

Windows 8 Touchscreen Laptops See Slow Start - mtgx
http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2012/11/27/windows-8-touchscreen-laptops-see-slow-start/

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rayiner
The Windows 8 rollout exemplifies everything that's wrong with the PC sphere:
a bunch of compromised products, each with at least one glaring flaw. Hell,
Lenovo has four different Windows 8 convertibles and tablets, and each of them
are severely deficient in one way or another.

Most of the devices have only 1366x768 resolution. That's just not acceptable
for $600+ products when the iPad is at 2048x1536 and the Nexus 10 is at
2560x1600 at $100 and $200 less, respectively.

Several of the convertible devices (Sony's Duo, Dell's XPS 12) have severely
compromised battery life (4-5 hours). That's not acceptable when the iPad and
Nexus 10 are at 8-10 hours at half the price.

In a bizarre product segmentation choice, the 1080p screens seem to be tied to
the Ivy Bridge processors. Which means you can have iPad/Nexus-like
readability or iPad/Nexus-like battery life, but not both in the same device.

I'm really looking hard at Windows 8 because I want to consolidate to a
convertible-like device, and the iPad's lack of a mouse for Citrix remote log-
in is a problem. But the Windows 8 offerings available right now are just
really lacking to what exists in the iOS and Android realms.

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steverb
You appear to be confusing (understandably) WindowsRT and Windows 8. WindowsRT
is the OS that runs on devices intended to compete with the iPad (using ARM
processors), the only one of which I have actual knowledge of is the Surface.

Windows 8 (which is what runs on the convertibles) is the desktop OS. I
personally don't expect a full fledged laptop (especially one costing a mere
$500) to get 8 hours of battery life.

If you can get hands on a Surface (WindowsRT) device for a day or two I highly
recommend trying it out. It's quite impressive, and for my uses a better
device than the iPad. YMMV.

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rayiner
I'm not confusing the two--you're drawing a broader distinction between the
two versions than is warranted by Microsoft's own product positioning. Regular
Windows 8 is targeted at tablets too. The Samsung 700T, Acer Iconia W700, etc,
all run regular Windows 8, as will the Surface Pro.

The basic problem is that Microsoft seems to have focused on creating
artificial product differentiation instead of creating the most compelling
device possible. I was very underwhelmed by the Surface when I used it.
Microsoft left too many of the goodies for Surface Pro, and saddled Surface RT
with last-gen hardware, not to mention very "1.0" software. The
differentiation between the lines is just bizarre. If you go for the Surface
RT, you get Nexus 7-level hardware for $100 more than a Nexus 10. If you
upgrade to the Surface Pro, you get way too much processor and end up with
half the battery life. It makes no sense. What Surface should have been is a
Clovertrail-based tablet with a 1080p screen. The ability to run Office would
have justified the $100 price premium over Nexus. That would have been a very
compelling product.

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steverb
As I said, understandable confusion, and MS has done a very poor job of making
a distinction between the two. I suspect that in two to four years there will
be no distinction.

I used the Surface for a few days and was quite happy with it, but don't find
that I need a table full time. My iPad toting teens adored it and have been
complaining because their school requires the use of an iPad.

I'm waiting for the Pro, which will be slightly less processor than I want,
but I expect it will completely replace my laptop while still giving me tablet
abilities. Regular Windows 8 isn't targeted so much at tablets as it is at
touchscreen devices. Which covers tablet, laptops, and that weird huge canvas
form factor and others.

