“Microsoft [yesterday] revealed its Surface tablet pricing,” John C. Dvorak writes for PC Magazine. “The 32GB is $499 with no keyboard or an additional $119 to $129 (depending on the color) bundled with the cover, which probably costs all of $7 to manufacture in China. The loaded 64GB model comes with a cover for $699.”
“Yes, if this was an Apple product, it would be priced similarly,” Dvorak writes. “But it isn’t, and to compete with an Apple product, it must be priced aggressively lower. Apple always prices at a premium. It has made an art out of premium prices. Microsoft has not and cannot price the same way. To make matters worse, the prices are for the ARM-based RT tablet.”
Dvorak writes, “Who knows how costly the actual Windows 8 version will be… Microsoft has made the rookie mistake of pricing the product too high initially. I assure you it will quickly lower the cost, which will make the public think, ‘Oh, it must not be selling. It must be a dog. I won’t buy one now.'”
Enjoy John’s rare moment of lucidity in the full article here.
Related articles:
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Microsoft airs first TV ad for Surface tablet (with video) – October 15, 2012
Apple’s ‘iPad mini’ to obliterate Microsoft’s Windows 8, Surface RT tablet launches – October 13, 2012
Acer CEO to Microsoft: ‘Think twice’ about Surface tablets – August 7, 2012
Microsoft Surface tablet pricing leaked; US$1,000 for ‘cheapest’ Windows RT model – July 26, 2012
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Bad news for Microsoft’s iPad killer? – July 2, 2012
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Jason Schwarz: Top 10 reasons why Microsoft’s Surface is DOA – June 22, 2012
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The cost of Microsoft’s Surface tablets – June 20, 2012
Apple’s revolutionary iPad vs. Microsoft’s anti-tablet ‘Surface’ – June 20, 2012
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ZDNet’s Kingsley-Hughes: Microsoft’s Windows 8 is an awful, horrible, painful design disaster – June 8, 2012
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Dvorak: Windows 8 an unmitigated disaster; unusable and annoying; it makes your teeth itch – June 3, 2012
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More good news for Apple: Microsoft previews Windows 8 (with video) – June 1, 2011
“Enjoy John’s rare moment of lucidity”
Poor Dvorak — MDN never spares you.
+1
On the contrary, MDN was far too kind to Dvorak. They let him get away with perpetuating the “Apple always prices at a premium” myth. Apple’s iOS devices have been price leaders since they were released, and the rest of the industry has struggled in a profitless effort to compete. The only marginal bit of success has been through slavish copying (Samsung).
He himself admits he sometimes writes whatever will stir up trouble, irrespective of his true opinion.
I’m rather upset that Dvorak insulted dogs in this fashion 😛
He’s right and it happens so infrequently that we all should enjoy it.
I’m going to give him a page hit.
You are far too generous. A broken (traditional) clock is right more often than Dvorak. This is just a rare and intended aberration of partial lucidity. I don’t recommend that you raise your expectations, or give this self-admitted Apple-baiter any hits at all.
A Surface is Microsoft’s backwards version of a Netbook.
The Surface is Microsoft’s version of a submarine. It can’t dive, moves at 5 knots on the surface and is piloted not by an expert helmsman but by a fat sweaty captain.
Baahahahahahahaaha! Great one!
Thanks for the laugh, Lefty!
A fat sweaty Captain headed unknowingly at full speed into an iceberg.
Owners will find out that it can and frequently will dive very well!
Oh….. MS…….
Dick head Dvorak, as always, is full of it. This latest mind fart is close to fact by accident not by choice. Babble on to oblivion John, you jerk.
I say well done M$. This is a perfect price and ideal launch. When customer compare the iPad and Surface it will make for an easy decision.
We need M$ to come out with products like this on a regular basis. It is important that M$ continues to strive for mediocrity and spend their ill gotten gains from Windoze and Orifice by pouring money down the drain.
The iPad did not debut at a premium price. In fact the low price caught many off guard and destroyed the netbook market. Further, there is a distinction between a premium price and a premium product at a reasonable price. The latter is what so few of Apple’s competitors (and many analysts and journalists) fail to understand.
^^^^^^ This.
i just submitted almost the same comment, it really was a great price for what the base model iPad is.
You nailed it, @currentinterest. You would think Dvorak, a freaking TECHNOLOGY JOURNALIST, would have the ability to remember that everyone expected the iPad to launch at ~$1k.
“An art of premium pricing,” right.
Why worry about what Microsoft does? I know it captivates the attention of Fanboys but in the end who really cares? I’m just happy to see that Apple continues to make quality products. Superior quality products. Thus the ability to price and sell said product. I agree with the article, Microsoft will drop its prices soon. And it will look like a loser.
When the iPad came out, i thought it was priced “aggressively”. $500 for the entry level iPad still seems low.
Unfortunately there seems to be a trend where some (fickle) people think they should be able to buy sterling technology at bargain basement prices. Love too the tech turd types who think the iPad is a “toy” which is just another convenient & cheap tech cliche like iSheep with no bearing in reality, just fitting someone’s disingenuous rationalization bias. Like apple users aren’t discerning about their tech. Just wanna slap those MF’ers silly.
“Ignorak” lol I do find that they keyboard is actually much more expensive than even the, percieved, Apple Taxed one would be! I guess is M$ Tax nowadays!
Problem is, there is no place to hide in the pricing structure for MS.
iPad 3-$499
iPad 2-$399
iPad mini- $199 – $299 ???
iPod touch $299
And then you have the entire army of iPad wannabes selling at cost: Nexus, Kindle & Nook–also anywhere from $199 – $500
I’m predicting a RIM/HPalm fire-sale by March for the Surface.
I’m pretty sure keeping the iPad 2 around at $399 was a test of lower price points (not IF it would work, but to judge sales volumes and impacts on the flagship model).
My guess is we’ll see the iPad mini models at $299 – $399 (or maybe even $449).
With the existing 10″ iPad models Apple is already pursuing a strategy of very aggressively pricing, but that doesn’t mean Apple has to chase the Kindle and Android tablets down into the muck in the 7″ market.
So, Dvorak, you thing Apple is ” Premium” priced. You want a low cost piece of crap! OK, let’s see how this works……
First lets change the aluminium case to PLASTIC with a sliding slot that allows the battery to be changed.
Next, lets change the battery to the one sourced by Crapola Inc. one that dies after 3 months.
Next lets make the plastic case boxy and fatter with all sorts of slots that don’t belong on a tablet
Next lets replace the Retina display with one that has much less resolution, don’t worry we will just say that it is actually better than the higher definition one and those idiots we want to sell to will believe it.
Next, lets put in a real cheap processor.
I could go on with the crappy software…..but I’ll stop here.
NOW LOOK AT IT. Is that what you want? It looks almost like the surface now.
How Microsoft’s new Surface commercial depicts using this ergonomic nightmare:
That looks comfy! /s/
Compare that image with Steve Jobs relaxing in a plush chair using the iPad with one hand.
You gotta love it.
Microsoft comes out with a touch tablet that has a physical keyboard and mouse.
Not only that, it has several input interfaces.
All it needs to function is a damn good Anti-Virus software suite.
If Surface with Windows RT can’t run all my favorite Windows 7 apps like Disk Defragmenter, ScanDisk, Spyware Search, Antivirus Pro, and Registry Cleaner, why would I ever want it? What would I do with it all day?
Heh
With all the extra time “on your hands” you could play with yourself instead of jerking around with things your OS should be immune to
I’m surprised he didn’t complain about the mouse. After all, here’s what he said in 1984, about the debut of the Mac:
“The Macintosh uses an experimental pointing device called a “mouse”. There is no evidence that people want to use these things. I don’t want one of these new fangled devices.”
If you’ve seen the commercial they just released you’ll notice that whenever someone uses the Surface, they have it on a table, or bench. I think this is the inspiration for the name, because you can’t use the tablet and its keyboard cover and kickstand (first thing to fall off) without placing it on a surface.
“Ladies and gentlemen, introducing the newest advancement in mobile computing. We call it “stationary computing” and we think you’re going to love the places you can go with this! Like a table or desk.”
Is Microsoft actually pricing the keyboards differently BECAUSE OF COLOR?!? Wow . . . just wow.
Dvorak is right that the pricing is a mess, but he’s wrong in one aspect: Microsoft can’t sell the Surface tablets as a loss leader or not make money on them. It simply doesn’t have that luxury. However, why would anyone buy a Surface tablet when the iPad is available right next to it and is much better?
I can’t wait for the reviews of the Windows 8 version to come out and constantly complain about how slow it runs and how the battery dies after a couple of hours.
This actually makes me nervous that, against all reason, the Surface will be an iPad killer. Dvorak is simply so bad at forecasting the future that I take the opposite of what he says as gospel truth.
Please, there are many crazy people out there – but not THAT many.
The iPad will be fine, accompanied with its’ upcoming smaller sibling.
^^ this
I always like Dvorak better when he’s taking his lithium:
…which will make the public think, ‘Oh, it must not be selling. It must be a dog. I won’t buy one now.’
*Standing ovation*
Dvorak concludes his article with that “There is no evidence” line. Remember what happened the last time he used that line when Apple introduced the mouse: “There is no evidence that people want to use these things.” And looked how that turned out. Now I am nervous . . . .
Don’t be nervous, he got it right this time. There is no evidence that the weirdly configured slab priced the same as an iPad can make it. Yes, as soon as they have to drop the price some people will buy it, but most will think, as they should, it is dog vomit and stay away from it.
Ok, so the Surface is becoming popular,selling out preorders and what do the fan boy journalist and fan boys do ? Belly ache and complain. So the Surface is not the iPad ,dont think it was intended to be either, just intended to offer an alternative to it. Get over it children ,the Surface will set MSFT, Windows 8 and WP8 above all other OS’s.
Some jokers are harping on the fact that they sold out, even dropping low wnough to suggest only a few hundred were preordered. Sad, very sad. Steve Jobs is dead, get to hell over it, Cook has failed to bring he Kool-Aid like Jobs did. Dvorak clearly has no idea what’s going on, but that’s the result of drugs folk,just say no.
Either way, your dissenting voices aren’t loud enough to stop the inevitable, Windows 8 will be big, and the signs are there. Even on fan boy blogs you can’t but mention the Surface. OSX and iOS will be relegated to niche status, mark my words this battle has just begun