Microsoft Introduces Surface Tablet Pc
Microsoft introduced its first tablet computer, Surface, on Monday and has officially entered into competition with Apple. Apple has been a long term rival of Microsoft, as it clearly dominates the market with its iPads.
In a press event, which was organized in Los Angeles, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer revealed two new tablet PCs, one of them is thinner and lighter. These two tablets will run the Windows RT operating system and the larger version will run Windows 8 Pro OS, which is specifically for business users.
“It embodies hardware and software working together. People who want to work and play,” Steve Ballmer said.
“The Surface is a PC, the Surface is a tablet, and the Surface is something new that we think people will absolutely love,” he said during a presentation in a Hollywood design studio.
However, price and release date are yet to be announced, but it is likely to go on sale at the end of this year with a retail price “competitive with a comparable ARM tablet or Intel Ultrabook-class computers,” Microsoft’s spokesperson said.
The tablet features a 10.6 inch high-definition screen while including a 32 or 64 gigabytes of memory. Equipped with Windows 8 Pro, it has full size USB 2.0 ports, a huge integrated kickstand and weighs just 903 grams.
Inclusion of 5 mm-thick Type Cover along with moving keys gives a touch of traditional typing. The device contains a magnesium case and a detachable keyboard and trackpad, and is held on with the help of magnets.
“With Windows 8 we don’t want to leave any seam uncovered; we wanted to give it its own hardware innovation,” Ballmer said. “It’s something new, something different, a whole new family of computing devices from Microsoft.”
While comparing the previous record of Microsoft, the software giant wasn’t successful in launching its own hardware products and has usually left the making of hardware to partners like Hewlett Packard or Dell. However, its Xbox video gaming system is still dominating the market.
