
Slate sticker shock: Asus Windows 7 tablet priced at $999 - abennett
http://www.itworld.com/mobile-amp-wireless/132543/slate-sticker-shock-asus-windows-7-tablet-priced-999
======
cryptoz
Wow, Microsoft still doesn't get it. Most people don't want stock Windows on a
tablet! This is the reason MS has failed in tablets for a decade already; they
refuse to change the OS to fit the tablet form factor.

Sure, there are a few devs and nerds who'd like Windows on a tablet, but the
casual user definitely does not. That's why iPad won so early: nobody would
have bought one if it ran stock OS X. The buttons would be too small and the
whole thing would feel clunky.

The price of this thing doesn't matter, really. It'll fail as a mass-market
device, while it'll probably sell a few to businesses and nerds.

~~~
jbrennan
Exactly. And what's really sad is all this talk of "Windows on ARM" when
they've already got a new ARM-based OS that's quite nice for phones (WP7). I
just don't understand why WP7 isn't their flagship "mobile" OS (phones,
tablets, and beyond). It just seems like a no-brainer.

~~~
contextfree
IIRC they get something like $15 for each Windows Phone OEM license and
something like $50 for each full Windows OEM license. That's probably a big
part of the reason they'd prefer to stick with full Windows in as many markets
as possible.

~~~
rbanffy
I think it's important to note they could sell more than 3x more $15 licenses
than $50 licenses.

You have a potential success with a low margin and certain doom with a high
margin. Which one would you choose?

~~~
cstross
Apple: 12% of the total personal computer market in the USA. 92% of the high-
end (over $999) personal computer market, which is around 10% of the total.

If you're going to have 10% of the market, which would you rather have -- the
bottom 10% or the top 10%?

(I'll concede your point about the choice between potential success/certain
doom for Microsoft in the tablet field, but Microsoft obviously doesn't see it
that way: they see it as a choice between success and success, and obviously
they want the more lucrative version.)

~~~
rbanffy
> they see it as a choice between success and success

And that is absolutely baffling. It will be studied for decades after
Microsoft is gone and be the ground upon countless doctoral theses are built.

~~~
cstross
Two words: "corporate groupthink".

Microsoft won't be the first huge company to succumb as a result of adhering
to the very outlook that made them big in the first place. (Anyone else
remember IBM in the run-up to 1994?)

------
dpcan
It's $300 more than an iPad. Sticker shock? Really?

It has USB ports. It runs Windows 7. For guys like me who are all Windows,
this doesn't seem high priced at all.

Sure, it would be nice if it were $699, but it has Windows. For me, it's like
having a tablet with all the comforts of home. All my programs (apps), all my
browsers, all the control! (yay)

It requires a stylus too - which some of us big fingered dudes really miss.

EDIT: I've never touched the thing or seen it live, just checked out the tech
specs. Maybe there's better / cheaper stuff out there.

~~~
ghshephard
For those who are scratching their heads -please read the ParentPost in the
manner that it was meant - carefully crafted and worded satire. Only on HN
will it get the audience it deserves. Upvoted. "It requires a stylus too which
some of us big fingered dudes really miss" :-)

~~~
randallsquared
Er, the stylus thing is not entirely off the mark. My N900 has a stylus, and
there are programs I cannot use without it (notably, the web browser is nigh
useless without it, since text that's perfectly comfortable for reading means
links that are way too small to hit reliably with a finger). So, a stylus
actually can be a point in its favor.

~~~
roc
Another way to look at that state of affairs is: the required stylus is a
point _against_ the n900's browser.

Styluses, particularly for navigation, have been rejected by the market. So
relying upon them is simply a bad idea if you dare to dream of outperforming
anything in the graveyard of Windows-Tablets-Past.

~~~
jsnell
I've got small hands, and really hated using the browser on an iPhone due to
how easy it was to click the wrong link by mistake on any sites that don't
have an separate version optimized for mobiles. Switching to a Nexus 1 from an
iPhone 3G was worth it just for the trackball. Unfortunately the Nexus S
removed the trackball, making it a downgrade over the N1 as a whole :-(

It's a sad world when solving the problem counts as a black mark, while
putting your hands over the ears and singing la-la-la-there is no problem
counts as good user experience and paying attention to detail.

~~~
roc
> _"really hated using the browser on an iPhone due to how easy it was to
> click the wrong link by mistake"_

You know you can zoom the page effortlessly and be sure the tap is properly
placed amongst a group of links, right?

~~~
bryanlarsen
Sure, I can zoom effortlessly, but it would be a lot easier if I didn't have
to, since that also involves zooming back out and scrolling the page once you
go back. 4 steps instead of 1.

Except when you zoom way in and still miss, because what you're clicking on is
a javascript implicit trigger right beside an explicit link, so the browser
tries to be helpful and assumes you really wanted the explicit link.

I used to browse on my N810 a lot, and now use a Nexus S or an iPhone. The
switch to a capacitive screen had many benefits and was the right move, but I
sometimes do miss the accuracy of the old resistive screens.

~~~
roc
I used to browse on my n800 a lot. I now browse on my iPhone a _lot_ more.
Because the convenience, rendering, panning and zooming far, far outweigh the
lost accuracy of the stylus.

~~~
bryanlarsen
Sure, but a large part of that is because the current generation of browsers
on current hardware is a LOT faster. On the n810 you had hardware buttons to
zoom, so it's not as if that was less convenient interface wise, it was
inconvenient because it was slow.

------
trotsky
Eee slate: 12.1" 1280×800, 2GB ram, Core i5, 32G SSD, Windows 7 home premium:
$999

Eee pad MeMO: 7.1" 600×1024, 512MB RAM, dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm ARM, 4GB
Flash (?), Android 3.0 Honeycomb $499

Looks about right to me. What about Sony Vaio Z sticker shock - costs 4x as
much as Vaio M netbook?

~~~
tptacek
Isn't the point that Apple would never be dumb enough to sell a Macbook
without the keyboard?

~~~
lukeschlather
The article omits that the tablet's screen is Wacom, which is easily worth the
markup in price.

Actually, I'm surprised Apple doesn't have a Macbook without the keyboard
aimed at graphics people. Graphic design is supposed to be Apple's core
competency, and it seems like they're rapidly losing ground to Microsoft. Of
course, Apple's new market seems to be earning them plenty of money.

------
wvenable
I wonder if Apple released the 16GB iPad just so that every article would
compare every competing tablet device to that $499 price.

iPads range from $499 to $829.

------
gacba
I just posted an article about this whole issue today:
<http://www.lessonsoffailure.com/companies/2011-year-ipad/>, although I missed
this tidbit in the article and it would have been nice to mention.

2011 will be the year Apple basically takes the entire (tablet) market for
itself since everyone else is clueless or incompetent to date...And woe be to
those arriving late to the party.

~~~
cryptoz
> 2011 will be the year Apple basically takes the entire (tablet) market for
> itself

I don't know about that. I think 2010 was the year Apple did that, and 2011 is
going to be the year that Android and iOS compete in the tablet market. With
Gingerbread tablets coming out some time in the next few months at competitive
prices, I think Apple will see some healthy competition. (Microsoft, of
course, will not be a part of that healthy competition.)

~~~
gacba
I think by year's end, there might be some competition, but as I argued in the
blog post, that competition isn't there today and doesn't look to be coming
for at least 6-9 months. That's why I claim 2011 is the year Apple dominates.
2010 they clearly did, too.

~~~
bryanlarsen
Release date for the Motorola Droid Xoom is currently scheduled for
Valentine's Day. Sure, it may slip, but I'd certainly take a bet that said
less than 3 months.

------
frooxie
If the Wacom stylus is high precision, then this is a much cheaper and better
alternative to Wacoms Cintiq line. I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

------
wccrawford
The only real problem that I see is the interface. I have a Windows tablet. XP
was pretty bad, 7 is a little better... Neither are anywhere close to the
usability of IOS or Android.

But I'll be honest... I got a combo laptop/tablet with touch-sensitive pen and
figure support both for $1200. Base price was $900. Why would I pay more for
just a tablet?

------
endtime
The article's a bit silly. The author may be right that this product will
fail, but in general Windows 7 is far more powerful than iOS or Android. The
range of apps/games/tools/etc. accessible on a desktop OS dwarfs even that of
the App Store. I don't know if people want that power on a tablet, but it is
obviously greater power.

~~~
cryptoz
> but in general Windows 7 is far more powerful than iOS or Android.

Not in this context it's not. How's the built-in support for multitouch
gestures for things like maps, image editing, zooming, etc? How is the support
for app discovery? How do users find new _trusted_ apps that are designed for
the device? What about built-in support for accelerometers and compasses? And
does Windows have a GPS application to show your location on a map?

Maybe it does have all of those things and I've just never heard about it. But
I doubt it.

Regular old Windows 7 seems like a poor choice for a tablet OS.

~~~
endtime
I think it has support for some of those. Here's an article on multitouch
support in Windows 7:
[http://windowsteamblog.com/windows/archive/b/windowsvista/ar...](http://windowsteamblog.com/windows/archive/b/windowsvista/archive/2008/05/27/microsoft-
demonstrates-multi-touch.aspx) I haven't used it (or even read the article) so
I have no idea if it's any good. App discovery is the same as it is on a
regular Windows desktop, presumably - that is, less hand holding but more
freedom. I'm sure the tablet manufacturers will include drivers for whichever
sensors they embed in their tablets. Perhaps there will be some
standardization so that apps can rely on them, I don't know, that sounds like
it would be in everyone's interest. I don't really understand why you're
asking these questions, honestly...it's like you've forgotten how a full OS
works.

I guess it's a question of whether you want a big smartphone or a tablet-
shaped computer. I lean towards the latter, and I don't dispute that in
general a Windows 7 tablet is going after a different market than the iPad.

------
aresant
Apple's vertical integration advantage further reinforced.

Forbes called in in 2008:

[http://www.forbes.com/technology/2008/04/24/mitra-apple-
pase...](http://www.forbes.com/technology/2008/04/24/mitra-apple-pasemi-tech-
enter-cx_sm_0425mitra.html)

John Gruber summed it up a few weeks back:

"Today’s Apple has turned the pricing story on its head. Used to be thfe knock
against Apple was their kit was overpriced. Now, even putting quality aside,
competitors can’t match Apple’s prices."

Tablet marketplace shows most clear cut difference.

~~~
watty
Comparing this to an iOS or Android device is silly. This is running a full OS
and is not limited to an App Store. It's extremely portable being a tablet but
the difference is you can pull out a keyboard and it becomes more than a large
phone.

Edit: I think iOS and Android are great when on the run but when I'm
stationary (most of the time), I want a keyboard/mouse and full OS. If this
device could be booted into Android I'd be all over it. If iPad's could boot
into OSX when docked, I'd be all over it.

~~~
glhaynes
Seems to me that when I'm doing the kinds of things that are better on a "full
OS" (whatever that means), I'm usually going to want a real keyboard, too.

------
ugh
What’s tragic about this (at least from Microsoft’s perspective) is that
Microsoft can make a pretty good mobile OS. I have no doubt that Windows Phone
7 would have been extremely competitive if it had been released a year
earlier. They are just too damn slow and seem to lack focus.

It’s not yet sure whether Windows Phone 7 will succeed now in any way, will it
be good enough to be similarly late to tablets? They certainly must have
already started developing some sort of Windows 7 specifically for tablets (as
unlike Windows 7 as Windows Phone 7 is unlike Windows 7), everything else
would seem extremely stupid.

~~~
contextfree
They are developing some sort of Windows 7 specifically for tablets. It's
called Windows 8.

~~~
ugh
The important question is: What will they change, add or subtract? It’s
obviously not in principle wrong to take a desktop OS and turn it into a
tablet OS (Apple took OS X and turned it into iOS). I will, however, not have
high hopes if Windows 8 on the desktop looks and behaves very similar to
Windows 8 on a tablet.

------
runjake
Apple is _SO_ overprice.... err wait, what?

Seriously though. ASUS thinks they're going to sell an iPad competitor with an
OS with lackluster touch technology for twice the cost, and less than half the
battery life?

------
samratjp
Great, Microsoft built the Lexus LFA [1] of Tablets. Pseudo-sleek, super
expensive and no one knows or gives a damn about it.

[1] <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexus_LFA>

------
Charuru
It's talking about this right? [http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/04/asus-eee-
slate-ep121-offi...](http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/04/asus-eee-slate-
ep121-officially-unveiled-ips-display-core-i5-a/)

IT HAS A BUILT IN WACOM!!!

TEN times the RAM of an ipad. It runs on an i5core. This is not remotely in
the same league. The audience is not your mom and pop who only has to use
Facebook and skype, this is like a thinkpad for creative professionals.

This commentator is very ignorant.

~~~
lukeschlather
>IT HAS A BUILT IN WACOM!!!

Suddenly this tablet sounds very reasonable. A fully functional Photoshop on a
tablet would be nice. (And there's no way you'll see that on an iPad unless
they have a similar price markup.)

~~~
Lazlo_Nibble
Photoshop on a tablet without pressure-sensitive input isn't much of a step up
from Photoshop with a mouse. And in the press so far I see a lot of mentions
of pressure-sensitive input on the MeMo, but nothing about it on the Slate.

------
GrandMasterBirt
Target: Businesses. Your executives can get a tablet. It will run windows so
IT can lock it down. It will run ms outlook. It will piss people off after 2
days of using it.

Thats the strategy (xept for the last part).

I can't think of any other rationale that will keep my sanity.

