Tencent Technology News Beijing time on June 20th news, according to foreign media reports, Microsoft on Monday launched the Surface tablet, with a distinctive keyboard design, which became the Apple iPad and the traditional notebook computer the most impressive competitor. The advent of Microsoft tablets has changed the company's long-standing role as a software vendor, turning longtime hardware allies into competitors. More importantly, Microsoft's move to the future of the tablet to make a different interpretation of the function, thus setting off a battle with Apple's positioning of the tablet: it is a new consumer device or mobile version of the traditional PC computer? Microsoft's secrecy about the Surface project was well-documented, and many Microsoft executives didn't know about it until a few days before the Surface was released.
Set off a battle with Apple on the tablet positioning
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer claimed on Monday that tablet users want to be able to use their devices for entertainment, such as watching movies, while also wanting to use them to create data sheets or for other office uses. To that end, Microsoft designed the Surface tablet as a keyboard."They want to lie on the couch, they want to sit at the desk, they want to be on the move.“People want to do it all without sacrificing the power of the PC, " Mr. Ballmer said.”
Microsoft and other companies such as Intel expect that the difference between the tablet and laptop will gradually disappear because the latter is adding touch-screen capabilities, as well as foldable keyboard and so on.
In contrast, Apple has consistently argued that the tablet is completely different from a portable PC."If you put them together, I don't think the PC computer will be able to play to its maximum potential, and the tablet computer will not be able to play to their maximum advantage."Apple CEO Tim Cook said at the D: All Things Digital Conference last month.
Apple's speech certainly has some authority, because the company in 2010 launched the iPad big success and created a new market. Market research firm IDC expects this year's sales of the tablet market is expected to reach 107.4 million units, while Apple is expected to reach two-thirds of them, equipped with Google(microblogging)Android operating system equipment is expected to occupy 36.5% of the market share.
In industrialized countries, iPads and other tablets have eroded the market demand for laptops, especially netbooks with only simple internet access. Market research firm Gartner predicts PC sales will only grow 2.7% this year, and tablet sales are expected to double, reaching 119 million units.
In addition, Intel has been hoping to stimulate the market by encouraging the creation of more thin portable computer“ultrabook”, to arouse the excitement. But so far, ultrabook sales momentum has been relatively slow.
Threats to laptop manufacturers
Microsoft's Surface tablet with a detachable keyboard is another new alternative to laptops that could pose a new threat to laptop manufacturers. Microsoft is preparing to use Surface to promote the tablet's many uses, it will be in direct competition with the ultrabook."There is a lot of uncertainty," said Sarah Rotman Epps, an analyst at Forrester Research, a market research firm.
The price Microsoft sets for Surface may ultimately determine its true competitor. At the moment, the Apple iPad starts at $ 499.
There are two versions of the Surface tablet. Microsoft said, equipped with Windows RT operating system, Surface tablet configuration of the Nvidia chip should be the first to launch, the price is basically the same as the same tablet. The Surface tablet with Windows 8 operating system and Intel chip may start at nearly $ 900 or more.
Patrick Moorhead, an analyst at market research firm Moor Insights & Strategy, said Microsoft could set the price of Surface to about $ 100 more than its co-op computer maker, easing some of the tensions with them. However, this may hamper Microsoft's own marketing efforts.
Moorhead expects that some hardware manufacturers that had originally planned to launch Windows tablets may change their minds."After the appearance of Surface, the dynamic balance of Microsoft and its partners was broken and permanently destroyed. He said in a research note.
Microsoft keeps a lid on the Surface project
Some of Microsoft's hardware partners are furious about the news that Microsoft is rolling out Surface, which could be a competition for their products, according to people familiar with the matter. Microsoft has been keeping a lid on this development project, not only hardware partners, even Microsoft's own executives did not know. Some executives at Chip and computer manufacturers didn't know about the Surface project until a few days before the launch.
Hardware companies HP, HTC, and Acer declined to comment on their relationship with Microsoft. Lenovo and Dell said they would still launch a series of Windows tablets. A Lenovo spokeswoman said the company was " in a very competitive position in the tablet market and will be able to beat all newcomers."
A Microsoft spokeswoman declined to comment. But on Monday, Microsoft executives appeared intent on downplaying the tensions with their hardware partners.Mr. Ballmer said the company's relationship with the hardware master was critical to the development of Windows 8 and Windows RT."We believe in the superiority of this ecosystem, and in the importance of software and hardware masters working together to provide a variety of boutique options. Ballmer said.
Some Microsoft allies say that Surface may help spur innovation as it sets new expectations for what the new tablet should look like."It's a good thing that the market is rushing to introduce innovative designs. Rob Chandhok, head of the software strategy at chipmaker Qualcomm, said.