>So these new Surface Pro things are going to be like a current ipad-style tablet, but with a keyboard, heavier, have shorter battery life and be more expensive. That sounds very much like a device I already have, which is called a laptop. It runs Eclipse pretty well on the rare occasions I want it to.

This reminds me of the folks that discounted the iPad because it was not good as a smartphone for portability(oversized iPod Touch) and much less powerful than a laptop. Predictions based on personal anectodes in a billion plus device market are a dangerous thing.

I agree that the Surface Pro is trying to create a new market here(spaced between iPad style tablets and the laptops/MB Air/Ultrabooks which is an uphill task, but I do think there are a lot of people who want a no-compromises powerful portable tablet for on-the-go use.

The tablet market, at this moment, is going the other way, to include devices that are cheaper, a bit smaller, and more oriented toward pure consumption (Nexus 7, Fire HD, iPad Mini). This market has lower margins but the potential for lots of sales even beyond the iPad today.

Now Microsoft comes with Surface (Pro and non-Pro), sounds like they are going after niche high-end tablet markets (those who want Office + a keyboard), and higher-end tablet markets (though who want to run Visual Studio). Completely opposite direction that at best will be a successful ultra-book. I'm not seeing mass appeal, but a lot of that will come down to pricing.

New products can and do disrupt market trends, especially in such a huge market.

> sounds like they are going after niche high-end tablet markets (those who want Office + a keyboard), , and higher-end tablet markets (though who want to run Visual Studio).Completely opposite direction that at best will be a successful ultra-book.

Niche in this market mean at least tens of millions of people. Not to say that the Surface Pro will succeed(pricing is important as you say) but the laptop/ultrabook market is still much bigger than the tablet, both the install base and sales.

I hope I'm not falling into the same trap as people discounting the ipad; FWIW, I'm not trying to say that this new product won't catch on because it won't be useful to people. I'm trying to understand why it is a new product at all and not just a laptop; on paper most of the specs sound the same, except for maybe the keyboard being removable.