Submission + - Why the Surface needs to be $500. (cnet.com)
vanstinator writes: The tablet war is in full swing with parties from all sides throwing tablets into an already-crowded market. At the top of the heap is Apple calmly updating the iPad roughly once a year with everyone else jockeying for the smaller 7-inch form factor trophy. At the far end of the party Microsoft is planning on shooting straight for the top both with Windows 8 and its homegrown tablet, Surface. A solid piece of hardware, the Surface looks to be the first real answer to Apple’s dominance since the days of the iPhone. An all in one package powered by an innovative and user friendly OS -this product hardly seems like something Microsoft would design. In the words of one journalist, “Hell froze over”. An apt description to say the least this may indeed be the biggest splash in the tech world in years save for one detail, nobody knows how much Microsoft is going to charge.
The article included claims the price of the Windows RT tablet to be ~$1,000 –roughly the price of a mid-range laptop or ultrabook. A price like this is going to leave Microsoft dead in the water before the Surface even launches. The article, being a rumor as it is, is likely untrue. While either a clever marketing “leak” or just misinformation the backlash it received highlights a critical point in the upcoming product launch, Microsoft needs to do better than just price competitively. The base model of the Surface needs to cost under $500 to have a shot at getting a true foothold and user base. Microsoft has been tying all of their services together for the last year to make Windows 8 an integrated product with a decent media library behind it. The app store has likewise opened and is accepting submissions. Everything has been pieced together save for the hardware. This is arguably the most important product launch Microsoft will ever make and a bet the company is making on its very own future. For the sake of the consumer market Microsoft please, please price the Surface affordably. It’s a winner if you do. What do you think Slashdot?
The article included claims the price of the Windows RT tablet to be ~$1,000 –roughly the price of a mid-range laptop or ultrabook. A price like this is going to leave Microsoft dead in the water before the Surface even launches. The article, being a rumor as it is, is likely untrue. While either a clever marketing “leak” or just misinformation the backlash it received highlights a critical point in the upcoming product launch, Microsoft needs to do better than just price competitively. The base model of the Surface needs to cost under $500 to have a shot at getting a true foothold and user base. Microsoft has been tying all of their services together for the last year to make Windows 8 an integrated product with a decent media library behind it. The app store has likewise opened and is accepting submissions. Everything has been pieced together save for the hardware. This is arguably the most important product launch Microsoft will ever make and a bet the company is making on its very own future. For the sake of the consumer market Microsoft please, please price the Surface affordably. It’s a winner if you do. What do you think Slashdot?
