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| Surface for Windows RT just $199? |
| By Thom Holwerda on 2012-08-14 15:36:41 |
| "According to an inside source, a session was held at Microsoft's recent TechReady15 conference in which all the launch details were laid out. If things go according to the plan detailed then, the Surface for Windows RT tablet will be launching October 26th - no surprise there - at a compelling price of $199." My wallet just squealed in pure bliss. |
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| RE: Comment by ilovebeer |
| By galvanash on 2012-08-14 23:24:20 |
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Its kind of different when everyone in the market is doing it too... Microsoft was losing something around $60 per sale originally, where as Sony was losing around $200. Nintendo actually made a small profit, and their strategy worked for a while (cheap low-performance hardware with innovative controllers) but soon ran out of steam and everyone else took their key advantage away. Now Wiis are just cheap... Anyway, none of them were competing with a company who routinely operates on a 60% gross margin... Apple is pricing proof, they have demonstrated that repeatedly. You can't price yourself into competition with them - their customers don't care about you having a better price. You have to have a better product. Maybe the surface is a better product, but if this rumor is true it isn't priced like it is... |
 - Score: 1 |
| RE[3]: At no price... |
| By rikkirakk on 2012-08-14 23:39:15 |
| GOOGL€... Andr¤id |
| - Score: 2 |
| RE: RT - will it run anything |
| By westlake on 2012-08-15 00:12:49 |
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> I guess it would be compelling if you are already into the Microsoft archipelago Win RT includes Office Home and Studenr. The best selling software package ever for the OSX and Windows platforms. |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE: Dumb Move |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-08-15 00:46:52 |
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> Part of the reason that developers flock to Apple devices is that they are not cheap. I think you mean vain tech hipsters, not developers. It's economics that attracts developers, not the consumer price of the platform. We've seen this with game consoles where the cheaper option (ps2 vs xbox) gets more developer support simply because the install bsae is larger. > They should come out at $499 and fight for the 2 or 3 years it will take to get some traction That would be foolish. Apple can get away with overpricing hardware because it has tricked enough people into believing that the hardware is magically special and not from the same Chinese sweatshops as everything else. Kindle has done the best against the iPad and the $200 price tag is a major part. Through marketing Apple has convinced millions it is a premium brand. Microsoft's marketing department is terrible and couldn't use the same strategy. |
| - Score: 3 |
| RE: Comment by ilovebeer |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-08-15 00:58:06 |
|
People had all kinds of negative nonsense to say when the Kin was introduced at a loss. Microsoft laughed to the bank on that one ........ oh wait. Microsoft has a hit and miss history with hardware. For every Kinect there is a Zune. Do I think they can sell subsidized surface tablets? Sure. Do I think this makes their "one interface everywhere" plan any less stupid? No. Do I think their profits and stock will take a dive from a lack of upgrades compared to previous iterations of Windows? Yes. |
| - Score: -1 |
| RE[2]: Comment by ilovebeer |
| By ilovebeer on 2012-08-15 01:40:35 |
|
> Do I think their profits and stock will take a dive from a lack of upgrades compared to previous iterations of Windows? Yes. What do you consider taking a dive? |
| - Score: 3 |
| Great deal.... for a reason |
| By benali72 on 2012-08-15 01:43:10 |
|
The low price is a reflection of Microsoft's desperation. If Surface doesn't get a significant chunk of the market quickly after entering, it's all over for MS in the tablet space. This is a great deal for you, at the risk of buying a product that could soon be orphaned. |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE[2]: Dumb Move |
| By galvanash on 2012-08-15 02:43:36 |
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Also... http://arstechnica.com/informati... There is another armchair CEO who writes for Ars that agrees with me... He isn't anonymous - maybe that will sway you :) Seriously though, read this bit - he says it better than I could: > But perhaps the most significant reason of all not to price Surface RT at $199 is that once that decision is made, there's no going back. The price of a 10" Windows RT tablet will be two hundred bucks—or less—forever. ---snipped a bit for brevity--- Tablets are unlikely to be able to buck this trend. While a $199 Surface RT would leave the door open to pricier devices sporting, for example, 13" screens, more internal storage, or 3G connectivity, it still doesn't leave much wriggle-room, and would yield no profit with which to fund future developments. Bolding is mine... |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE[2]: Dumb Move |
| By galvanash on 2012-08-15 03:30:04 |
|
> I think you mean vain tech hipsters, not developers. It's economics that attracts developers, not the consumer price of the platform. We've seen this with game consoles where the cheaper option (ps2 vs xbox) gets more developer support simply because the install bsae is larger. Tablets are not consoles. It matters a whole helluvalot to be cheap when your market demographic is pimple faced kids and twenty somethings... Consoles are pure home entertainment devices. They don't have to be well crafted, no one cares. They don't have to use good materials - they end up hiding on a shelf in an entertainment center, plastic is perfectly fine. People don't hold them in their hands (well, except for the controllers). They have 5+ year product cycles (current one being much longer) to recover sunk costs through licensing. Business people don't buy them. Executives don't buy them. Doctors don't buy them. Totally different demographic. If you think Microsoft can market a tablet like a console your crazy. It won't work. > > They should come out at $499 and fight for the 2 or 3 years it will take to get some traction That would be foolish. Apple can get away with overpricing hardware because it has tricked enough people into believing that the hardware is magically special and not from the same Chinese sweatshops as everything else. Kindle has done the best against the iPad and the $200 price tag is a major part. http://paidcontent.org/2012/08/1... Yep, Kindle is doing great! They are losing marketshare even with their stellar price point, and they probably have to sell 25 of them to make as much money as Apple makes on a single sale... Brilliant strategy! |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE: Great deal.... for a reason |
| By galvanash on 2012-08-15 03:32:51 |
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> This is a great deal for you, at the risk of buying a product that could soon be orphaned. ...and that is exactly what potential developers will think if they price it that low. It's suicide. |
| - Score: 1 |
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