Microsoft’s recent barrage of anti–iPad ads have nearly all featured third-party tablets rather than boasting about Microsoft’s own iPad-killer, the Surface RT. Now that it’s desperately slashed prices on RT units, Microsoft is feeling inexplicably cocky in its latest ad, which pits the hardware and software specs of the iPad against that of the Surface RT.
Basically, Microsoft is praying the iPad’s lack of a keyboard (that you have to purchase separately), Microsoft Office, and a USB port will be enough to entice some unlucky nerds to buy a Surface RT instead of an iPad now that it’s cheaper than ever but still deprived of quality apps.
Here’s the ad:
https://youtu.be/fNpmhcYodwI
Let’s be honest here, Microsoft. No amount of shit talking will rescue the Surface RT from the hell it’s in. Your own CEO admits the Surface RT is one of the biggest flops on the market, and it has nothing to do with a USB port or Microsoft Office. Just try making a better tablet next time.
Source: YouTube
Buster Hein is a freelance writer who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Twitter: @bst3r.
11 responses to “Microsoft’s Newest Ad Pits The Struggling Surface RT Against The iPad [Video]”
Surface – here in Sweden it’s a funny play with words.
We use “face” as well, and “Sur” is “sour” or “Grumpy”
So, who wants a grumpy face….Ballmers got one….
Personally I think the Surface will end up as something rhat is given away as free merchandise-stuff if you take the visitor-tour at a Microsoft office….
A plastic Bag with “toys”, a mouse, lots of broschurres and ….a surface….
Its not an integrated keyboard if you buy it separately. There are tons of keyboard options for the iPad as well, if one were inclined to buy one.
It’s time for Apple to squash Microsoft once and for all. Running ads showing your virtues against a competitor is fine, but they just openly lie.
How about an ad that shows both tablets – “Surface RT, keyboard sold separately ($130), iPad, dozens of keyboard choices sold separately (starting at $40). Actual storage space: 32 GB Surface RT: 14 GB. iPad 32 GB, 28 GB. iPad apps available: over 1 million. Surface RT apps available: 7.”
Exactly. And what’s amusing is that Microsoft wants to play up the portable convenience of the Surface tablet while trying to push users to buy the keyboard. So it becomes a less powerful laptop that is significantly more expensive than their number one competitor, and their own Surface RT can’t run any real Windows apps. Releasing two look-alike versions of Windows and tricking consumers into buying one only to find out it isn’t really Windows, and cannot run actual Windows apps, that’s unforgivable. They are so poorly managed, I have no clue how Ballmer keeps his job. Any other company would have fired a CEO who oversees such a dysfunctional company. Microsoft has the resources to create great products if they put their mind to it, instead they create bomb after bomb.
Reminds me of this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ktlhYOpBic
Microsoft seems to ignore a few things. Price is not an issue – those who want it get the iPad or iPhone. Not having USB slot to plug in an external device – who cares – many of us have heard of this thing called a “could” and keyboard – well besides the fact that there are a lot of options for iPad – who needs one ? I love the voice to text feature and it works great.
Microsoft needs to stop wasting money on dead issues. Why doesn’t Microsoft go after the Nexus 7 or Kindle instead of fussing about Apple’s iPad all the time. They need to build their product and show what it can do on its own and not being compared to a rival product. They’re just giving the iPad free advertising.
I love the “DO MORE” part of the ad…
Awesome, so i can use instagram on it now can i…??? As an APP or not…??? Just curious, as no one makes apps for it clearly you cannot do more, well not really… ;)
i am no fan of the Surface tablets, but this article seems very aggressive for no apparent reason. I wonder where professionalism has gone on Cult Of Mac.
What about Siri… i miss her on this one!
i’m a mac and windows user. i’ve been using surface RT for few days and it is actually a fun product. its a slightly “different” animal with iPad. Actually (imho) Surface RT is a netbook killer, not iPad killer. Even though it is in tablet form, it doesn’t mean it is in the same world with iPad because the OS also determine what it is.
After few days using it with touch cover, somehow it works more like a netbook rather than a tablet. But it is not considered as a netbook too because we cannot install Windows software (google chrome, etc) on Surface RT. it only can install apps from Microsoft Store. And then, do we still need to have AntiVirus on it? if we do, it will become very very slow and pointless.