Software Uses Almost 1/2 the Storage On 32GB Surface Tablet 471
First time accepted submitter jigamo writes "Microsoft's newly released Surface tablets are available in 32 and 64 GB capacities. The company has disclosed how much of that space is available to the user. After taking into account Windows RT, Microsoft Office, built-in apps, and Windows recovery tools, nearly 13 GB of the available space is eliminated from user accessible storage. Microsoft's recommendations for adding additional capacity are to use cloud storage, a memory card, or a USB storage device."
Considering this is Windows... (Score:5, Insightful)
13GB? (Score:3, Insightful)
It seems ridiculous to me that 13GB is taken by the OS and built-in software.
How does that compare to iOS? And to be fair, how does that compare to iOS+Pages+Keynote+Numbers?
Re:32 gig sd card is cheap (Score:5, Insightful)
And don't forget to say that cloud storage is no good in Canada, where uncapped internet doesn't really exist, and mobile plans are absolute garbage.
Yes, it's so bad that it's worth mentioning twice.
OMFG software uses storage space?!?!?!? (Score:2, Insightful)
I thought all that was stored in the tiddly-winks chips.
(16GB for Windows, Office and media apps.... my Desktop uses FAAAAAAR more. Get it through your head people - Surface is a touch screen ultrabook, not a tablet.)
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Microsoft's recommendations (Score:2, Insightful)
Here is my recommendation: "Buy something else."
I for one, bought a Google Nexus 7, and quite like it.
It DOES accept a MicroSD (Score:5, Insightful)
Memory card. (Score:5, Insightful)
Microsoft Recommends (Score:3, Insightful)
Other misc recommendations
REMEMBER, TABLETS ARE LOW MAINTENANCE! (compared to PC's)
With Love,
Microsoft
PS: You really did not think things would change THAT much!
Re:Memory card. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Full of microsoft (Score:5, Insightful)
And how much is it to add an additional 32gb or 64gb to your iPad if you hit your storage limit? $20 or $49 like the Surface or more? Oh wait...
Not that I have a Surface or any plans to buy one but my guess is that when you build a device that's meant to be essentially a laptop replacement and you also include expansion slots so people who need more memory can buy it off the shelf at any corner store for relatively cheap, preloading it with everything including the kitchen sink doesn't seem like a bad idea.
Yeah I'm sure a lot of it will go unused but it's not like storage space is going to be an issue for someone with a Surface, unlike an iPad where what you buy is what you have and if you ever want to store that one extra video on your tablet without deleting something it will cost you another $800 investment to get the next model up.
Re:Considering this is Windows... (Score:4, Insightful)
Maybe you think that's a big deal because a 16 GB iPad costs $100 more than a 32GB one [apple.com], versus $9.99 to add 16GB to the Surface [newegg.com]. And in fact, the add-in card is better, because you easily swap out different cards with different contents. I have a MicroSD with my entire music collection for my Sansa Clip+, and might want to pop it into a tablet without waiting for a 20GB file copy.
Re:Microsoft Recommends (Score:5, Insightful)
Apart from "Link your tablet to MS Live account" that's mostly bollocks.
Re:Full of microsoft (Score:5, Insightful)
Frankly, ipad comparison is hilarious. Surface has the industry standard microSD port. Just put in another 32 gigs. Costs something around 30€ at the moment.
With ipad, you're SOL.
Re:Considering this is Windows... (Score:4, Insightful)
That was actually the way smartphones of old worked, and it's a FAR more customer-friendly approach. "We give you a smallish system drive and a functional expansion slot so you can buy as much as you need".
Considering microSD prices and the product, this is going to be a deal breaker for no one.
Re:Registry Editor (Score:4, Insightful)
You misspelled "apple land" there. Microsoft handily includes a microSD port with its tablets.
You seem too used to the fact that in apple tablets and phones, whatever memory you buy the device with, you're stuck with. This is not the case here.
Where did I put that file? (Score:4, Insightful)
This may not sound convincing to the nerds who know their way around a computer, but the Surface is a Windows machine, and an iPad is an iPad. The concept of storage device, drive letter, file location is not really required on an iPad. I suppose you can say you need to know whether it is on the iPad or on the Cloud, but that's different from which drive to access to find your movie file, or which memory stick to use (did you label it?). Sure, I'd prefer a device with cheap expandability, but the iPad has sacrificed in a lot of areas to be as simple as possible, and for a vast many people that is a good thing.
What apps are that big? (Score:4, Insightful)
You can only use that space on the SD card for data. You cannot use it to store apps.
Say the Surface's memory is evenly divided into 16 GB for the operating system and included applications and 16 GB for third-party applications, with all music and movies on a microSD card. What kind of application collection takes up 16 GB, other than a bunch of hardcore games? I thought hardcore games weren't ported to Windows RT, and most apps and casual games were far smaller than that.
Monthly data cap (Score:5, Insightful)
Well since music and movies can all be obtained through the cloud
The cloud is useless if it can't be reached because A. you have the Wi-Fi-only version and are away from home and open hotspots, B. you have no cellular data subscription, or C. you've already burned through your data plan this month.
Or of course just keep some media on external network devices
Which portable external network devices are you talking about?
or SD cards
I guess the Surface can, but I wasn't aware the iPad could play movies and the like from an SD card.
Re:Full of microsoft (Score:5, Insightful)
You mean to say that it's half-full of Microsoft.
But as an optimist, I would rather say it's half free of it!
Re:Yes you CAN attach external media with an iPad (Score:5, Insightful)
The more misleading drivel I read from you the more convinced I become that you are Slashdot's best troll ever; Poe's law in action. It is solid platform for a Slashdot troll.
Re:Yes you CAN attach external media with an iPad (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm not sure why pointing out that having to purchase a $30 add-on that hangs out of a device (in other words cannot be left in all the time) makes me an "android folk". Android is not even in the discussion so you can relax- the boogeyman isn't out to get you here.
I am terribly sorry if the truth offends you; a hard life is in store for you I fear.
Not quite sure what that really means. You seeming like a troll doesn't hurt my feelings at all.
It's a little hard to understanding[sic*] how pointing out a fact is misleading.
I'm fairly certain you know exactly why it is misleading but I will spell it out anyway. The Surface has an SD slot. I could plug an extra N gigabytes of additional space into it and forget about it. The iPad does not. The iPad apparently has an add-on called a "camera connection kit" made to load pictures which appears to also allow loading other media as well. This is not plug in and forget. This is: "hope you remembered to bring it when you feel the urge to use it". Most people do not even know this exists; fewer would use it.
I know somebody poked fun at an iPad's lack of expandable storage but it was not a personal attack against you. You are not an iPad. You know what people mean when they talk about expandable storage. You know the iPad does not have it in the same sense. Nonchalantly claiming the iPad has expandable storage is a lie of omission.
Re:Yes you CAN attach external media with an iPad (Score:4, Insightful)
I post facts; you post facts but omit the whole story. ... It's hardly misleading when it does in fact do exactly that.
When I buy an iPad can I plug in my SD card? No? You mean you omitted the part about needing to buy an additional dongle?
You keep insisting you cannot do something that you can; why would you state something so plainly false? It would reduce trust of your views in the anyone reading your posts.
Can you or can you not install apps to an SD card on an iPad? Without Jailbreaking (we'll assume for a second the user knows they need a "camera connection kit" and does not think it is a ridiculous requirement).
You are wrong. Cell data is not that expensive; but more importantly in everyday life WiFi is pervasive.
Cell data is expensive. Denying that is asinine. Wifi is not pervasive in any useful measure. It may almost always be present but it is not very helpful to have an encrypted AP. Yes I have wifi at home and at work but both of those places my tablet is really only going to be used as a remote control. Where are the number one spots media on a tablet is useful? Probably trains, buses, bus stops, malls. Some of those will have wifi, some of them will have poor quality wifi and most of them will have no wifi. No matter what remote storage has degraded availability over local.
I am not quite sure exactly what you are going on about "well off enough to buy a tablet" and their "networking environment". They really have nothing to do with each other. Large metropolitan areas occasionally have good wifi availability. More often than not, though, a few key points have wifi access here and there. I imagine you will find a small percentage of the united states has open wifi availability. You may only travel between work and your home but many people "well off enough to buy a tablet" probably leave their little city bubble and would like to listen to music while doing it.
In any case I am more reassured now that you are a troll. Definitely one of the best (possibly the very best) I've seen on Slashdot so congrats on that. What concerns me is how often people agree with your most likely (hopefully) trolls. Troll on.
Re:Monthly data cap (Score:5, Insightful)