'I have a Surface!' 'Oh, well I have a bunch of those all over my house'

Jacob Penderworth -

Microsoft couldn't have thought of a worse name for their tablet. Other than the name, it's reminiscent of Sony in outer appearances, has a keyboard with a magnetic connector (Apple says "?!"), has support for a stylus, just in case you were wondering, and attempts to be a full notebook but looks downright laughable; I think of it as an attempt to combine the iPad with the MacBook Air on a venture to introduce the thinnest "notebook and tablet" ever.

Is this Microsoft's own solution to the MacBook Air -- and an effort to make something better than Apple's fine, thin notebook -- or is it just another little side project?

On the upside, the multitouch keyboard looks is actually very nice looking, is 3 mm thick, and the device has a the Microsoft Office suite on it -- not that a lot of people really care, but still. I wouldn't mind trying one out and probably will in the near future, but right now I must say that the whole thing looks a bit too tacky for me to own. If I were to use Windows, I would rather have it on my desktop computer or at least my notebook. I don't think there's a need for a hybrid tablet and notebook, just like there's no need for an ASUS Padfone.

Microsoft thinks the tablet -- and the company itself -- is "perfect".

Other specifications:

  • DisplayPort connector for external displays.
  • "The power of a full PC."
  • There's a kickstand on it.
  • No release date, no pricing, no plans, just "coming soon".