It seems that Microsoft has planned two big news for next
week, including Windows tablets and windows phone 8. Speculation is already
rampant. Although some hardware makers have already announced Windows tablets,
Microsoft could follow the Apple’s way to introduce a tablet of its own.
In emerging market of tablet and smart phone, Microsoft has
lagged far behind Apple and Google. Apple successfully integrates hardware and
software to provide more favorable end user experience. Google also bought Motorola
mobile to develop Android tablet. There is no reason that Microsoft should not
launch tablet of its own. Xbox is a good
example. Having its own tablet gives Microsoft a chance to meld its windows 8
operating system with its other product, e.g. Xbox, or even enables syncing and
sharing contents between different Microsoft products.
However, not all integration of hardware and software is
successful. Zune media players never took flight. In addition, Microsoft has
never gone toe-to-toe with its OEM customers. In fact, those PC manufactures
greatly contribute to the business of Microsoft in past 37 years. How to balance
the interest among OEM manufactures while launching tablets of its own is very challenging
for Microsoft.
1 comment:
MS tablets maybe a good idea …more choice for comsumers! MS has to continue investing in their R&D in order to stay with the curve or rather ahead of the curve. But now it seems MS is behind the curve! Hastily gather a product like MS tablet may not be a very good idea. It seems to me that their strategy is bundling their product together with X box. Maybe they are targeting gamers and trying to incorporate them into this “tablet sector”. Still I don’t see it visible for MS to take a big market share unless they can make it faster, slicker, cheaper and even more appealing for anybody to switch from an Ipad to an Android tablet. Most of Google softwares are free! Android tablets can use them too. Ipads has hardcore apple fans and it always has been slick and smooth with it end users. Apple has become an IT fashion statement. MS is well known for its applications and software where Google is taking a chunk of share from MS.
If not, it may just turn out to be like Zune …a flop even X box was a flop … it was aggressively cutting its price to maintain competitive even it was losing money. MS just wanted the market share. They figure out that losing money is better than losing market share. If MS is to just bundle a tablet with Xbox Live it is not enough. Nintendo fought back with Wii, Sony counter attacked Xbox with PS 3. Maybe MS should buy Nokia or Sega and even other social media. They should continue invest heavily on R&D to produce a better and slicker product that will have all in one … at a lower price for mass users. Who knows?!
Roy
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