14 DAY TRIAL // Back in July, when Acer expressed its misgivings with Microsoft's decision to enter the tablet market, the company's founder was fairly restrained, but that cannot be said about the CEO.
As it happens, the Chief Executive Officer, J.T. Wang, decided to be much more blunt when it spoke to Financial Times.
Where Stan Shih urged Microsoft to back out of the hardware market after they got what they wanted, Wang said it shouldn't enter the hardware market at all.
The man did phrase it as a polite request, but that did not make the message any less challenging.
The first half of his argument reiterates existing fears that the Surface will threaten the existing ecosystem and alienate OEMs. The second part essentially tells Microsoft that it just isn't good at hardware.
"We have said think it over. Think twice," Wang reportedly said. "It will create a huge negative impact for the ecosystem and other brands may take a negative reaction. It is not something you are good at so please think twice."
Acer's veiled enmity isn't the only problem that Microsoft has been facing in its quest to become a supplier of own-brand slates.
The corporation is also finding it difficult to secure a satisfactory inventory of magnesium cases for the consumer electronic device.
Not only that, but Microsoft, in its attempt to give its device good initial odds, has a very short list of partners allowed to unleash Windows RT ARM-based slates in the fourth quarter.
HP and Dell may have managed to get on board without excluding one another, but that doesn't change the fact that only a handful of different models will be available in October/November.
It is only a small consolation that the first quarter of 2013 will allow other brands to try their hand at the segment.