surface

The latest rumors say so, but we'll explain why the latest rumors are probably wrong. Also on today's episode, we learn why IBM might want to buy RIM's secret treasure chest, and we decipher the tea-leaves of iOS 6. What is Apple not telling us about the new OS for fear of giving away iPhone 5 secrets?

And finally, the next Xbox may hit soon, another rumors suggests. This tweeted image of a swirl of colors supposedly indicates that the Kinect 2 might be awesome. To us it just looks like, well, modern art. But you guys … Read more

During Lenovo's first fiscal quarter 2013 earnings call, executives didn't mince words in attacking Microsoft's Surface strategy.

"Although we don't like Microsoft providing hardware, for us, it just adds one more competitor," Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing said during the conference call in response to analyst's question.

"[They're] just one of our many competitors. We are still confident that we are providing much better hardware than our competitors including Microsoft," he said.

Yuanqing continued. "They are strong in software, but [we] don't believe they can provide the best hardware … Read more

Remember the $99 HP Touchpad fire sale that instantly turned a product fail into a sales win?

So, would Microsoft try to pull a Crazy Eddie and lowball its upcoming Surface tablet to make it an instant hit?

I asked a couple of analysts and checked with some industry sources familiar with Microsoft's strategy, and so far I'm hearing that it's unlikely.

"We'd be astonished to see a $199 price point," said Rhoda Alexander, director of tablet and monitor research for IHS iSuppli. "It would be giving away money and losing money at … Read more

The pendulum of rumors surrounding the possible price of Microsoft's upcoming Surface tablets is swinging wildly from one extreme to another.

First came the sighting of an over-$1,000 price on a Swedish site that turned out to be nothing more than a meaningless placeholder. Now an anonymous source has apparently fed Engadget a report that Microsoft is looking at launching the Surface for Windows RT tablet on October 26 for a suggested retail price of $199.… Read more

Apple's Retina Displays are drop-dead gorgeous. But be careful what you wish for.

Like many, I got the third-generation iPad because of the 2,048-by-1,536-pixel-density Retina Display. And, like many, I didn't see a huge difference at first.

That was then. Now it's painful to pick up my Dell laptop with its 1,366x768-pixel 13.3-inch display and Windows 7 fonts (note: font-smoothing utilities go just so far).

And while my 11.6-inch MacBook Air fares better than the Dell (it packs the same number of pixels but into a smaller area giving it a higher PPI … Read more

Microsoft may consider maintaining a price gap for its Surface products to give hardware partners some competitive breathing room, according to an Asia-based report.

Acer chairman JT Wang commented publicly on Thursday that Microsoft is seeking ways to create a price chasm between its Surface tablet and competing products from PC makers, according to a Friday report in Taipei-based Digitimes.

"Microsoft is currently looking for solutions such as creating a price gap to minimize the negative impact on other vendors' product lineups," according to the report.

Wang said that a Surface tablet priced at $199 would have a … Read more

I just pray that Microsoft doesn't cave to pressure from partners to punt on Surface.

The first public plea came this week from Acer, which, in effect, begged Microsoft to drop Surface.

If that happens, Microsoft will lose the consumer to Apple for good. Probably sooner rather than later.

And if Acer is that worried about Surface, then it should out-design Microsoft or look elsewhere. Right now I don't see anything from Acer that would make me chuck my MacBook and iPad.

But Surface could. And it gets even more interesting when I see that Redmond is already working on Surface 2. … Read more

Nvidia's emergence as a leading player in both the Android and Windows 8 tablet markets was driven home today when the chip supplier's CEO discussed second-quarter results in an earnings conference call.

Revenue rose to $1.04 billion from $1.01 billion in the company's second quarter of last year. Analysts had forecast revenue of $1 billion.

Net income was $119 million, or 19 cents a share, below the $151.6 million, or 25 cents a share, recorded in the same period last year. But that exceeded analyst estimates of 14 cents a share on sales of $… Read more

Best Buy's founder fears Apple Stores. That fear should extend to Microsoft, too.

For better or worse, I live within walking distance of a Best Buy store in Los Angeles. (Well, a long walk).

But I typically elect to drive about 20 miles to the Microsoft Store in Century City.

That should worry Best Buy. Once consumers (I don't think I'm that atypical) get a taste of the Microsoft Store experience, it will be really hard to go back to the muddle that is Best Buy.

Luckily for Best Buy, there aren't many Microsoft stores right now. … Read more