This was inevitable. With the price of Surface RT costing US$720 (with the Touch or Type keyboard) and the Surface Pro costing an astonishing US$1 000, Microsoft had to eventually create cheaper models that more in line with what actual human beings can afford. And so, it will.
Microsoft’s chief financial bigwig Peter Klein said “We’re working closely with chip partners and OEMs to bring the right mix of devices,” (translation: we’re desperately searching for the cheapest hardware to sling Windows 8 onto). He also added that the Redmond-based giant was “looking to expand the product lineup to provide a greater variety of devices at a bigger variety of price points.” So cheaper Surface tablets for the masses. Hell yes to a US$600 Surface Pro, if wishes could come true that is. The only, and most important, information that Klein didn’t reveal were the lower prices and availability of the cheaper Surface tablets.
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Klein continues his PR spin of the dismal Surface sales: “We think of Surface as one part of the overall Windows 8 story, it highlights interesting innovation, and demonstrates tightly integrated software and hardware.” We guess you have to take the good with the bad. Good: Windows 8 is excellent on Surface Pro. Bad: It’s crappy on anything else, especially touch-based Windows 8 desktop and laptop PCs.
But Klein couldn’t hide the fact that sales have been less than stellar. “Surface has seen limited distribution this quarter, but our goal is to expand that and look forward to continuing the growth of that business.” Now here’s the skinny. Surface sales have been so weak, that Microsoft won’t even real them. And according to Businessinsider, it may never will.
The Surface Pro, which is an excellent Ultrabook-like machine ,costs as much as Apple’s entry level MacPro. US$1 000 is a lot of money to drop on a barely established device, so a price drop is not only inevitable, it’s a must.
