Ballmer on tablets: ‘I don’t think anyone has done a product that I see customers wanting’

“Microsoft CEO Steven Ballmer trumpeted the company’s new Surface tablet on Thursday, classifying the device as a twofer that — unlike some of its competitors — can be used both for work and entertainment,” Cadie Thompson reports for CNBC.

“While the tablet space is getting pretty crowded, Ballmer predicted that Windows 8 and the design of the Surface tablet will give Microsoft an edge over its competition,” Thompson reports. “‘I don’t think anyone has done a product that I see customers wanting,’ Ballmer said Thursday on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box.'”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: There have been five generations of Apple iPad models: the original, the iPad 2, the third-generation iPad, the fourth-generation iPad, and the iPad mini.

iPad sales have exceeded 100 million units since the product’s debut in April 2010.

91% of tablet-generated Web traffic comes from Apple’s iPad.

94% of the Fortune 500 is testing or deploying the iPad.

In stating, “I don’t think anyone has done a product that I see customers wanting,” Mr. Ballmer proves he’s either blind, delusional, a liar, or all three rolled up into one big, sweaty clown.

[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Fred Mertz” and “Joe Architect” for the heads up.]

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96 Comments

    1. Apple iPad vs Window8 Surface Tablet
      Today, Saturday, 10/27/2012 I went to Frys Electronics, the MSFT Store, and the Apple Store in Newport Beach, CA. It was quite an eye opener that bodes very well for the Apple iPad and other Apple products.
      I spoke with people at Frys who said the “grand release of Win8 and Surface was flat”. I myself was one of only 3 people looking at the Win8 program on a laptop. I was not impressed.
      I went to the MSFT store and the employees outnumbered the customers. The store looked like a Apple store clone. I looked at the Surface with the $120 keyboard(feels cheap) and found the whole thing not even close to an iPad with a Apple or Logitech Bluetooth keyboard. Most importantly; I noticed window shopping by patrons and no purchases during my time in the store.
      Lastly I went to the Apple store and found the store VERY busy. I spoke with some people there who said the MBP 13” Retina Display was selling nicely. The other product lines are selling very well at some reduced price points. The pending iPad4, iPad-mini, and iMac desktop are generating a lot of questions and product buzz.
      Bottom line; I am a lifelong Windows user who has been migrating to the Apple ecosystem for the last two years. I frankly was left unimpressed with Win8 and Surface. I will be keeping Win7 on my remaining Windows machines. I will keep my MAC mini. I will dump my Samsung phone and get the iPhone5. Additionally, I have already sold my iPad3, ordered my iPad4, iPad-mini, and will be gifting a iMac 21” to someone in November.

      1. BIll, it is great to hear that your recent experience with Macs and iOS devices have been highly positive, especially in contrast to your recent tests of the latest version of Windows. Rest assured that you are not joining a “cult” of Mac – you are joining a group of people who elected to think for themselves and choose the computing environment that worked for them. The loyalty that Apple has gained from its users is a direct reflection of the focus that Apple has placed on improving the experiences of its customers and Apple’s willingness to take chances in forging ahead of the “me too” crowd of computer vendors. As long as Apple continues to do its best to serve me, I am willing to forgive Apple for occasionally failing to achieve its goals and to support Apple when things are not going as well as everyone would like.

        You are part of a group of people who *care* about quality in computing and design and user experience. We expect things to “just work.” We expect insanely great products. And we choose our own paths – we are not “conformists” or “anti-conformists,” either group of which are sacrificing their own free will in a futile statement against the other.

    2. Ballmer’s customers, up until the idiot released Surface RT, was the OEMs like HP, Dell and Asus.

      In his little world, Ballmer really hasn’t seen a decent tablet from his OEM partners. Of course, the idiot must be including Surface RT. He hasn’t seen his customers wanting that either.

      What a dickhead!

    3. I think you are being unfair!

      The reporter just left out the words “within Microsoft” from Balmers statement, which actually should have read ‘I don’t think anyone within Microsoft has done a product that I see customers wanting’,
      which again makes perfect sense.

    4. It is very gratifying to my need for revenge for all I have endured from Microsoft over the past 30 years to see men of this calibre at the helm. May Mr. Balmer have a long life and constant employment @ Microsoft.

    1. He is clueless. That is why M$ will fail. You can’t argue his statement ‘I don’t think anyone has done a product that I see customers wanting,’ because of the “that I see”. So his vision is very bad, there were tablets long before Apple made the iPad, but not many people wanted them. There is the vision problem.

    2. “. . .the design of the Surface tablet will give Microsoft an edge over its competition,”

      Now remember, this is the same guy that thought people would like to “squirt” each other with a Zune player. Need I say more?

  1. He is obviously blind. The dumb-ass brings out a tablet that is behind the curve. If he hadn’t paid $100.00 each for people to show up at his event, the tablet would have been a flop. He’s not getting it. It’s call an ECO system. Apple has plenty more to offer down the road. Apple is just getting started with new technology for the 21st Century…,

  2. Apple defined the ‘iPad’ market. The ‘Tablet’ market is an undefined, iPad wannabe market. So Balmey is indeed right; ther is no ‘Tablet’ anyone wants. Windows8 tablets will provide even better motivation to buy an Apple iPad.

    BLmy as usual provided a good laugh for everyone. 🙂

  3. My laugh for Saturday, the clown is a moron who is living in a different reality. In this Idiots mind I should have wait about three year for his so call surface tablet instead buy all three version of my wonder iPad. The man a dumb ass I take a first generation iPad over his Surface tablet any day and twice on Saturday

  4. … you might want to go easy on those attacks on Steve Ballmer. I’m not saying he is undeserving, we all know he is. But someone you will soon vote for has an even worse problem with – you decide if he is challenged more by truth or reality.
    Yet … you still intend to vote for him. So … go easy. Or change your voting plan.

  5. Maybe he meant OTHER than the iPad. At least I hope that’s what he meant.

    Can someone please explain to me how Ballmer has managed to stay employed for this long? It truly is amazing. Is the entire MS board as dumb as he obviously is?

    1. Simple if eh were sacked then everyone would have to look at Microsoft objectively and that would mean inevitable disaster for them after all he is Bill Gate’s chosen spawn and Billy Boy as we all know is sainted for inventing everything from the wheel to World peace. This way people still think this is purely a seasonal glitch and that there is no reason NOT to like their strategy a lot.

  6. The Surface: finally a tablet you can do real work on. That’s the reason the ad shows all those people dancing and clicking, while the iPad ads show people doing useful stuff…

  7. “used for both work and entertainment”, like an iPad. I run a small delivery business out of mine and the play games on it at home. When he says the surface will give an edge over the competition the edge is about ¾ of inch thick. It looks heavy. How much does the slab weight? Does any one know?

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