Dell Dumps Keyboardless Windows RT Tablets 186
jfruh writes "On Friday, Dell was selling Windows RT tablets for as low as $300. By this morning, the cheapest one on offer was $479. The difference? The only tablets they're selling now come bundled with keyboards, which may indicate that customers are finding even the Metro-focused RT version of Windows 8 too irritating to navigate by touch alone. (If you really want a 10-inch Dell tablet without a keyboard it looks like you can still get one on Amazon, at least for the time being.)"
not low enough (Score:4, Insightful)
sell those silly things for $100 and people will be able to put a real OS on them to be useful
Re:not low enough (Score:5, Insightful)
sell those silly things for $100 and people will be able to put a real OS on them to be useful
Before I buy one even for $100 I'd need proof that this could be done.
Secure Boot says no... for now (Score:4, Informative)
Well the MS design intent is for all WinRT devices to be locked down [howtogeek.com].
Since MS Secure Boot has already been cracked [techrights.org], it will probably be a matter of time.
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Apparently you are illiterate. Did you even read your own link?
It's *kind of* cracked. (Score:5, Interesting)
I have an exploit to load NT kernel drivers at near-boot time on RT tablets. It's not as good as a true Secure Boot exploit, but in theory it would be good enough to make a Linux/Android build for Surface RT.
Screenshot [twitter.com] of my Surface RT running Windows RT with a kernel debugger, which should not be possible under Microsoft's Secure Boot configuration.
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Windows RT is a real OS. The stock software load isn't as feature complete as I'd like, but I've found it to be less maddening to use than any experience I've had with iOS. The Metro interface definitely takes some adjustment and I'm not terribly fond of Microsoft's on-screen keyboard, but I suspect that if Surface tablets had been priced at $250 WITH THE KEYBOARD, they would not be a huge joke in the market that they have been so far. It might've been predatory pricing to gain market share, but the biggest
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It's a real OS with artificial barriers put in place to drive users into Microsoft's walled garden.
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A real Obnoxious System, as opposed to a real Operating System.
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Same thing as iOS and as Android... by default (without jailbreaking or rooting), most tablets or phones you purchase require that you live within a closed system.
By that same token, I don't see how Windows RT is any more of a "real OS" than iOS or Android. On the other hand, Windows 8.* fits that definition much better.
THE END IS NIGH!!! (Score:2)
I don't think that shipping 14.6M of anything can be called a market collapse, especially when it is happening to a product that is now 11 months old, and widely rumored (and not just in tech rags, but publications like the Wall Street Journal) to be ripe for replacement in two weeks. Which, you'll recall, didn't happen a year ago, since the iPad 3's lifecycle was all of 7 months long.
Yeah, sales are gonna slow down, if measuring year-over-year identical sales. Because they aren't identical sales.
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14.6M shipped is not the same as 14.6M sold at a profit. This is what matters unless they plan on using the gaming console model that relies on software sales after the initial purchase. Apple has a modified version of this with the iOS stuff. They sell their own hardware at full price and get a piece of every AppStore/iTunes sale.
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With Apple products, since their logistics chain is so tight, 14.6M products shipped equals 14.6M products sold, near as it matters. And Apple doesn't sell hardware at a loss - they maintain a healthy margin on everything.
I'm not sure if you were agreeing with me, or arguing.
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sell those silly things for $100 and people will be able to put a real OS on them to be useful
Before I buy one even for $100 I'd need proof that this could be done.
I'm not gonna waste $100 for a practical demo, so I offer the following theoretical proof for certain values of "usefulness":
* one can always use an RT tablet as a physical underlay for a proper machine running Linux.
* thus the real OS will be put (and run perfectly) on top of the RT tablet.
Q.E.D
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I see your point. Life finds a way.
Re: not low enough (Score:2)
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do they make Itanium tablets? might wind up with "intel inside" branded on your scrotum
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windows rt devices would sell a lot better if you could put any os you want on them...
but you can't, so what you would be getting for 100 bucks would still be windows rt.
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I suspect you could probably find a no-name Android tablet and load some flavor of Windows Mobile on it if you really just wanted the big four Office Apps. IIRC the biggest hurdle would be that the screen resolutions supported by Windows Mobile are fixed and relatively stingy.
You could also just use the no-name tablet with Google Docs or the Google Docs web interface. No, it's not Office, but it's perfectly fine for everyday needs. Or use Office 365, which works surprisingly well on Android devices with rel
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WinMo can't even come close to running the full Office suite. RT can (and does, out of the box).
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It has been cut down just to get the parts "working". But it isn't a complete Office.
It's close enough for 99% of users. If they can type things and change the font occasionally, they'll be happy.
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Electronic bottom fishing in the form of buying dead end products rarely works out, no matter how low the price. I'm guessing that landfill is the final destination for most of these, plus a few will be unloaded on clueless victims who will hate Dell and Microsoft foreverafter.
Re: not low enough (Score:2)
Because the TouchPad is actually OK - WebOS only suffered from a lack of developer interest (a big one) and a less than done WM (Luna, which had made great strides under LunaCE). And, given that HP didn't lock it down, it's seen a good life. Now, the RT, well it really doesn't have much going for it aftermarket.
Re:not low enough (Score:5, Interesting)
$179 for a keyboard?
WTF?
Re:not low enough (Score:5, Funny)
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That's because it has a massive battery in it.
There's also a usb hub and hdmi out too.
I *do* like Win RT, once jailbroken. I still prefer my macbook though, I've never really been able to justify tablet usage.
My major gripe with the Dell (yes, I have one) is that - and I suspect this is true of all RT devices - it's not a tablet with decent low power suspend and instant on like android and iOS, so it runs out of juice quickly when in "suspend" mode. It's literally just locked down Windows 8 on ARM. So prett
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Its more of a docking station than just a keyboard. As another poster stated, it has HDMI, a battery and USB ports.
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Except Android 4.3 broke compatibility with several popular Bluetooth mobile keyboards. At least the keyboard that ships with a device is warranted to work with the device.
Loads of cheap bluetooth keyboards require pinless trust, they have no way to set or accept a PIN. This has never been part of Android but there was a workaround app "bluetooth pairing" which would do the job... until they diddled the bluetooth stack for Android 4.2. Now it no longer works. I'm stuck on a 4.1.1 ROM on my Tronsmart MK908 because of this.
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a temporary fix is to rename /system/usr/keylayout/Vendor_0a5c_Product_8502.kl
I plan to apply the suggested fix tomorrow when I have access to a PC with ADB on it.
How many times are you going to post the same FUD?
If the suggestion works for me, then #44614331 may be the last time I post this.
I've been waiting since 4.2 (Score:2)
a temporary fix is to rename /system/usr/keylayout/Vendor_0a5c_Product_8502.kl
Except /system is read-only. So a user who wants to use a keyboard that he paid for on a device that he paid for would first have to learn how to back up, unlock the bootloader, root, and restore the backup.
or wait 'till the official patch comes out.
I've been waiting since the 4.2 release for a fix that restores the ability to use a a Wii Remote, something that 4.2 broke.
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Odd. My first reaction to the story was that it had better be one hell of a keyboard for $179. All the rest has been talked about ad nauseum already.
Hardly surprising (Score:5, Insightful)
I suspect that the keyboard was initially not included to (a) make the cost of ownership seem less than it would later prove to be, and (b) give people the impression that Windows 8 could be used in some reasonable fashion entirely via touch. Neither of which is true, of course.
Re:Hardly surprising (Score:5, Funny)
That is all predicated on the faulty assumption that anyone wants to use Windows 8 in the first place.
Re:Hardly surprising (Score:5, Insightful)
That is all predicated on the faulty assumption that anyone wants to use Windows 8 in the first place.
At first I passed this off as snarky, but there is some insight into what you've written. Microsoft with the Surface RT seems to be trying to replicate the ipad phenomenon, which appears to be, make an engaging product, and people will buy it despite the fact that it's (a) priced at boutique levels, (b) doesn't play well outside its ecosystem, (c) is a walled ecosystem, and (d) is more for content consumption rather than content creation. So:
a) High price, check.
b) Doesn't play well outside its ecosystem, check.
c) Walled ecosystem, check
d) Consumption, yes, creation, not so much. Check.
e) ???
f) Profit!!!
In this case, the missing (e), the part they forgot, is of course, make it engaging. The device itself must make you want to pick it up. You should want to operate it, and how to operate it should be intuitively obvious. And I don't mean "intuitively obvious" because someone wrote those words in the brochure, but actually, intuitively obvious to regular people.
In summary, you can't duplicate the success of a product merely by duplicating its major features, especially when many of those features are seen by consumers as disadvantages that people put up with in order to own the product. What's missing in this case is a reason to own one.
That Microsoft commercial that tries to compare the ipad to the surface completely misses the point. Siri is engaging. The ability to play chopsticks on a lifelike piano is engaging. Even though neither of those features were of tremendous use, they made you want to pick up the product and play with it. There's nothing about Windows 8 that makes you want to pick up a Surface. It's flat, unattractive, and you can't just start using it, without first learning the eccentricities of the interface. The only reason to own one is that it runs Windows software. And then you find out that's not true either.
My daughter had a great observation about the Microsoft Surface commercials that are deluging the airwaves and shown in theaters before the movie (which pisses me off to no end, but never mind). She said that each commercial should show us how to do a certain thing on the Surface. Stop with the dancing already. Stop showing "attach the keyboard... detach the keyboard... attach the keyboard..." WE GET IT ALREADY! The keyboard is EXTRA. The commercials should show someone really using the interface, not just sweeping tiles from right to left, but using the hot corners, bringing up "charms", making the machine work. Why don't they do that? Perhaps because if people saw how Win8 actually *worked*, they'd go buy something else?
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They also forgot "Get there at the right time: not too early with a half-baked OS and underpowered hardware, or so late the other players are already entrenched in their market segments"
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Problem here is that this is Windows RT we're talking about it which is ARM based and therefore incompatible with all Windows
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Why did that get modded "funny"? +5 insightful, all the way.
For $479, I can get an iPad 4 that actually has a slick OS and doesn't need a keyboard. For half that, I can get an Android without the "walled garden" lock-in, which also doesn't need a keyboard.
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I suspect that the keyboard was initially not included to (a) make the cost of ownership seem less than it would later prove to be, and (b) give people the impression that Windows 8 could be used in some reasonable fashion entirely via touch.
Its honestly actually perfectly fine as a pure tablet.
But the big feature of RT is MS office. And Office benefits immensely from a keyboard.
You may be right about not including it to bring the perceived cost down. Much like new macs not including adapters to attach it
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I suspect that the keyboard was initially not included to (a) make the cost of ownership seem less than it would later prove to be, and (b) give people the impression that Windows 8 could be used in some reasonable fashion entirely via touch.
Its honestly actually perfectly fine as a pure tablet.
But the big feature of RT is MS office. And Office benefits immensely from a keyboard.
You may be right about not including it to bring the perceived cost down. Much like new macs not including adapters to attach it to obscure devices like hdmi or ethernet. ;)
Parenthetically, I think Apple is shooting themselves in the foot in that regard. It hasn't had as much effect because Apple products have mindshare. The Surface doesn't even have that.
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Well, my new macbook has an HDMI port, which i've never used...
It requires an adapter to use ethernet, the adapters are quite cheap so i bought one, but so far i only used it once for restoring a backup onto the device which took several hours even over gigabit.
I have a friend with an older macbook on which the ethernet port is broken, he's never had need to get it repaired or buy an external adapter.
For the vast majority of users, no ethernet or hdmi represents a small cost saving without losing any functi
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I suspect the keyboard was not included originally to stop people thinking "that's a laptop, but twice as expensive and heavier".
"Press F1 to continue..." (Score:5, Interesting)
A friend of mine is a teacher. Her school got a bunch of these keyboardless RT tablets, one for each student. She brought hers out to our writer's group last night with the intention of getting sued to it.
It wouldn't boot up, so her techie boyfriend started messing with it, He got it to boot to an error message of the "Press F1 to continue" variety...
...on a keyboardless tablet. He and I had a good laugh.
Re:"Press F1 to continue..." (Score:5, Funny)
She brought hers out to our writer's group last night with the intention of getting sued to it.
Best unintentional humor of the day.
Re:"Press F1 to continue..." (Score:4, Funny)
"Press F1 to continue"
You must thank God it didn't ask you to insert the boot disk inside your tablet. Or worse, your Windows Phone!!
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/01/15/windows_phone_boot/ [theregister.co.uk]
Titsup Windows Phone 8 orders user to cram 'boot disc' in mobe
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Downloading a radio driver (Score:2)
Download the software to make your modem work.
Isn't downloading a radio driver (using another device) what you have to do anyway to build CyanogenMod for a new device?
Re:"Press F1 to continue..." (Score:4, Funny)
You can plug in a USB keyboard and hit F1 just fine.
Back in the day, you used to need a PS/2 keyboard to press F1 even if you had a USB keyboard because the BIOS didn't support the USB keyboard. This is no different.
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Because these are problems we should be having in 2013.
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And it's practical to carry a usb keyboard with you anywhere you might want to use a tablet?
This is a ridiculous problem, and shows how the software was never really designed for touch input devices at all, and has only been recently kludged to work with them. I've never seen android or ios display errors demanding i attach a usb keyboard.
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It isn't just the F1 key, but here you go: http://news.thomasnet.com/fullstory/Compact-Keyboard-has-12-function-keys-only-811828 [thomasnet.com]
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Try enabling drive encryption with an on-boot password... You can't boot the device at all until you've entered the password, which you must do with a usb keyboard...
Or.... (Score:2)
which may indicate that customers are finding even the Metro-focused RT version of Windows 8 too irritating to navigate by touch alone.
Or Dell has figured out that they will not be selling mass numbers of the device, and it will be more of a niche device, and thus they want to increase their profit margins on the ones they do sell.
Let's see (Score:5, Insightful)
So first MS inappropriately tries to put a desktop operating system on to smart phones where it's pretty much unusable.
Then they decide inappropriately to put a smart phone operating system on to a desktop where it is pretty much unusable.
Genius. Pure and inappropriate genius.
I'm not a Windows RT expert, but ... (Score:5, Insightful)
... it strikes me that the main reason to buy Windows RT over the competition (e.g. Android or iOS) is Office. Realistically, Office needs a keyboard so offering a keyboardless version is just another part for Dell to manage. It likely leads to poor reviews and extra support issues as well, since some ill informed people are going to buy the cheaper keyboardless version and expect Office to work as well as it does with a keyboard.
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not forgetting that Windows RT doesn't come with Outlook, so you can write a word document but cannot send it to anyone. Genius work Microsoft.
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not forgetting that Windows RT doesn't come with Outlook, so you can write a word document but cannot send it to anyone. Genius work Microsoft.
Interesting thoughts. The fact that Windows RT has a full featured email client that can send and receive attachments seems to address one of your concerns - Outlook is not the only way people read and send email. On top of that, Outlook is being added in the 8.1 release due later this year, which seems to address your other concern.
I'm not a big fan of Microsoft and on anything that is not touch-capable, Windows 8 is an abomination. On an RT, it's not actually that bad and the ability to plug in USB device
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If you're going to be using the device primarily with a keyboard, why bother with a tablet at all?
So you can pay $479 for a "tablet" thats only usable with a keyboard making it basically a very poor laptop, or you can pay $350 for a laptop:
http://www.dell.com/us/p/inspiron-15-3521/pd [dell.com]
You mean the expensive optional Office? (Score:4, Informative)
You are not allowed to use Office commercially on Windows RT devices. Also, it doesn't come with Outlook. This made the device positively unusable for any "professional" use. You could buy the Surface Pro later, that was supposed to have Outlook and "full legacy application windows compatibility". The fact that they have Office doesn't mean they are licensed, you have to buy a separate license for it. These things made any RT "for amateurs" only at launch. Given the fact that they were more expensive than iPads and at launch time, the iPads had way more apps available and were a proven concept, nobody was very interested in a surface RT at launch.
The keyboard feature on the surface RT is a fallacy. Yes, you can type on it. I haven't tried it myself but it could very well be a nice keyboard too. However, you need a flat surface to place the kick stand on, so it won't really work on your lap, you need a table. The angle at which you can set the screen with the kick stand is "limited" to put it mildly. You can fiddle a bit and maybe use some objects to change it to your liking, but for any semi-serious laptop-like work, you'd want an adjustable angle, so you can sit and type more or less ergonomically. Having to fiddle with this if you can buy a device that is just as expensive that has a proper laptop form factor, will make the RT not very interesting for people that sort of consumer either.
I don't know about the ergonomics of the Dell devices, but evidently, as a "content consumption device" without a keyboard, they weren't very successful, or Dell wouldn't be stopping the sales. If their devices that come with a keyboard are at least ergonomically viable, they may have a chance the surface RT never had. The OS and licensing are still going to be a challenge, but it may economically viable to make and sell these.
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You are not allowed to use Office commercially on Windows RT devices.
And of course, everyone complies with all of the limitations Microsoft applies to packages such as Home and Student which are never used for any commercial work ever. Aren't we all good :-)
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Not everyone. But it does matter to medium to large businesses. I work at a copany with 35 desktops and 4 servers. There is no way I would recommend purchasing ANY Windows device without a full licence for office.
License compliance is a pain in the butt. However it is worth it. I know that we will not be shut down by a BSA audit because a competetor or former employee would try to convince the BSA that we flagrantly disregard Microsoft's intellectual property rights. Or the rights of Adobe, AutoDesk or Intu
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Not everyone. But it does matter to medium to large businesses. I work at a copany with 35 desktops and 4 servers. There is no way I would recommend purchasing ANY Windows device without a full licence for office.
License compliance is a pain in the butt. However it is worth it. I know that we will not be shut down by a BSA audit because a competetor or former employee would try to convince the BSA that we flagrantly disregard Microsoft's intellectual property rights. Or the rights of Adobe, AutoDesk or Intuit as well.
A completely valid point and one I'd not considered, clearly. I wonder, in these days of BYOD (and appreciating that many Enterprises don't support this approach) how stringently those rules are applied to personal devices. And what is the legal position for the employer if the employee, of their own choice, were to buy an RT device with Outlook on it and use it to connect to a corporate Exchange server?
Why not a proper 10" netbook for $400? (Score:5, Insightful)
If a tablet must have a keyboard, due to a lousy operating system interface; why not build a proper 10" netbook with all accesories for $400?
Atleast then, the Windows OS would run all Windows applications, including legacy applications. Now the only 'apps' or applications on a Windows RT would be those on the Windows Store; which are largely useless and unusable.
Microsoft and its partners seem totally confused on what constitutes a tablet, what is a notebook and what is a desktop. Why would anyone want to run a full fledged Office package on a 10" tablet? What else could be the reason for investing more than $400 on a smallish computing device?
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If a tablet must have a keyboard, due to a lousy operating system interface; why not build a proper 10" netbook with all accesories for $400?
If you want to use an "Office" type application (either the free one or the proprietary one) you need a real computer. At least a decent laptop.
If you are trying to do it on a tablet, you're doing it wrong.
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If you want to use an "Office" type application (either the free one or the proprietary one) you need a real computer
I know, I know.... but this is indeed the biggest selling point of the Windows tablet family - the ability to run Office and Outlook.
http://www.informationweek.com/hardware/handheld/microsoft-needs-3-surface-tablets-3-reas/240159781 [informationweek.com]
Support for Office, including Outlook, meanwhile means the device could be useful not only for content consumption but also as a BYOD companion device.
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why not build a proper 10" netbook with all accesories for $400?
Why not build an individual netbook as a hobbyist? Because one doesn't just build a laptop the way one builds a desktop. Netbooks need far more miniaturization than the modularity of a home-built PC can offer.
Why not mass produce netbooks? Because tablets have the feature of detaching the keyboard when the user doesn't need it, and because there's more profit margin in tablets. I thought we discussed this months ago [slashdot.org].
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What else could be the reason for investing more than $400 on a smallish computing device?
There's no shortage of people willing to spend more than $400 for an iPad.
The convenience of a tablet device should not be underrated, though at that price you can get an ultra-light netbook or a fully fledged ultra-portable laptop.
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Because no one was making money at $400 for a netbook.
After you put the parts together, add Windows, add the crapware to make it cheaper, there isn't much money left over.
Or have you forgotten how prior to the iPad, netbooks started creeping upwards in price? They were $300 initially, then everyone realized that no one was making any money and they started adding stuff to justify it costing $400, $500 and more. Yes, there were netbooks that cos
90% of users (Score:2)
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My Atom netbook battery lasts about as long as my Android tablet. Of course, the netbook battery is much larger and heavier.
What's the take away here... (Score:2)
I thought we knew that already.
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Keyboard + Tablet = ? (Score:2)
Good luck finding a new 10" laptop (Score:2)
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Right you are boss:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=sr_nr_n_0?rh=n%3A340831031%2Cn%3A429887031%2Ck%3Anetbook&keywords=netbook&ie=UTF8&qid=1376997870&rnid=340832031 [amazon.co.uk]
Not shown on that page, but I notice that both MSI and Zoostorm have current, new models on the shelves. I've had good experiences with other Zoostorm machines (including most sold with No OS, if you look for it), so I'll definitely be looking them up for my next Netbook purchase.
Which showroom? (Score:2)
Not shown on that page, but I notice that both MSI and Zoostorm have current, new models on the shelves.
The shelves of which (U.S.) store chain? I tried Walmart, Best Buy, and Staples, and netbooks had disappeared in favor of more expensive tablets and Ultrabook laptops. If I plan to be entering a lot of text on a device whose keyboard isn't replaceable, I prefer to try to make sure that the keyboard it comes with is acceptable before I buy it. Or should I just buy any brand and just eat the return shipping if I don't like it?
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will do anything a windows PC does
I thought the Chrome OS that ships on a Chromebook was designed to surf the Web and only surf the Web. Can you explain further? I guess I could use a remote desktop connection to a PC running Windows or Linux in order to run non-web applications, but mobile broadband for that would cost me $420 per year (source: virginmobileusa.com).
Swirl swipe (Score:3, Insightful)
Well, Swirl-swipe, triple tap, Windows Key+C+4, followed by shoving a charm bar across the screen diagonally probably wasn't as efficient as clicking the start menu after all.
I'm waiting for $199 (Score:2)
When a 10 inch Windows RT tablet can be had for $199, I'll be all over it. With a jailbreak, there's a great deal of open-source software that has been recompiled for ARM, and will work just fine in desktop mode. I already have a Bluetooth keyboard.
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If it's open source software then chances are most of it has already been ported to linux (or is primarily designed for linux in the first place), and if not can probably be recompiled to link against winelib... And then there is a huge amount of open source software which has already been built for linux/arm but not for windows/arm.
Why would you want a windows tablet if you're going to run open source software on it? Might as well just use a linux device
And watching the TV (Score:2)
I'd rather have the $300 one with a $10 keyboard from the drug store if all I'm doing is sitting on the sofa surfing...and a mouse...and a different OS.
I guess the problem was the price. (Score:5, Funny)
Making it more expensive should fix it.
It needs a real OS and it needs to be in a phone (Score:2)
I'm tired of the pennyanny OS's on these devices. Put a desktop OS on the phone formfactor. It is well within our capabilities.
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It was called Windows Mobile. It did all right in the market, back in the days when only serious nerds and corporate executives had smartphones. It crashed and burned when iOS came out, despite being technically a vastly more capable OS than early iOS versions. Android was the nail in the coffin.
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I used that OS. It would not run windows software. it would only run windows mobile software.
I'm certain to get modded down for this but... (Score:2)
What is slashdots obsession with the surface rt? A sale from Dell? Has there ever been a time when everything Dell offers hasn't been on sale? This is starting to seem like Slashdot's version of the royal baby.
Its the end of Dominance (Score:3)
What is slashdots obsession with the surface rt?
You know why, or should know why. It what Microsoft had built to dominate the (hardware) mobile industry using its old monopoly's of Windows Desktop Applications...and Microsoft Office Insurance. Its a locked down (Secure Boot Crap) Microsoft hardware running Windowsish on (Incompatible with X86 Binary) ARM, forcing you to use Microsofts store. Using the Very Unpopular Metro(Instead of a real Desktop...and Without Desktop Applications). Hitting its OEM Abused Wives on the with a backhand of "you're rubbish"
Surface RT is almost usable w/o keyboard (Score:2)
Almost. I have the Surface RT and somethings are very irritating.
* virtual keyboard is overlay on top of your current application instead of the more standard pushing application out of the way. This leads to situation where you can't see the text you're typing.
* there's a virtual numpad, but it's a weird mix of phone numpad and standard keyboard numpad. 1-9 use phone layout (1-3 top row...etc) but "0" and "." are on the bottom like a standard keyboard numpad.
* some very basic settings can't be accessed
So $179 for a keyboard? (Score:2)
With such bargain pricing it's no wonder Dell is in the shitter. :(
Keyboard = Productivity (Score:2)
A keyboardless tablet can work fine for...
- watching netflix
- playing games
- reading your favorite star's latest tweets
- reading e-mail
Yeah, that whole aforementioned 'consumption'. But these devices have long since moved beyond the toy status. The lines of definition for what people thought a computer is now blurred. And now people expect even an Android phone to be a productivity device. And for that, a keyboard is just so essential. Ye olde QWERTY keyboard may be purposely inefficient, but it is fa
Intresting (Score:2)
I think the worlds "Dell" and "Dump" are going to become more prolific over the next 6 months as this is about all the life this company has left.
I think there is only one way for Dell to survive, scrap their entire product lineup.
Dell is the GM of computers. They have way too many product model lines up that try to cater to different markets and saturate every price point. Like GM, you can't have 15+ product lines and maintain profitability. Something has to go. GM only recovered from their bailout by
Re:Be fair since you aren't being fair ... (Score:5, Funny)
Windows RT tablets are a collectors item and you'll be able sell them on E-Bay for a tidy sum. And this is a great reason to buy one today.
Probably true in 10-15 years when the current inventory is down.
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Buy up all the Windows RT tablets you can find, which have been signed by Babe Ruth. Sit on them for a couple years, and re-list them on eBay. GUARANTEED PROFIT
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it IS a paid operation, sponsored by ... (Score:2)
You're right. MS decided to put a phone UI on their desktop, a desktop UI on their tablet, and and offered /. $35,000 per article about Surface. It seems they didn't quite think things through for any of those decisions.
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Seriously, it does look like /. is proactively madvertising the Surface. IMHO, Win8 is perfect (use it daily on non-touch PC) and the only downside for RT is a lack of apps. Just as Android when it launched, but back then it only had one iOS product (!) as competition. Its harder for RT to win in the current market.