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Microsoft Surface
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[Jeremy Garchow] “And by the way, if people think that Microsoft isn’t in the entertainment/consumer game, I highly suggest looking at what they are doing with the XBox 360. It is “Windows 8” incarnate, and it works, and works very well. It is also a digital media hub that can connect to other computers, they even have a new iOS app to control the damn thing.
IT has it’s usual Microsoft design quirks, but over the years, it has improved.
It’s $299 and way more functional than the Hobbyist AppleTV will ever be.
“Agreed, but let’s see what the hobbyist AppleTV evolves into.
Steve Connor
“The ripple command is just a workaround for not having a magnetic timelinel”
Adrenalin Television -
[Steve Connor] “Agreed, but let’s see what the hobbyist AppleTV evolves into.”
It won’t be a media center/gaming console. It doesn’t even have a hard drive in it anymore.
It’s a front end for iCloud.
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[Steve Connor] “Agreed, but let’s see what the hobbyist AppleTV evolves into.”
Speaking of hobbyists, I’ve been curious about Apple TV since about 2010. Is it hardware only, or can you run just the software with an approved tuner/capture card? I’ve been toying with the idea of building a small media center PC for years… but have never gotten around to it.
Shawn
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[Jeremy Garchow] “It’s a front end for iCloud.”
Or any iOS or OSX device on your network.
What if they opened it up to Developers? What if you could run Apps on it, that might change it’s focus.
I’m not saying XBox isn’t great, Kinect is fantastic, add to that smart glass and you can see where their convergence plans are going. But I don’t imagine Apple are standing still in that area either.
Steve Connor
“The ripple command is just a workaround for not having a magnetic timelinel”
Adrenalin Television -
That Microsoft has very talented people I do not doubt. That they have come up with some good products, Kinect in particular is probably the most innovative to date. Xbox has been a disaster financially. For the money invested and the return they have received, I’d have to run the numbers if I could even get them but they probably would have done better buying CD’s. (Cert. Deposit not the things one plays). Overall as a company their real performance over the past 10 years has been poor at best. I just checked and in 2004 they were trading around 28. Today they are up to 31. Wow.
That they have made some innovative products. Sure. Do they have the guts to risk something that just might compete or dare I say obsolete windows. Nope. History shows us the business cemetery is full of companies that once successful could not figure out that to succeed over the long haul they have to eat their own. DEC and DG come to mind.
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[Phil Hoppes] “Do they have the guts to risk something that just might compete or dare I say obsolete windows. Nope. History shows us the business cemetery is full of companies that once successful could not figure out that to succeed over the long haul they have to eat their own. DEC and DG come to mind.”
On the flip side, Microsoft offers something that Apple, for example, does not — platform stability.
If you doubt the business value of this, just look around this forum. We’re still discussing Apple’s sudden self-disruption from last year.
Disruptive innovation grabs all the headlines, but consistency and stability is highly valuable for both third-party partners (developers) and end users (us).
For every company you list that has failed due to disruption, there is another that has succeeded through continuous improvement. I try to avoid car analogies (the wheels always fall off) — but consider the Henry Ford faster-horse quote that comes up every so often here. The Model T was introduced back in 1908, and continuous improvement moreso than disruptive innovation has kept Ford in the personal transportation game for over 100 years. Not a bad run.
As an aside, I’d argue that Microsoft is actually pretty good about changing course sharply. The Mac didn’t kill Microsoft in 1984. The Internet didn’t kill Microsoft in 1998. Mobility is today’s challenge, but Metro is actually a pretty good platform to try to compete with.
For a company that started out writing a BASIC interpreter, they’ve also branched out into operating systems, office suites, server products, groupware, mobility, entertainment, enterprise solutions, and cloud computing (and apparently iCloud actually runs in part on Microsoft Azure).
Apple crafts brilliant user experiences, no doubt — but their current market valuation is built largely on their new-found dominance in the very fickle consumer electronics and mobility markets. I think iCloud is attempt to build lock-in to make the position they enjoy today a bit more sustainable, but for the moment, it’s possible that Apple is just the flavor of the month. No matter what they do, they are just as prone to outside disruption as any other firm.
Microsoft is not flashy like Apple is, but given their track record, I think it’s a mistake to count them out of any market.
Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events -
Looked at the specs and wanted to buy one. Looked at the video and I just wanted it to stop. (but that didn’t really change my mind about wanting to but one.)
Tim
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I definitely want the Pro version – since it runs the full version of Windows 8 and has a keyboard I will be able to use it to write – something that is a painful experience on the iPad. I bought the 64GB iPad3 and while I loved the retina display the 5 or 6 screenwriting apps that are available are all terrible. Sadly I took it back and got a Toshiba Ultrabook and loaded up Final Draft 8. Now I’ll get the best features of an unltrabook and a tablet powered by an i5 CPU! This means I could load up Sony Vegas or Premiere Pro and even do some editing!
Lance Bachelder
Writer, Editor, Director
Irvine, California -
[TImothy Auld] “Looked at the specs and wanted to buy one. Looked at the video and I just wanted it to stop. (but that didn’t really change my mind about wanting to but one.)”
LOL. I had pretty much the same reaction.
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[Lance Bachelder] “I will be able to use it to write – something that is a painful experience on the iPad”
Agreed. As clever as it is to be able to type on glass, I don’t really like it.
[Lance Bachelder] “Now I’ll get the best features of an unltrabook and a tablet powered by an i5 CPU! This means I could load up Sony Vegas or Premiere Pro and even do some editing!
“Yup! I’m hoping the USB 3 slot will be fully operable, and that the display port out will host a 2nd screen. If Premiere will work, cool–but it also might provide a useful niche for Prelude.
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