Surface 2 Is About Specs And Power - May Not Be Enough To Overcome "Experience" Factor Users Want From iOS and iPad

Did Microsoft mess up with the Surface 2 introduction and the Surface 2 itself?  I hope articles like this because the writer seems to suggest that they know better.  I've been guilty of this but I tend to be more optimistic than other writers and I always give a product or service the benefit of the doubt before making bold predictions.

Here in this post from Read Write, the writer suggests that Microsoft has failed once more with the Surface 2 by not connecting it with the users.  Instead, it walked about what kind of horse power it has.  I admit that at one time, that would have been enough to sell me on it.  But no more.  And for the more sophisticated mobile society we have today, that is also true.

There is one main issue here and that's the effect the iPad has on the user.  There is an element of joy that you get from using the iPad that is not matched like other tablets. The same can be said of the iPhone when you hold it in your hand.  You want to do something with it.

Whereas with my Windows Phone device, it somehow feels different.

A lot of times with my iOS devices, I feel it is such a waste if I'm just using it to watch a video.  I feel that as well when I'm using the iBooks app.  I feel that while Apple's mobile devices are good for these things, it feels beneath them.  Maybe this is why some users feel inspired and creative with Apple products than with others.

The main point of the Read Write post is that Microsoft is trying to convey an PC message to a largely tablet market.  Power and speed.  Oh, and it has Office.  None of those are enough to dislodge the iPad aura that Apple has created. If anything, Microsoft would serve the Surface better by demonstrating the Surface can be empathetic with the users.  There just doesn't seem to be a lot of joy that users experience when they're on devices Apple's competitors create.

Recent Surface commericals comparing the Surface with the iPad and using Siri as the whipping boy is a good move away from the clicking Surface keyboard ads.  Those were awful and many thought they were actually ads for the iPad.  And while these newer Surface ads reminded me of the Mac-verus-PC ads, it's still not enough.

Over all, I think we do have to take a wait-and-see attitude towards Surface 2 and give it a chance.  Perseverance, after all, is Microsoft's middle name (last name?) and while many, if not all, of its products are not the best on the market, it's "good enough" philosophy has been very successful.  It'll be keep coming at the market until it finds a way to win.

Surface 2 Is Out. Great For Microsoft. But Tablets To Clobber PCs In 4Th Quarter. Bad For Microsoft.

As you know by now, Microsoft has just released its new Surface 2 tablets, RT and Pro, looking to try to gain a foothold in the surging tablet market.  Based on specs alone, the Pro model has a better shot but folks can still buy cheaper Windows 8 laptops if they want a keyboard.  RT is better and could help Microsoft convince Redmond fans this is the Surface worth buying.

Both are good for Microsoft. 

What's not good is my prediction:  iPads and Android tablets will dominate the Holidays/Christmas sales and really show the tech industry what the post-PC era looks like.  And that is not going to be good for Microsoft.  It'll be very bad for Microsoft.

While I have said before that there doesn't appear to be much new innovative features that Apple or Google could bring to their tablets, iPad and Nexus, (or even Samsung), they will continue to improve on previous models with new OS and add features that will further enhance tablet productivity and close any gap between tablets and laptops running Windows.

So, while I don't see tablet makers going for a fast merciful kill, the PC makers,starting this year, will experience a new, slow, and ever more painful reality that their best days are over.  And Microsoft will face an accelerated decline of the  Windows brand and sales. 

And in his waning days as CEO of Microsoft, Steve Balmer will be there just long enough to see just how badly a shape he left his company.

Blackberry To Be Be Sold for Less Than $5 Billion

A Canadian insurance company, Fairfax Financial, will by the iconic but down on its luck smartphone pioneer, Blackberry for $4.7 billion. It works out for the Canadian government as BB will remain in Canadian hands (NBC).




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iPhone's Apple Store App Now Checks iPhone Stock Levels At Local Stores, iPhone 5s Sales Many Times Greater Than 5c

MacNN reports that Apple Store app for the iPhone now allows the user to check to see if the local Apple store has the iPhone model of his or her choice in stock.

You can see the "check availability" during the checkout process.  Also, you can also order an iPhone and pick it up at the store as well.  As of today, there are still lines waiting for the iPhone 5s.

And if you missed it, Apple sold over 9 million of the new 2013 iPhones so far.  And if you're wonder, supposedly the 5s sales leads the 5c sales by a factor of 3.5x to 5x depending on the market.

Surface 2 Surfaces - Microsoft's Quiet Launch, But Looks Promising

I'll be first to admit this.  When Surface came out, I thought it was promising.  It was going to get Apple and Microsoft to go head-to-head in the tablet market.  I'll admit this. It has been stagnant.  And look at how long since Apple has released a real update.  That was last spring in 2012 with the iPad 3.

And Android tablets are not lighting the world on fire.  Sure, lots of sales in the low-end but Apple still dominate the money share and the tablet app market as well.

So, I'm glad that Microsoft has decided to stick with Surface.  Then again, it's not like it has any other choices.  This is do-or-die for Redmond.

With Surface 2, Microsoft has something that Surface last year should have.  A real feel of mobile that the Surface just didn't have.  Even when Apple came out with the original iPad in 2010, you can see that it was a very polished device.  No so with Surface.

With Surface 2, both the RT and Pro version, you have better software as well as specs that could really let apps loose.  And check out this Surface cover just for music creators  (Engadget).

As far as specs, the RT's biggest improvement is the screen.  Microsoft tried to pull a fast one on us with the lame screen in last year's model.  No one believed them for a second.  Not even die-hard fans could say it was a good screen.  It was a 2000 resolution.  Today, Surface 2 sports a 1080p screen.  

More importantly, the battery life on both models has greatly increased.  Even the Haswell-based Pro 2 has around 8 hours of use.  Not bad for a laptop-like tablet.  Ball is in your court, Apple.

And on top of that, there is a $50 price cut from the entry price last year at $450 for the RT version (TheVerge).  What makes more sense is the storage which starts at 32 GB for $450 and 64 GB for $550.  You have to realize that you're not getting all that storage because Microsoft's OS and apps takes up around half of that.

Here's what's interesting.  The new Surface will be out 10/22.  This will be around when Apple updates its iPad lineup.   And this time though, Apple will have iWork for the iPad. While Microsoft will continue to crow about how its RT Surface has Office, it still might not be enough to unseat Apple.  At least not this year.

If history is any indication as in the case of Surface, Zune, and other failed products, it is that Microsoft's first version of anything is almost always a fail.  Sometimes, even the second. However, it keeps coming and coming until it has something that works well enough.  Look at IE and Xbox.  Windows and Office as well.

I'm not counting Microsoft's Surface 2 out at all.  I think it could be a commercial success if Microsoft does away with stupid cover commercials and continues its assault on the iPad with its current commercials that compare the Surface to the iPad.  This could be even more interesting with the Surface Pro 2.

But I don't think Apple has been sitting on its hands for the last 18 months.  I'm eager to see what Tim Cook's iPad will look like and what it can do.  From the looks of things, the iPad intro event will focus on iWork and iOS 7.  That could be enough to put Surface 2 out of the minds of regular mobile warriors.  In fact, I'm very interested to see if Apple somehow leverages the A7 chip, its new 64-bit process that is currently sitting in the iPhone 5s, to greatly enhance productivity.

How about Android fans?  Any love from Google on this front?  It's hard to see that at this point other than Kitkat that we can look forward to.  Google did just make Quickoffice free (CBS). But I'm sorry to say that it's more of a "me too" move.  Where Google can really make a splash is if it can get more tablet specific apps from third-party developers.

It'll be an interesting October and Christmas shopping reason.  For Microsoft, even as the iPad dominates sales, if it can get Surface 2 into the minds of some consumers, that could be all it needs now.

Apple Store Line And iPhone 5C

I went to the Apple Store in Pasadena yesterday to get the battery on my iPhone 4S checked out. No other intentions.

I had a mid-afternoon genius appointment. It should have been easy. Get in, hand over my iPhone to a genius, and get out.




Wow. A line! It was around 3:30 in the afternoon. And the crowd inside the store was just as crazy.




Neither of these pics did justice to the craziness both in the store and outside. Apparently, those people in line wanted the 5s and while Apple did have them in stock, it was a slow go as far as getting the eager iPhone owners paired with the right iPhone configuration.

There lots of folks there for the genius stuff but even more from folks checking out the iPhones. And if you're wondering, I didn't see a old version of the iPhone 5s on display to touch and handle. Plenty of the silver and space gray versions.

What I was really curious about was the iPhone 5c line. If you recall, I have been unkind to the colors that were online from various leaks. Since I was waiting for my appointment, I walked though to take a look at those awful colors.

Boy, was I surprised. They look alright. Except for the pink. In this order, they are my favorite: green, yellow, blue.

Someone mentioned the pink looked a cut-up fish. I couldn't agree with it more. It should have been lighter or darker. Red would work well.

Maybe someone will make a case for the iPhone 5s and then I can get the green that I like.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

T-Mobile Version of the iPhone 5S: Unlocked, Or Not

There seems to be confusion going on about the T-Mobile version of the new 2013 iPhones.  I've personally bought two of them.  One of them will be used with T-Mobile itself.  The other will be for my brother who has an AT&T sim card.  I bought him the T-Mobile version because I was unable to buy the AT&T iPhone 5s outright.

On Apple's order page last night, the T-Mobile version was said to be unlocked.  Today, that's a different story.  Even so, perhaps, there was an omission one way or another.  No one seems certain whether the T-Mobile version of the new iPhones, 5c or 5s, is unlocked at this time.

It makes sense that the T-Mobile version would be locked into its network.  However, if the iPhone is bought at a full price, it should be unlocked no matter what.  However, it appears that T-Mobile is looking to get users to sign up for service.

What also adding to my confusion on this issue is that on my iPhone, the order confirmations for my T-Mobile iPhones specifically say "unlocked".  But when I sign into my account online, the "unlocked" part is missing.

Also, the "unlocked" designation is missing when I checked on the order on my iPhone Apple store app.

What's interesting about this is that this progressed through the night last night and well into the start of the ordering process.

However, a few folks who have managed to get their hands on a T-Mobile version did confirm that these phones work with the AT&T sim cards.

The point I'm trying to make here is really about how the locking process and philosophy doesn't work anymore today.  Even with T-Mobile's more consumer friendly plans and device payment plans, if you buy a phone that you're still making payments on, you are locked into T-Mobile's service.  Makes no sense at all.

And that is likely at the root of this Apple and T-Mobile confusion concerning the 2013 iPhones.  And why should T-Mobile's iPhones be specially locked into T-Mobile when AT&T and Verizon's versions are both unlocked.

How do I know that?  Because my Verizon iPhone 5 last year came unlocked.