Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Surface flaws, Beauty inside

Thanks to the techie journalists who panned the Microsoft Surface RT!  Apparently it does not have the supercomputer specs or the slick interface they were looking for.  However, it has the "killer app" that 99% of people interested in productivity are looking for: Office.  The "fail" that the geeks awarded the Surface RT means that you can buy this tablet brand-new at your local Best Buy or online from Microsoft for $199, about what it would cost you to buy Office, alone.

Microsoft shares responsibility (or thanks) for a disastrous launch.  Inescapable TV ads featuring youngsters dancing around and attaching keyboards did nothing to illustrate this tablet's advantages.  A print ad, titled "port-ability" was much better, highlighting the USB connector (another key to real productivity, for memory sticks or adding a wired keyboard ....and missing in the iPad). [Edit: also an SD card slot, so add as much memory as you like, import pictures from your camera, or bring films with you no problem, no extra kit to schlepp.]  I tried the Surface RT at a booth in the AOL building in NYC (of all places, though staffed by one overworked manager and several disinterested and largely uninformed others...non-geniuses, at least at retail).  The Microsoft online store is also an experience to be endured. 

Thank you for allowing us to get a bargain on a great tablet!