iPad killer or not....only time will tell :). – iPad has created a status symbol in the market. It’s the Mercedes Benz of tablets. When iPad came out it was successful in moving a huge mass of Microsoft-PC loyalists towards iPad usage. It will be difficult for Microsoft to do that. I want to see how many hard core iPad-Apple loyalists will move to Surface.
Quick Report
1. Surface was released for customer purchase only through Microsoft Retail stores yesterday i.e. 10/26
2. The response was huge especially in the Bellevue Microsoft Retail store, which is the ground zero as it’s the closest to the corporate HQ and Building 85 which is considered as the birthplace of Surface.
3. I was checking on phone with the Bellevue Microsoft Retail store until 11pm and I was informed that the Q has not been formed yet, but I was wrong, folks had started assembling a little outside the mall from 5pm. They were provided a special enclosure by the MS Stores where they could camp through the night. What I go to know was that they put their camp chairs there with their names and came back early morning.
4. I was there by 7.30am and whooa! there are 300 people in the Q before me. The store was running full batteries, extra staffed, Surface brand everywhere on the video walls. The store would open at 9.30am.
5. 99% of the folks in the queue were Microsoft FTE. Probably I was the only non-FTE in the queue at that time.
6. It was great fun interacting with several interesting folks in the queue that included big time seniors of Microsoft (VP level folks in the queue who had come just to participate in the frenzy and be a part of it), a 78yr old lady who declined special privilege quick entry and said she would wait in the queue. Some interesting facts discovered during the conversations
a. Foxconn is NOT involved in the assembly of Surface (Thank god!...so we will not see duplicate Microsoft Stores in Shanghai)
b. MS has built ITS OWN factory in China for the assembly of Surface
c. FTE would be getting Windows RTs and not Windows Pros
d. Most of the FTE would definitely put the RTs for sale once they get their pieces from the company.
e. The ARM processor for RT vs the Intel Core i5 in the Pro.
7. We were served with Water, some snacks, some Windows 8 Goodies in the Q.
8. By about 8.30am, girls in Windows Surface T-Shirts started moving around interacting with the people in the Q with Surfaces in their hands. I grabbed one Surface and started playing with it. Last week at Building 92, I couldn’t check the KB Magnetic Cover which I wanted to check closely. ITS GOOD. Especially the BLACK that comes with a nice fleece cover.
9. By the time I reached the store door it was 11.45 AM ( 4 HOURS IN THE Q !!!!!). My wife was calling me to check my whereabouts. I had vanished even before she woke up that morning J
10. I was escorted by a sales associate and taken to a Surface booth. The entire purchase transaction took about 10 minutes. I met Casey Vieceli at the POS terminal. Casey is SD Manager in MS Retail Stores whom we worked with for the Retail engagement.
11. Prices in the state of Washington : 32 GB BLACK WITH COVER = 655.91$ POST TAXES.
12. First impressions (I HAVE NOT UNBOXED THESE PURCHASES AS I WOULD LIKE THE OWNERS TO DO IT)
AWESOME!
I was able to run a movie directly from a MicroSD Card. Perf was good. The base is very cool. The BIG Q I have is what if Windows RT gets corrupted due to some reasons...malware or whatever...can we ourselves re-install RT from USB? Don’t think so. We nuke and reinstall our laptops at the drop of a hat...will we have that flexibility? Or I will have to run to the store each time? and BTW Flash is playing.
Lots of questions right now about the ecosystem – Xbox Music + Marketplace + 8 etc.
"It’s one of the best laptops among the Tablets and one of the best Tablets among Laptops" - Steve Sinofsky
Some important industry reviews of Surface
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews/tablets/3364791/microsoft-surface-rt-review/
http://reviews.cnet.com/tablets/microsoft-surface-rt/4505-3126_7-35332494.html
http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/23/tech/mobile/microsoft-surface-reviewed/index.html
http://gizmodo.com/5953866/microsoft-surface-rt-review-this-is-technological-heartbreak
Kartik Matmari
Infosys Ltd | 510 759 9535 | v-kartim@microsoft.com | kartik_m@infosys.com
http://www.infosys.com/microsoft/
