As anybody in ownership of an Xbox 360 (or indeed, a PlayStation 3) will know, the wireless controllers are pretty versatile, and with minimal fuss, can be hooked up to many electronic products besides their respective console boxes. With the Microsoft Surface dropping next week, many were wondering whether the Redmond company's tablet would also support the Xbox's wireless controllers. In a day that has seen snaps of Steve Sinofsky skateboarding on a Surface around the Redmond complex, the software maker has taken another out-of-the-ordinary step in confirming via Reddit that the imminent slab will indeed be compatible with the Xbox game pads.
The Surface is undoubtedly going to be a very popular hardware creation for Microsoft, and even they themselves might be a little surprised at the early interest in the Windows 8 powered device. Those who are wanting to get their hands on a 32GB version of the tablet will be a little disappointed today as the online Microsoft Store is showing it as out of stock with expected delivery now being pushed back three weeks.
We all remember when Microsoft held a rather mysterious event that brought us the initial announcement and showcasing of the gorgeous looking Surface tablet. Microsoft managed to create something that we couldn't wait to get our hands on and try out, but unfortunately, the lines of communication seemed to stop with more information only recently starting to surface thanks to the looming launch date of the hardware. As part of the run-up to the official release on October 26th, the first Microsoft Surface TV advertisement has landed on the web, and to accompany the rather awesome looking ad; Microsoft (by accident we’re assuming) has slipped out the official pricing points of the Surface RT tablet.
Microsoft seems to be getting pretty good at producing video commercials that make their products stand out from the rest. I'm pretty sure we have all seem the wonderful TV commercial for Internet Explorer that makes us actually want to give IE a second chance. Apart from that, we also recently saw the first Windows 8 ad going live that introduces us to the OS.
The launch of the Windows 8 operating system from Microsoft, along with all the associated devices, has always been at the back of the mind of the tech enthusiast. In the height of a summer which has seen the release of many fantastic products, October 26th has always seemed like such a long way away, but halfway through the first week of this monumentally-significant month for the software maker and tech as a whole, everything has started to become just that little bit more real.
With everything that is currently going on in the technology industry, it sometimes gets quite difficult to keep all of the announcements in memory and remember what hardware or software is going to be introduced to the marketplace. With the iPhone and iOS 6, the Nexus 7, the chatter surrounding Windows 8 and more recently; the imminent launch of the Samsung Galaxy Note II, I had actually totally forgotten about the impromptu media event where Microsoft introduced us to their Surface tablet. When Apple announces an iPad, it is pretty much available immediately. When Google announced the Nexus 7, it was available for immediate pre-order and was dispatched a couple of weeks later. Microsoft announced the Surface and then, well, nothing happened.
The Microsoft Surface is the company's first delve into the increasingly popular tablet market, and it's fair to say the Redmond outfit has a fair bit of catching up to do. The iPad has been retailing for two-and-a-half years, and although Android tablets haven't managed to make as much of an impression on consumers, the companies behind them are now seeming to push forth some genuine contenders to the Cupertino company's dominant slate.
When Microsoft announced its Surface last month, the tech world was largely impressed by its potential, and by essentially killing off the wholly awful netbook market as well as having a real stab at the iPad-manned tablet field, it appeared to kill two birds with the one proverbial stone.
Despite having only been announced at the beginning of the week, the Microsoft Surface has become the most talked-about gadget on the planet, and by declining to comment on price and availability - a couple of reasonably important factors - the gossip chain has reached overdrive. To add a little extra spice to proceedings, Bloomberg reckons the highly anticipated tablet-ultrabook cross may initially only ship with Wi-Fi capabilities, which could certainly put a dampener on the general excitement within the tech sphere.
Microsoft’s recently announced Surface tablet is one of the most buzz-worthy product announcements in recent history. It is being seen by mobile technology enthusiasts as the first true competition to the iPad in a long time because of one solid reason. Based on Windows 8 - a desktop-class operating system - tablet that you can use for more than just consuming content, you can create documents in MS Office, make funny cat GIFs in Photoshop, develop the next big thing in Visual Studio etc. etc.
