Does the Surface cut it as a machine for developers?
Since they now offer double the memory and increased the storage options, yes!
Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
141–150 of 255 posts
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#142Earlier quoted context omitted.
Even if you do that, you still can't run your desktop apps on the ARM model. I really don't want to explain to luddite relatives why they can't run a game unless they buy the more expensive model. Either ban desktop apps on both models, or neither.
Rosetta worked pretty well.
Emulating an x86 on an ARM like the Tegra 4 would probably result in a pretty unsatisfying experience. Apple was doing the opposite: Emulating a processor with worse single threaded performance and (arguably) a simpler ISA.
The alternative is a full port of Win32, which I imagine Microsoft considered and rejected. Even after they incurred all the time and development cost, ISVs would still have to at least recompile.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#143Why, oh why is there no version with 3G/LTE? That is by far the biggest bummer, imho. For people that are on the road a lot that makes such a difference, and pretty much all other tablets offer that option, so it seems really lame to not have that. Also, if I spent $1800 for a Surface Pro in the best configuration, I really would expect it to have the same connectivity as a iPad mini... Other than that, this seems li…
Because a small fraction of people buy it, and a smaller fraction of purchasers turn it on. I've bought (and given away) four iPads with Verizon LTE. Exactly 0 people activated it. This is old data, but in line with newer data I've seen WRT iPad activation rates: http://tabletquest.com/2011/02/disappointing-apple-ipad-3g-a...
There isn't a great story for dropping one more device - the phone. And that story is quite unlikely since you wouldn't want to carry your tablet with you on a night out, etc. I could see myself using this and dropping my phone if I never did things like out of band experiences. I'd eventually have enough situations per year where I wanted my phone, not my tablet, that I'd end up with a phone - but maybe I'd live with a 3-5 year old phone for that...
The wife would not like to see the tablet around 100% of the time since, with LTE, it'd be a physical extension more than PC's and the phone are now.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#144Dear Microsoft: Out of ARM and x86, choose one. Just choose one. For the love of god, choose ONE. Can you imagine Apple, or anyone else, deliberately releasing two different tablets, with the same name, which can not run each others' software? It is inconceivable, and for good reason. MS cannot make decisions. That's what will kill them, long term. Just choose one!!
Why does Apple get a pass on this? They have just taken the alternative approach of fracturing their OS and hardware. It's natural because of where they started (iPod -> iPhone -> iPad), so this isn't a criticism. As a consequence, this is one area where MS is ahead of Apple (even if MS is having difficulties reconciling the tablet vs. desktop experience). MS has touch on the desktop. When is Apple going to have touc…
>Why does Apple get a pass on this?
Here's why: Last November when the iPad Mini and the iPad 4 launched, Apple sold 3 million iPads over the weekend. Surface has sold about 1.7 million devices total since it launched. http://bgr.com/2013/07/31/microsoft-surface-sales-2013/
It's hard to argue with success.
>As a consequence, this is one area where MS is ahead of Apple
The numbers seem to disagree with you. The reason Apple doesn't put touch on their Macbooks is cause no one wants it.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#145Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's relatively significant for a nitpick, "The 128 GB version has approximately 85 GB free hard disk space." per http://www.microsoft.com/surface/en-gb/support/storage-files... That's probably a combination of OS and the doublespeak/marketing definition of gigabyte though.
Just like the Macbook Air with it's 128GB SSD has a bunch of it taken up OS X when you get the device? I look at the surface pro as microsoft's macbook air equivalent.
I'd say the Ultrabook family is Microsoft's macbook air equivalent. I'm a big fan of the Samsung Series 9, and I don't think I could go back to a bulkier form factor for my next machine.
Disclaimer: I work at Microsoft, not in anything related.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#146Earlier quoted context omitted.
You won't regret the upgrade my friend! I'm actually thinking about buying the docking station for my Surface. I think once I get 8.1 on there and the screen scaling issues are fixed, I'll do that.
Downvoted you because this looks like astroturfing. New account, seemingly random nickname, a persona matching the target audience of this site and several postings with purely positive content and a style that doesn't look right on HN. That said, the Surface Pro 2 looks really appealing.
It's very likely obvious astroturfing. Microsoft does this a lot. Keep this incident in mind next time you hear someone extolling the virtues of Win8-style "flat design".
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#147Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why does Apple get a pass on this? They have just taken the alternative approach of fracturing their OS and hardware. It's natural because of where they started (iPod -> iPhone -> iPad), so this isn't a criticism. As a consequence, this is one area where MS is ahead of Apple (even if MS is having difficulties reconciling the tablet vs. desktop experience). MS has touch on the desktop. When is Apple going to have touc…
> Why does Apple get a pass on this? Here's why: Last November when the iPad Mini and the iPad 4 launched, Apple sold 3 million iPads over the weekend. Surface has sold about 1.7 million devices total since it launched. http://bgr.com/2013/07/31/microsoft-surface-sales-2013/ It's hard to argue with success. > As a consequence, this is one area where MS is ahead of Apple The numbers seem to disagree with you. The reas…
That's a false argument. These are separate points of discussion. You're arguing that they're right because they were first to market in a new space and have achieved significant momentum. Momentum is just that. They've been riding on it for a while. The last significant innovation was iPad, which was just an evolution of the one real innovation: iPhone. That's only going to carry them so far. Android is eating their market share while Apple is extracting what they can from this momentum and iterating on a theme.
I think Apple's products are great. Their ID is fantastic. Their developer ecosystem leaves much to be desired. The fact that I no longer buy their products due to their closed nature (and, by extension, their philosophy for the future: closed, controlled, and owned) does not take away from my admiration of the company from a product and engineering perspective.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#148I like keeping the price of RT down, and giving a middle option between it and Pro. I'm interested in Haswell reviews, including the power/heat levels. I just can't justify $900 when I could get an Ultrabook with more power for a little more. I guess that is just the price you pay for form factor.
A coworker's wife has a Surface Pro, and the heat it generates is her #1 complaint.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#149Dear Microsoft: Out of ARM and x86, choose one. Just choose one. For the love of god, choose ONE. Can you imagine Apple, or anyone else, deliberately releasing two different tablets, with the same name, which can not run each others' software? It is inconceivable, and for good reason. MS cannot make decisions. That's what will kill them, long term. Just choose one!!
> which can not run each others' software?
Actually Windows 8 can run anything Windows RT can run. The opposite isn't true however, since there's no way to write a desktop (x86/Win32) application for Windows RT.
Re: Microsoft’s Hardware, Round 2: Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2
#150Earlier quoted context omitted.
Cygwin + MinTTY can make Windows bearable, but, if you have already moved to Mac, why bother? OSX combined to MacPorts makes for a very functional development environment. The only very specific downside is that it won't run Visual Studio. BTW, can the Pro 2 run Linux?
if you have already moved to Mac, why bother? Because there is no Surface Pro 2 equivalent that will run OSX. And by "run OSX" I mean "made by Apple" because there's no other way to run it. And I doubt very much that the Pro 2 can do Linux well - can any tablets? I'd be interested to know the state of Linux touch interfaces/drivers.
Surface Pro 1 ran Linux just fine.
Its a full laptop. Why wouldn't Surface Pro2 run linux?