14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has slowly moved from the world’s number one software giant to a devices and services company and then to a firm that’s fully focused on a mobile first, cloud first approach, pretty much due to the reorganization process that took place in the last couple of years.
In search for a new identity, Microsoft switched the focus from what it does best, software, to new and unexplored sides of the IT industry. Tablets were completely new for Microsoft two years ago, while rivals from Google, Apple, Samsung, and others were already selling millions of units every year.
But Microsoft, guided by Steve Ballmer, wanted its very own share of the tablet market and brought out the Surface RT, a completely new device that was powered by Windows RT and was said to include the best of two worlds in order to replace the traditional laptop.
It pretty much failed to do that and sales remained really low, despite Microsoft’s aggressive marketing push all over the world. Truth is, dancing ads which barely show the tablet can hardly convince users to buy a device they do not know…
Surface RT marked the first fail in the tablet industry
Surface RT sales went so bad that after its first year on the market, Microsoft had to announce a $900 million (680 million euro) write-down which was necessary in order to adjust inventories and pay for the unsold units across the world.
Nevertheless, Microsoft continued to launch more and more Surface models before eventually presenting the Surface Pro 3, a brand new device which was again supposed to replace your laptop.
The Surface Pro 3 is a real mobile powerhorse, as it comes with Intel Core i3, i5, or i7 CPU, up to 8 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage. The only drawback? It costs $1,950 (1,500 euro) in the United States, which makes it quite a really expensive device, especially for end users.
Back in October 2012 when it introduced the Surface RT and Windows 8, Steve Ballmer promised that the next few months would bring quite an avalanche of devices running its modern operating system at incredibly low prices.
Partners weren’t really receptive to these plans and many actually focused on their own projects, so only a few Windows 8 devices reached the market at that time.
With Windows 8.1, Microsoft again promised the very same thing, but this time more partners expressed their intention to bring devices running the updated modern platform to the market. And in order to make its tablet-oriented OS a product OEMs couldn’t refuse, Redmond removed licensing fees. Windows 8.1 with Bing is now available free of charge for companies brining affordable devices to the market with a price of $250 (180 euro and below).
And it seems that things are indeed going in the right direction. The last couple of months brought us several very affordable tablets, including the Toshiba Encore Mini, available for $119 (90 euro), and the Emdoor 8-inch tablet, sold for just $100 (73 euro).
Not great hardware, but bringing the power of Windows 8.1
As expected, none come with state-of-the-art hardware, but they’re really great for those seeking basic functionality on a Windows 8.1 tablet, such as browsing, watching movies, emails on the go, and better battery.
Microsoft’s Surface has always been about excellent quality and high performance. Hence the big prices not only for the Pro 3, but for all the other models.
If it wants to bring in more users in the tablet industry, Microsoft doesn’t need to launch tablets that are so powerful that they can be used in a nuclear station, because the final price would get close to the one of a blue diamond. What Microsoft actually needs is a device that appeals to more users.
At this point, Microsoft’s Surface tablets aren’t quite aimed at consumers, but more at enterprises and organizations that want and need to enhance the productivity of their employees. Panos Panay himself, the man in charge of the Surface unit at Microsoft, admitted at the May 20 Surface Pro 3 launch event that the new tablet wasn’t aimed at each and everyone of us.
This is where Microsoft needs to invest. A cheaper tablet that could compete with Android slates and offer the power of Windows 8.1 could be the key to success in this saturated market.
For Microsoft, building a $100 (€78.8) tablet shouldn’t be too hard, and even though hardware isn’t the key focus on such a device, there’s no doubt that Redmond has what it takes to make such an affordable unit flawlessly perform the tasks that 90 percent of the consumers do every day.
If it hopes to become a strong competitor in the tablet industry, Microsoft does not need to compete with Apple. Expensive devices built with attention to details isn’t quite the best way to tackle the tablet industry because we all know who’s going to win.
In fact, Microsoft needs to challenge cheap Android devices more than anything else, and waiting for partners to do it isn’t quite the best idea. Microsoft must take the project in its own hands and create a device that for $100 can do more than any Android tablet out there. Just because it has Windows.
I have absolutely no doubt that Satya Nadella knows this. But does Microsoft have the know-how to build such a cheap device and appeal to the masses?