Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

windowscentral.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

51–60 of 84 posts

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#51

Post by nextos »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #46
nextos wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's really excellent harware. But sadly it's not very usable in Linux yet [1]. I'd love to use a fanless Surface with a tiling window manager as my daily driver. But it comes nowhere close to my MBA 2012 (used by Linus for sometime) in terms of Linux compatibility. Almost perfect with a stock kernel except for really minor problems (no battery ACPI ticks when it discharges). [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/surfacelinux

Linux support is, as you say, non-existent. That might be better with the new Dell Skylake laptops. That said, I've never found a pen-aware Linux sketching program that had any utility and I don't have the time to write one.

Perhaps also with the new X1 tablet?

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#52

Post by fumar »

wstrange wrote: post #34

My wife switched to a SP3 from a macbook, because it looked like a very compelling device. It lost all bluetooth and wifi - 4 months out of warranty (hardware issue). From googling - this was not a completely uncommon occurrence. Yes - we should have gotten the extended warranty, but this was an expensive device, and we expected quality hardware that would last. From a usability perspective, it is a device that is in…

I believe most SP3's should still have hardware warranty, I purchased mine at a few months out of launch and still has it. I would ping customer support or take it a Microsoft Store.

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#53

Post by coldtea »

>Microsoft pulls in an impressive $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

Really? Impressive for whom? 1.3B is less than what Apple made with the iWatch -- and that's after decades of MS losing money and trying to go somewhere with their table OS and then tablet offerings.

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#54

Post by potatolicious »

TheWiseOne wrote: post #39
mythz wrote: post #11

iPad: 7.1B - doomed category Surface Pro/Books: 1.35B - super impressive, categories of the future!

Isn't it wrong to compare the Surface to the iPad? One is a full fledged pc with a complete operating system and the other is primarily a consumption device. I think it makes more sense to compare the Surface line to the MacBook Air than it does to compare it to iPads.

They are comparable IMO, but it really only goes to show that software largely matters more than hardware.

After some early missteps it looks like MSFT has finally gotten the "tablet as productivity device" right, along with "tablet as true laptop replacement".

Much of this is because of Windows as a platform rather than necessarily the hardware itself (though the fact that the hardware doesn't suck like your typical Dell or HP shitbox definitely helps a lot).

Which is to say, the declining fortunes of iPad is IMO largely a symptom of iOS's limitations rather than any larger rejection of the tablet form factor.

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#55

Post by coldtea »

vilmosi wrote: post #36
poopsintub wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a bit subjective since one company had huge market share out of the gate and invented the category, while the other keeps releasing 'new' products, years later. So yes, there's growth for now. For Wall Street, growth is pretty much key.

Why is it that when MS makes a "new" product and category, you put it in quotations, yet when Apple does it, you don't? Your approach to these companies is hypocritical at best. At least MS is trying to invent a new category these days. >>> had huge market share out of the gate That's just wrong.

>Why is it that when MS makes a "new" product and category, you put it in quotations, yet when Apple does it, you don't?

Because one dominates and defines the market, as can be seen by any before and after, and the other is just putting out some products few people care about.

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#56

Post by coldtea »

MaysonL wrote: post #2

Impressive indeed! Over 19% of Apple's iPad revenue.

So managing to sell 20% of a competitors revenue, in a category where you were present 5+ years before said competitor, and after 5 years after the competitor redefined the category and created a huge multi-billion market for it (which it never had before) that they totally dominated, is impressive?

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#57

Post by mpweiher »

stephengoodwin wrote: post #9
ArnoldP wrote: post #3

They certainly did something right, though I'm not quite sure what it was. A few years back, you couldn't step in front of an undergrad class here (Canada) without being subject to a wall of glowing bitten apples staring at you, now at least a quarter I'd estimate are those surface tablets. Who knew people would take a chance on laptop that doesn't work when on your lap.

> being subject to a wall of glowing bitten apples staring at you Remarkable imagery.

Yep, it conjures up "angry" without saying it, nicely done! :-)

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#58

Post by orbitingpluto »

One thing I want to know from Surface Book owners is whether the keyboard can be configured for smoother productivity.

Naviagational (Home/PgUp/PgDown/End) and volume keys are on by default meaning that you have to press the Fn-Alt-Function Key if you want to use Alt-Function. The problem with that is that an independent Fn press will lock out the function key, toggling the behaviour so that Function Keys are now the default.

I would like it if LAlt-FunctionKey was different behaviour from RAlt-FunctionKey. LAlt-F4 would close a program while RAlt-Function Key would change the volume. The requirement to use the Fn Key and the fact that the Fn can be locked (and easily and accidentally unlocked/locked again) is a serious usability issue.

Actually I'd prefer a full real keyboard... nevertheless the Surface Book and the SP4 keyboards are massive improvements.

Moreover, does anyone know if the undocking button next to the Delete key can be locked out, say, requiring a key combination instead?

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#59

Post by makecheck »

A general accounting question...do all companies count revenue the same way for scenarios like:

- Product is purchased by store.

- Customer actually buys product.

- Customer returns product.

- Unsold product is returned by store.

In other words, I don't know how to compare this to anything else because I don't know if it's counting units that didn't reach real customers, or if the announcement would be a lot different two weeks from now after some people return their Christmas presents?

Re: Microsoft pulls in $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

#60

Post by bitmapbrother »

>Microsoft pulls in an impressive $1.35B in revenue for Surface line

Why don't they publish the profit they made on their Surface line of products? This is a lot like the revenue they reported for Azure. Until we know what they actually made these numbers are of very little value.

Post reply on HN