Microsoft has long been a software company, creating programs to run on other company’s machines. However, “the company will make its biggest-ever break from that tradition” when it launches “its own brand of tablets as part of an effort to reinsert itself into the market,” reports AllThingsD.
While Microsoft is not entirely new to hardware, it has experienced more misses (Kin, Zune) than hits (Xbox 360). And similar to how the Zune music player had to compete with Apple’s iPod, Microsoft’s Surface tablet will attempt to challenge the tremendously popular iPad.
Microsoft does bring assets to this battle, including Windows and Office. “The company also has its Xbox gaming abilities, plenty of licensing deals with Hollywood and the music labels, as well as the Barnes & Noble partnership it stuck when settling a legal battle earlier this year,” notes AllThingsD.
Microsoft unveiled its new tablet at an event in Los Angeles yesterday afternoon. Surface features a 10.6-inch screen and will run a forthcoming variation of Windows 8. “The tablet has a built-in ‘kickstand’ that will allow users to prop it up for watching movies, and a detachable cover that will serve double duty as a keyboard,” reports The New York Times. Pricing and availability have yet to be announced.
There could be a great deal at stake for Microsoft. Consumer expectations regarding the marriage of hardware and software have been impacted by the iPad — and Apple’s tablet is becoming more popular with business customers, a market that Microsoft has dominated in the past.
“We’re no longer talking about a peripheral, but rather the future of computing and the core of Microsoft’s business,” suggests AllThingsD.
Microsoft has long been a software company, creating programs to run on other company’s machines. However, “the company will make its biggest-ever break from that tradition” when it launches “its own brand of tablets as part of an effort to reinsert itself into the market,” reports AllThingsD.
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