So did the zunes that people bought stopped working after Microsoft said it was no longer selling any? Portable devices like these don't have a lifespan beyond 4-5 years these days and a company stopping hardware sales has nothing to do with the product already sold.
Besides in case of Surface software running is Windows OS which has been around for a few decades and the premise of Microsoft abandoning that is ridiculous.
Ecosystem matters, especially content/apps. ARM-based Surface tablets can NOT run existing windows software, so they've got something to prove in this space.
But the possibility that a device might not be a hit and hence abandoned in a few years might deter developers from developing apps for that device, thus reducing it's value. For a product like tablet, apps are especially important part of the overall experience.
Exactly. Look at the Touchpad and Playbook for examples.
Just because a product "works" after being killed doesn't mean it'll do what you want/need it to. The iPad is a safe play, it'll have new apps for the foreseeable future. The Surface (particularly the RT model) is very much up in the air.
Both touchpad and playbook failed because the platform ecosystem failed. You are equating Surface the device to Windows the platform ecosystem. One is unproven the other has been the most vibrant platform there ever has been.
It's not the device its the software, the platform. Surface is just a device. Maybe it will succeed, may be it will fail but windows as a platform has been there an will be there as long as Microsoft is around. An app for surface is not limited to Surface it can run on millions of other PCs that run Windows 8.
Besides in case of Surface software running is Windows OS which has been around for a few decades and the premise of Microsoft abandoning that is ridiculous.