The Microsoft Surface Killer Feature: It's open.
http://cdn-smooth.ms-studiosmedia.com/news/mp4_mq/06182012_Surface_750k.mp4
This could be a very telling probe into what consumers want. There is not disputing the fact that the Windows ecosystem dwarfs anything else out there. If I heard the numbers correctly, more Windows computers are shipped in a single year than the entire installed based of Macs. Not a put-down, just a fact.
As an iOS software and hardware developer one of the things that I continue to clash with is the nearly despotic hold Apple has on, well, everything. Developing hardware for any iOS device can be a very expensive and painful experience. For example, you can't develop a universal serial cable. Yes, there's a serial port on that connector but Apple will not let you use it without a decryption chip and you only get authorization to make a cable for a specific app. To think that in 2012 you can't get unencumbered API access to a serial and a USB port is just, well, unreal.
Microsoft Surface is, by definition, open. I will be able to run any and all Windows software on this device the minute it becomes available. That, again, dwarfs the Mac/iOS ecosystem. I will be able to run Solidworks on a tablet. How cool is that?
It'll be interesting to see how consumers react to this reality. I have a feeling that, if pricing is right, adoption will be swift.
Of course, we'll continue to work with and produce products for the iOS landscape, but it'd sure be very interesting to have an open option out there where you could experiment and offer things that Apple simply will not let you approach. It's about creativity, not technology.
EDIT: Apple is, of course, entitled to rule their own ecosystem as they wish. No issues there. Their toys. Their rules. Not complaining. Just presenting facts.
Finally, a tablet where you can setup users with different privileges. You can setup accounts for the kids so they can play their games and not have access to anything they should not be able to touch. You can setup an account for house guests or for those occasions when you know you might be handing the device to someone who, as an example, should not be able to log into your Facebook or eBay account automatically.
Multi-user is also great for business applications. Take medical applications where the nurses have access to what they need and nothing more via user-level controls.
I think these guys are going in the right direction.
Where is the Surface "mini"?
My point is that Windows won't have the largest ecosystem for long. Plus, it's not the "most exciting" ecosystem right now to developers. Most developers will develop for iOS first for years to come, and also Android. It remains to be seen how they will embrace Metro.
My unsupported assertion of personal preference is equally valid.
The fact that MS if offering a version of Surface that will not run standard Windows programs is of no consequence. There will be lots of valid use cases for that device. What is important here is that MS if offering consumers something very valuable: A choice.
Or,min other words, you're choosing to ignore the other unit, where the consumer isn't offered a choice
I'm perfectly willing to be wrong, though.
*When the cheap model won't do that.
Time will tell.
May be some day in near future.... I am sure very soon, they will integrate kinect and windows, and then ..... well everything changes ...
and rightly said ... iPad is a toy and for kids ... Surface is a gadget and for the grown ups ...
I'm actually torn about the Windows platform on this form factor. Solidworks on a Surface - or Core IMPACT (scary!) sounds really cool. The installed base really is awesome. On the other hand, Blackhole, Zeus, TDSS, and everything else will also run on day one (or day zero) - and they'll run on the cheap version or the expensive one.