GB vs. 16GB). The iPad probably works better and has more apps--decision, iPad."
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"...there was unbiased info if you chose to look for it."
Translation: "...he included facts in his comparison."
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I don't get the "I want usb2 on my tablet"... I used to be a tablet skeptic until I actually used an iPad, and the point of a tablet, it being Android, iPad, Windows 8, ... is that it is portable. Not that you could attach things to it. I have an iPad, bought a 'hdmi' adapter, but found out I rarely used it, it was not practical to have a cable attached to it. Got myself a $99 AppleTV and now stream everything over WiFi. Same for printers, keyboards, ... I simply don't want any wires, which covers almost al
Re:Yawn (Score:4)
There are many uses for USB on the tablet.
One is that it lets you connect your other devices to it. For example, your camera or smartphone to dump photos (yeah, cloud etc... now try it while travelling where you don't have data without roaming for insane money).
The other is additional data storage. USB stick with movies for when you want to watch one. Or even a USB hard drive if you really have a lot of that stuff. Obviously you wouldn't hold it in your hands then, but you wouldn't normally do that when watching a movie, anyway.
Finally, it's the ability to connect a mouse and turn it into a laptop-like device. This can be handy when you want to use it for some work that calls for a quick & precise pointing device, like editing a spreadsheet.
Re:Some thoughts from an iPad user. (Score:5, Interesting)
First of all, I do have an iPad. And an Android tablet. So I'm not talking hypotheticals here, but basing it on my own experiences using them.
If you want to store more photos, why don't you get a bigger SD card for your camera. At $700/64GB the iPad makes for a very expensive SD card replacement, if that's actually the role you've envisioned for it.
I did not suggest to store photos from your camera on your tablet. The idea is to view the photos from your camera on your tablet, especially when you want to show them to someone else.
It's a lot like the keyboard dock (which Apple no longer sells) in that regard. Once you use the iPad, you really see that there's no sense attaching a keyboard to it.
That is true, but it's because iPad is plainly not designed for use with a keyboard (much less a mouse!). It gives you the very basic capabilities, like entering text in textboxes, but you still have to rely heavily on touch. Consequently, few apps are designed to use the keyboard to its full extent when it's there.
On the other hand, something like Android fares much better, because Google has actually taken care to promote keyboard support throughout the OS - there are many useful keyboard shortcuts, like switching apps or keyboard layouts, and browser has a bunch of its own as well (e.g. Ctrl+L to activate the address bar). They also give you a real mouse cursor when you have mouse or a trackpad connected, which makes it possible to do some precision pointing where it matters. Now, there are still few third-party apps that are similarly attentive, simply because few Android devices come with a convenient arrangement to be used with mouse+keyboard, but those that do are indisposable (e.g. a VNC/RDP client that understands both).
Win8 is designed to be used for convertible devices from the get go. So when you attach the keyboard (and, to remind, it also has a trackpad), it's a fully supported use case throughout the OS - and don't forget that it has the classic desktop, too. Much easier for things like file management in Explorer, or when you have to surf that website with Flash that wants hover. Or Office, which is probably the biggest deal. Even more importantly, because it is, essentially, the "standard configuration" for Win8 tablets, all third-party apps that are published to the Store will take it into account, and will be designed to be not only touch-friendly, but also keyboard-friendly.
If you don't get my point, my suggestion to you would be your own: try it. Find a store that has Asus Transformer (an Android tablet with a keyboard/trackpad dock that makes it look like a laptop) on display, and see how it works compared to your iPad.
Re:Yawn (Score:5, Insightful)
If you require an external HD then you are using your tablet wrong regardless of the make or model. Get yourself a laptop and save yourself some grief. As for the HID stuff, most tablets have bluetooth and you don't have to fight the cables when trying to prop up your tablet in the field.
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Odds are it's someone trolling. Of course, we may never know for sure...
Add a comparison of the nexus 7 product line (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm thinking the nexus line is more comparable to the surface tablet, mostly since no itunes.
I'm somewhat leery of continued support from Microsoft given their history of Plays For Sure, Zune...
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The Zune failed because it was much too late to the market. It came into the market right when iPod adoption was near peak. While iPods are still popular there are no longer as big as they use to be. The Zune was an attempt to make a copy of the iPod at the same price. While you may say that with the surface. The fact that it is using Windows 8 (A desktop level OS?) means it may fill the void about software.
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The fact that it is using Windows 8 (A desktop level OS?) means it may fill the void about software.
Except that Windows RT can't run x86 Windows apps since it uses an ARM processor.
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The fact that it is using Windows 8 (A desktop level OS?) means it may fill the void about software.
Except that Windows RT can't run x86 Windows apps since it uses an ARM processor.
Yes and I have yet to see anything useful released on the Surface Pro to know how things would work with a full-function OS on a tablet.
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That is simply, factually, incorrect. Win8, including Windows RT, supports sideloading. It's free and can be enabled via a simple command in Powershell. Third-party software must be packaged as .appx bundles, but it doesn't have to be approved for distribution in the app store. In fact, one explicit use case for unlocking Windows RT devices in this manner is to allow installing corporate or other organization-internal apps.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/apps/Hh974578.aspx [microsoft.com]
Android and iOS support sideloading too. However, your average Joe user will not understand that or be capable of it. The fact that you would have to go to the PowerShell is even worse - since now you're doing things that even most Windows Programmers don't do - e.g. it's there for the corporates not your average user.
So what replaces Pocket PC now? (Score:2)
The Zune like was discontinued
With the demise of both Pocket PC and Zune, what pocket-size product line does Microsoft have that isn't priced to be subsidized by a 24-month cellular voice and data contract?
No keyboard with the Surface? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:No keyboard with the Surface? (Score:5, Informative)
All I got from this article is that once you add in the cost of the Surface's most notable feature, it costs $20 - $30 more than an equivalent iPad.
Except that it's no longer equivalent unless you add the same feature to the iPad which will cost at least $20-$30 for comparable quality?
But I thought the most notable feature of the tablet was that it runs MS Word/Excel/Powerpoint (it will cost your $30 to get equivalent software on the iPad) -- I don't know why you'd get the MS tablet if you weren't interested in running MS software.
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Don't forget that the Office license is only a student one. You need to spend more money if you want to use it to do office work. Blankenberg and most reviews never mention this fact.
"What this means is users who purchase Office 365 ProPlus, Office 65 Small Business Premium, Office Midsize Business or Office 365 Enterprise -- i.e., one of the "New Office" deliverables coming in November; Office Standard/Professional Plus 2013; or have a volume licensing contract with Microsoft with commercial-use license co
Luls (Score:2)
Yep, everyone is going to buy a 40 dollar screen cover, and 30 dollars of Office apps.
Joke article (Score:5, Insightful)
That 'article' is a joke - of course Surface comes out on top - when 'reviewed' by the guy who wrote the book on Windows Phone 8.
It's also funny - I recall the exact same argument over quantity vs. quality of applications back in the 80's when Apple were the underdog. Seems like MS can't change their habit of... recycling other peoples' ideas.
I also especially like the sign-off... "It’s time for all of you, my faithful readers, to tell me why I’m wrong"... well, we might if there was ANY option to comment on the page.
So, why are Slashdot running this Surface ad under the guise of an article?
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So, why are Slashdot running this Surface ad under the guise of an article?
1. Product placement
2. Page views for a flamebait article. Any Surface vs iPad article would get eyeballs, but one that is written by a Microsoft guy and avoids any actual comparison of the products while declaring the Surface superior, well, that's guaranteed to bring out the comments.
Multi-User (Score:2)
It's got Office and that's good enough for some (Score:2, Interesting)
10 years ago, people were paying £450 for a full Office software suite, so the idea of spending an equiv
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10 years ago, people were paying £450 for a full Office software suite, so the idea of spending an equivalent amount for Office on a tablet isn't that much of a dealbreaker when you consider it.
Its not 10 years ago. In the modern world have a plethora of cheap and free on-line and off-line competent Office suites.
Re:It's got Office and that's good enough for some (Score:4, Insightful)
Just wait until you try to open an Office document that uses a font outside the small subset of fonts included with the Surface. Hell, just opening a PPT on any laptop other than the one it was created on often requires last minute editing to get everything on the screen.
Don't be mean! (Score:2)
Is this Microsoft's attack on the App Store? (Score:3, Insightful)
Is this Microsoft's attack on the App Store?
"When I hear about 600,000 apps, I’m just in awe. As I’ve said many times before, however, I don’t think it’s the right number for comparison. Nobody is using more than a couple dozen applications on their device."
Even If I don't count the many games and educational apps my kid use I still see many more than a couple dozen apps that I used in the last week on my ipad.
Also I don't think hooking a mouse to a tablet is a great feature for surface. It just shows me Microsoft doesn't know how people use tablets. Perhaps they should goto a coffee shop and look at all the people using there competitors tablets. the keyboard can make sense if you type large emails or even do word processing, but I would guess most don't use physical keyboards enough to need to purchase one.
People who buy a Surface for Office (Score:2)
the keyboard can make sense if you type large emails or even do word processing, but I would guess most don't use physical keyboards enough to need to purchase one.
This tablet includes a copy of Microsoft Office software. Microsoft apparently thinks people who buy it for Office will use a keyboard enough.
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Having never seen one in person, I wonder how fast you can really type on those covers. If they will be as good as a traditional keyboard or the speed most people can get will be somewhere inbetween a normal keyboard and the virtual screen keyboards all tablets have.
Re:People who buy a Surface for Office (Score:5, Interesting)
32 GB != 32 GB (Score:2)
The problem with comparing the 32 GB Surface to the 32 GB iPad is that you also need to factor in how much space Windows 8 RT takes compared to iOS. My understanding is that iOS takes considerably less space.
Also, some of us are not interested in Office.
In addition, some of us are not interested in beta testing a 1.0 product that costs, at a minimum, $500. Waiting until at least version 2.0 seems wise.
Plus, let's wait to see how Windows 8 RT performs in the real world. iPad performance is already a known qu
MS still hasn't answered the main question (Score:5, Insightful)
Why would I want to buy a Windows tablet?
That's it. If they can come up with a good answer for that, they'll be able to sell them. Thus far, they haven't been able to. "Windows" itself is a negative brand name that carries a ton of baggage from crapware infested poor quality OEM PCs, and not something that makes people feel good about buying. The market tolerates Windows because it doesn't have a choice, it doesn't love Windows.
Only problem is that in the tablet space, the market *does* have a choice. There's a clear leader, and it's not Windows. Why would I want Windows instead of the market leader? A lower resolution screen and Office are not exactly compelling selling features for home users.
Re:MS still hasn't answered the main question (Score:4, Informative)
Office built in for free
Side by side application multitasking
Multi-user operating system
Expandable storage
More peripheral device support
More manufacturers at a variety of price points and options
More form factors (foldable hybrid, detachable screen, pure tablet, etc.)
Open file system for managing and organizing files
Networking for connecting to other PCs, transferring files, serving media, etc.
Comparison? Sure... (Score:2)
One is a popular device with millions of users and thousands of software titles. Another is essentially vaporware.
Let's wait till *each* proves itself in real world before making any other "comparisons".
subject (Score:4, Interesting)
"Ever wish you could charge your phone with your iPad?"
No. I can charge my phone with my Android tablet if it weren't the stupidest suggestion I've ever heard. But it is.
Confusing (Score:2)
TFA mixes Windows RT and 8 as if they were compatible, which they apparently aren't (http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/17/3514556/windows-8-vs-windows-rt-surface-confused-microsoft-store-employees).
So OSX is better than Windows? (Score:2)
To quote the blog: "Another thing that gives the iPad a leg up is the application ecosystem that exists for iOS devices. When I hear about 600,000 apps, I’m just in awe. As I’ve said many times before, however, I don’t think it’s the right number for comparison. Nobody is using more than a couple dozen applications on their device. "
I guess the Microsoft argument that Macs can't compete against Windows because of the installed base of apps was wrong all along?
Astroturfing blog. (Score:2)
Can we take a blog seriously when it doesn't even have a Surface RT to test?
If I didn't like the iPad then why would I even consider the Surface RT? I have a nice selection of Android tablets to choose from that actually have apps. Is this why Microsoft prefers to compare themselves to the iPad and not to Android?
Removable Storage & Peripheral Support (Score:2)
I do hope that if the Surface succeeds on some level it will be partly due to the removable storage and the peripheral support via USB.
I really like my iPad (bought a 1 when they came out, bought a 3 this summer) but I find putting content on it, regardless of the source, clumsy if the only way to do is either via wifi (through GoodReader, or other similar apps that let you load data this way) or via iTunes. Support for external storage in some manner or other would be a lot more convenient -- I could stic
2 very different versions of Surface (Score:5, Informative)
One thing I don't see getting a lot of play is that there are two different versions of the Surface. On the face of it they both pretty decent and with the keyboard people should actually be able to use on to produce content. The resolution is disappointing, but as has been pointed out elsewhere Microsoft has figured out three different ways to address that issue.
The RT model is the one that just went on sale. That is your toy that is really just a windows version of an Ipad except that it can produce content. However this model has serious drawbacks if you want to use one in a professional setting. You can't load or distribute apps for the Metro interface without using a process called side loading. Side loading can't be used unless your on a domain. The RT model can't join a domain, effectively making this a burden at best to try manage (third party agents etc). You also can't use any traditional application on it as it uses the ARM processor and Microsoft has been very adamant about not allowing any backwards compatibility with x86 or x64 apps.
The Pro version can join a domain and use all the apps that a normal Windows 8 computer can use. This is the model that is meant for use on networks and for use in a professional setting. The best way to keep them straight in your head is to think back to the day when XP came in two versions. The Pro version was the one that was meant to be used for production work, the regular version was the one meant for home users. For all intents and purposes you have two very different products with the almost identical name and size.
If you have to work with them professionally you should seriously considering putting out a memo to only allow purchase of the Pro model. This of course is why the pro model is built this way, because that is where the money is.
Part I of Slashdot's "unbiased review" series (Score:4, Funny)
Tune in tomorrow for part II, where Tim Cook gives us an in-depth review of the upcoming iPad mini!
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When Slashdot is not fulfilling its role as the "anti-Apple" tech news site, of course.
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When Slashdot is not fulfilling its role as the "anti-Apple" tech news site, of course.
Its not true, but if it was, it would be the only one. Apple has incredible media presence. Its extra ironic considering Android is not mentioned in the Title.
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That all depends on whom they extinguish.
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What do you think they are embracing and extending? How are the 3 Es relevant in this case?
Re:Trash (Score:5, Insightful)
I actual bothered to click the link to the article, and all I see is a comparison of the cost of a few accessories and apps? Where's the comparison of the technical specs? How is this garbage even worth posting?
Tech specs seem less relevant when comparing high-end tablets from different manufacturers running completely different operating systems - I'd rather see end-user impressions.
Does the higher resolution of the iPad make any difference in real-life use? Is the larger screen of the MS tablet better or worse than the slightly smaller iPad screen with higher dpi? How fast is the device? Can it run multiple applications and switch smoothly among them? Can I play a video in the corner of the screen while I'm browsing the web? Does it load webpages quickly? How easy is it to use the UI?
Those are the questions I'd like to see answered, if I really want to know what CPU the tablet is running, I can look that up, but knowing the processor and RAM specs tells me nothing about usability.
Re:Trash (Score:4, Informative)
Does the higher resolution of the iPad make any difference in real-life use?
Yes. Text is much more pleasant to read, and it's easier to surf the web because you can zoom out more, with small text remaining perfectly legible. It also lets you read PDFs in fit-page-to-screen mode.
Is the larger screen of the MS tablet better or worse than the slightly smaller iPad screen with higher dpi?
This is going to be very subjective. First of all it's not really larger by a notable amount. The bigger difference is that iPad is 4:3, while Surface is 16:9. Again, which one you prefer is subjective and depends on what you use it for.
Can it run multiple applications and switch smoothly among them?
It can, but there are limits on what an app can do in the background. Less strict than iOS, but still much stricter than Android. Of course, there are also desktop apps, which do run in background as usual... but you only get those that come with the device and can't install your own, so it's not as useful as it might sound.
Can I play a video in the corner of the screen while I'm browsing the web?
Yes, but with limitations. You can dock one app on the side of the screen, while another app takes most of the screen, and both apps can show whatever they want. However, you can only do it with two apps max, and screen layout is mostly fixed - snapped app is always of the same width, either on the left or on the right side of the screen. You can flip between the two apps, snapping one and unsnapping the other, but you can't resize arbitrarily.
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Tech specs seem less relevant when comparing high-end tablets from different manufacturers running completely different operating systems
Only if you believe in comparing Fariy Dust and Bullshit would it not matter.
I thought the Fairy Dust and Bullshit was in the specs and it's the end-user experience that matters? I don't care if one has an eight core CPU and one has a dual core CPU, I care more about how the apps run.
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I cannot comprehend why anyone would think that raw specs are more important than the end-user experience for a device such as this.
Because people want to be able to make snap judgements rather than interpret nuance and/or spend time actually thinking things through.
But here's an example of why you're right... I had one of the first generation iPod Touches - so that had 128MB of RAM. After three years of ownership, I decided I wanted to carry around a single device (smartphone) rather than the Touch and a dumb phone; so I bought a low-end Android phone, the LG Thrive. The Thrive had twice the available RAM (256MB) and a faster processor
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Does the higher resolution of the iPad make any difference in real-life use?
Clearly you have never looked at or used a HiDPI display.
I have, and while it looks better, I didn't find that I could surf the web any faster or type documents any faster, so that's why I asked if it means any difference in real-life use. My eyes aren't good enough to make use of the tiny fonts that would give me more screen real estate on the 9" iPad display, so I may very well find a tablet with lower resolution and larger screen to be more useful.
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You don't use tablets for High Performance computing.
They will use the tech specs to show that their new device is faster than the old one. But not comparing it to another product. Why? First when you compare different architectures you are comparing apples with oranges.
The available features is really more important to purchase a Table. What do you get for your money in terms of expandability, experience, future use.
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They will use the tech specs to show that their new device is faster than the old one. But not comparing it to another product. Why? First when you compare different architectures you are comparing apples with oranges.
The available features is really more important to purchase a Table. What do you get for your money in terms of expandability, experience, future use.
Only to a degree. Technical specifications for everything other than the processor speed are still relevant. Does it have 802.11a/b/g/n, WiMax? how much storage? how much is reserved for the OS versus user? etc, etc.
One reason I have not yet bought a Kindle or Nook is due to their allocation of disk space solely for Amazon/BN purchased content. When I bought my Nexus One with its 6 megapixel camera, the top of the line iPhone only had a 2 megapixel camera. So there are quite a few technical specification
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
The other day, MS's engineering team did an AMA on reddit [reddit.com] where they answered the question of screen resolution:
Hey this is Stevie. Screen resolution is one component of perceived detail. The true measure of resolvability of a screen called Modulation Transfer Function (MTF), not Pixels. MTF is a combination of both contrast and resolution. There are over a dozen subsystems that effect this MTF number.. Most folks just focus on one number out of dozens that effect perceived detail. Without good contrast resolution decreases. Check out contrast sensitivity of the human eye graph (http://www.telescope-optics.net/images/eye_contrast.PNG) and if you want more see the links below. Basically, as resolution/DPI increases the eye has becomes less sensitive. So as a result, the amount of light in a room and the reflections off the screen have a huge effect on the contrast of the display. In fact, a small amount of reflection can greatly reduce contrast and thus the perceived resolution of the display. With the ClearType Display technology we took a 3 pronged approach to maximize that perceived resolution and optimize for battery life, weight, and thickness. First prong, Microsoft has the best pixel rendering technology in the industry (cleartype 1.0 and 2.0) .. these are exclusive and unique to Windows, it smooths text regardless of pixel count. Second, we designed a custom 10.6” high-contrast wide-angle screen LCD screen. Lastly we optically bonded the screen with the thinnest optical stack anywhere on the market.. something which is more commonly done on phones we are doing on Surface. While this is not official, our current Cleartype measurements on the amount of light reflected off the screen is around 5.5%-6.2%, the new IPad has a measurement of 9.9% mirror reflections (see the displaymate link: http://www.displaymate.com/iPad_ShootOut_1.htm [displaymate.com]). Doing a side by side with the new iPad in a consistently lit room, we have had many people see more detail on Surface RT than on the Ipad with more resolution.
Some more links to share if you want to know more (http://www.normankoren.com/Tutorials/MTF.html)... Also This is a great book to read if you really want to get into it: http://www.amazon.com/Contrast-Sensitivity-Effects-Quality-Monograph/dp/0819434965 [amazon.com] or more here http://alexandria.tue.nl/extra2/9901043.pdf [alexandria.tue.nl]
So it seems that Microsoft has data that suggests that, despite the lower resolution, the Surface has greater precieved detail than the iPad. (although I find it annoying that they've muddied the waters by re-using trademarks - they've repurposed "Cleartype Display" as the MS equivalent of Apple's "Retina Display")
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They must have found the same people off the street that looked at the iPhone 5 before it was released [youtube.com].
Re:A very MS centric blog indeed... (Score:4, Funny)
Apparently you have not seen the new retina screen. Nothing prepares you for it because you can't see it on any monitor you have now. Letters look like they are carved in the glass with a diamond stylus. They just pop with sharpness you never knew you were missing.
The microsoft people are just blathering about anti-aliasing on fonts. You can take a tiff of that and it will look how it looks on your screen.
Re:A very MS centric blog indeed... (Score:4, Funny)
Apparently you have not seen the new retina screen. Nothing prepares you for it because you can't see it on any monitor you have now. Letters look like they are carved in the glass with a diamond stylus. They just pop with sharpness you never knew you were missing.
Have you seen the actual letters MS based their fonts on? You can't tell from the way they look on your retina display, but in person each letter looks as if it emerged fully-formed from the head of Zeus. When I first laid eyes on the "A" I wept tears of sweet honey and was transported to a world of dazzling rainbows.
Re: (Score:3)
ClearType increases that apparent resolution in one direction only by about a factor of two. In theory it sounds like it should increase resolution by a factor of three, but that would result in coloured fringes around the letters, so filters are applied which reduces the benefits but prevents the issues.
A second problem is that that the direction in which ClearType works depends on the physical arrangement of sub-pixels on the screen. On a normally aligned PC monitor, this is great, because text needs hori
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At a Resolution of 1366x768, you get 1,049,088 pixels, and at 1920x1080 you get 2,073,600 pixels. Almost double.
Except that most of the tiny (10") high resolution displays are used to increase information fidelity, not information density. Meaning that while you have almost double the pixels on a 1920x1080 display, it's being used to display the same information, only sharper. For instance, the reason the iPad has such a wonky 2,048x1,536 display is that it doubles the resolution on each axis from previous models, thus enabling developers to easily scale existing applications. So you have 4x more pixels as before, ye
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It is also manufacturer dependent.
For example, my Nexus One has 512MB Flash; the OS takes ~300MB of it, leaving ~200MB for me; but I can also pop-in a microSD card up to 32GB -
Different keyboard covers; sales tax (Score:2)
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Shills are paid to put out specific information and specific phrases.
He got his paycheck, that is all he is concerned about.
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Who has ever wanted to charge their phone with their iPad? Anyone? ever?
Never. However, many times I've wanted the opposite. "Hey, this thing I rarely use for talking has plenty of battery left; how can I get it to charge this other thing I use for almost everything else?"
I too await a side-by-side, hands-on comparison. But I hope the multi-user feature becomes big so that it trickles over to my iPad.
Never mind, screen cover is smart cover (Score:2)
Well that was a stupid post. I see now looking back he has a keyboard and a smart cover, I mistook the keyboard cost for a cover cost... the comparison seems fair (except for not comparing the 16GB model which has almost as much usable storage).
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the largest PC maker sells PC's without windows.
According to the Gartner report released on October 10, 2012 [gartner.com] (8 days ago), Lenovo ousted HP as the largest PC manufacturer in the world in Q3 2012. Lenovo sells PCs without Windows?
Oh all right, most profitable then (Score:2)
Happy?
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Does it come in brown?
I have seen the Galaxy III come in brown. I have to say it looked really nice.
Re:Multiuser... (Score:4, Insightful)
I wish the iPad had multiple users. I also wish that my iPhone had work and home profiles. This is one area where Microsoft has gotten it right--and if you don't need or want multiple users, then you don't need to use it.