With the release date of Microsoft's new Surface tablets fast approaching on Oct. 26, the company's lack of promotion and terse product details have distressed many. Consumers are certainly confounded about why Microsoft hasn't been more forthcoming about product information, but that doesn't mean the company lacks confidence in its device. In fact, Microsoft is so confident in its Surface tablets that the company reportedly has 3 million Surface tablets ready to sell on launch day through pop-up and permanent stores, as a new report from research firm IDC indicates.
In a market that has largely been dominated by Apple since the introduction of the iPad, research seems to support Microsoft's confidence in its product. Apple's iPad has lost 29 percent of its share of the tablet market over the last year due to the introduction of new lower-priced tablets, according to a report from Pew Research Center.
The survey found that while 81 percent of tablet users surveyed in 2011 reported owning an iPad, now just 52 percent have the device. Nearly half, 48 percent, now own an Android-based device, and about half of those devices, 21 percent, are Kindle Fires, the survey found.
Pew Research Center found that iPad owners do stand out in one area from Android owners, iPad owners reportedly use their tablets more often in general, and more often for reading news. Apparently, Android users are more likely to use social networks and follow news that comes from friends and family.
This is a huge opportunity for Microsoft. The market conditions are clearly moving in the company's favor. Nearly a quarter of U.S. adults, 22 percent, now own a tablet device, double the number from 2011. And nearly a quarter of those who don't have a tablet, 23 percent, plan to get one in the next six months.
While many might wonder why Microsoft has ordered such a high number of devices when it doesn't have that many physical retail locations, the company will reportedly open temporary "pop-up" stores in 32 cities around the U.S. and Canada on Oct. 26 to widen distribution of the devices, Microsoft said in an announcement on its website.
The 32 stores are temporary outlets that will be open only during the holiday season, and are not permanent locations like the two-dozen permanent Microsoft retail stores already in operation.
While it's largely tech insiders (read: nerds) that have been drooling over the Surface thus far, this move might be just what Microsoft needs to stir up wider public interest. With 29 of the 32 stores located in the same mall or shopping center as Apple stores, that shouldn't be hard. The proximity of Microsoft's pop-up stores to Apple's products in those instances will obviously give users a chance to readily compare devices as they use them for the first time, a priceless, ingenious marketing ploy.
Microsoft now lists all the pop-up stores on its website, showing their opening date as Oct. 26, the same day the company officially starts selling Windows 8 and Windows RT-powered Surface tablets.
Of course, Microsoft hasn't just come out and said much about its devices or the pop-up stores. However, the sort of winking and nudging we're used to seeing from the likes of Apple is quite obvious. Each of the 32 stores' detailed pages spotlights the Windows RT-based device and links to the concise technical information Microsoft disclosed in June when it announced its unprecedented move into mobile hardware.
The company hasn't confirmed whether the holiday stores will offer some of the services available in its permanent locations, such as the "Answer Desk," Microsoft's version of an Apple store's "Genius Bar," or personal training sessions.
When Microsoft unveiled the Surface tablets last summer, it said it would sell the devices only through its own retail stores and on its own website. The 32 pop-up stores more than doubles the number of physical outlets where the company can demonstrate and sell the new tablet.
The pop-up stores are:
U.S.
Atlanta (Perimeter Mall); Aventura, Fla. (Aventura Mall); Beachwood, Ohio (Beachwood Place); Bethesda, Md. (Montgomery Mall); Braintree, Mass. (South Shore Plaza); Charlotte, NC (Southpark Mall); Columbia, Md. (Mall in Columbia); Denver (Cherry Creek Shopping Center); Durham, NC (Streets at Southpoint); Frisco, Texas (Stonebriar Centre Mall); Garden, City, NY (Roosevelt Field Mall); Glendale, Calif. (Glendale Galleria); Indianapolis (Fashion Mall at Keystone); Las Vegas (Fashion Show Mall); Miami (Dadeland Mall); Nashville (Mall at Green Hills); Natick, Mass. (Natick Collection); New York City (Time Warner Center -- The Shops at Columbus Circle); Oklahoma City (Penn Square Mall); Paramus, NJ (Westfield Garden State Plaza); Pittsburgh (Ross Park Mall); Portland, Ore. (Washington Square); San Antonio (North Star Mall); San Francisco (San Francisco Centre); St. Louis (Saint Louis Galleria); Tulsa, Okla. (Woodland Hills Mall); West Hartford, Conn. (Westfarms Mall); Woodlands, Texas (Woodlands Mall)
Canada
Burnaby, British Columbia (Metropolis at Metrotown); Edmonton, Alberta (West Edmonton Mall); Toronto (Eaton Centre); Vancouver, BC (Oakridge Centre)
Microsoft's website promises more locations will be revealed in the future.
Microsoft has not commented on the pop-ups, or included confirmation that they would sell the Surface RT.
Microsoft Surface tablet features
The RT sports a HD screen (1280 x 720), while the Pro has a 10.6-inch Clear type Full HD (1920 x 1080) screen with 16:9 widescreen.
That means they are among the biggest tablets in the market. If you are not satisfied with the typical 10.1-inch tablet, you can go for the Surface tablet. Along with the touch keyboards with the device, you can turn the machine to a small notebook.
The Surface tablet comes with five Touch Covers. Well, you can pick up any one while purchasing the machine. Different from typical keyboards, the Surface keypads provide brilliant typing experience thanks to their touch-based surface.
The Surface tablets mount both front and rear cameras. The front camera, named life cam by Microsoft, makes the tablet perfect for video chatting through Skype or other services. Using the rear camera, you can capture images and video clips.
Microsoft puts forward better memory options with the Surface tablets. The device comes in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB options. The 128GB is available only with Surface Pro. Further, you can expand the memory using external memory sticks thanks to microSD card slot. That is, you can store enough data including music, software items and video in external clips.
The 3mm Touch Cover can be connected to your Surface tablet with a single magnetic click, so, now you can type text and send messages quite easily.
The Surface's tablet housing features a revolutionary kickstand. Along with fully functioning keyboard and track-pad, the integrated kickstand helps you place the gadget in both portrait or landscape modes.
According to Bloomberg, Surface will only be able to go online using a short-range Wi-Fi connection. This is a stark contrast to Apple's iPad 3, which has a 3G option, and a faster LTE connection.
Media tablets powered by new Microsoft operating systems Windows 8 and Windows RT will have an impact on the overall market - just not this year, according to market intelligence firm ABI Research.
Windows-based tablets will commence shipments at the end of October and capture an estimated 1.5 percent of total tablet shipments for 2012. Pricing for Windows tablets will be a key consideration for end-user adoption.
If priced aggressively towards current Android tablets, Windows tablets could see 2013 shipments increase 10-fold year-over-year. But if they're priced like Apple's iPad offerings, Windows tablets may only double or triple shipments in 2013. Growth in the total available market is expected to come from businesses adopting tablets, which is expected to be a strong area for Windows 8.
Microsoft CEO admitted recently Surface tablets would be priced to compete with products like Apple's iPad, and Amazon's Kindle Fire HD. Ballmer said Surface tablets would likely sell from "probably $300 to about $700 or $800″ depending on whether they're equipped with Windows RT or Windows 8 Pro.
Ballmer also made clear that Microsoft has no interest in getting into a price war with Amazon or Google by offering low-cost 7-inch Surface tablets because he wants people to see the Surface as a professional device that can be used for work as well as media consumption.
"If you say to somebody, would you use one of the 7-inch tablets, would somebody ever use a Kindle to do their homework?" Ballmer asked rhetorically. "The answer is no; you never would. It's just not a good enough product. It doesn't mean you might not read a book on it."
Ballmer's statements confirm earlier whispers of the Surface's two-tiered pricing, with the more expensive Windows 8 Pro-based tablet likely selling for around $800.
Microsoft is expected to unveil its Surface tablets at a New York event on Oct. 25, and release them to the public through phyisical, and over 30 pop-up stores around the U.S. and Canada on Oct. 26.