Thursday, December 27, 2012

Microsfot vs. Samsung


Here's the 1:1 comparison of Microsoft Surface with Samsung's Ativ 500T windows 8 tablet. Note: I won't compare the technical specs, as you can get those from umpteen sites. My article is geared more towards my first impressions when looking at these 2 tablet side by side. - Microsoft Surface looks like a regular tablet in size; Samsung's Ativ looks more like a platter (it's super wide) I think Samsung's tablets screen was almost an inch wider than Surface's screen. Personally I felt awkward holding a platter to browse the web. The hands felt far more apart than they ought to be.
Image courtesy tablet-news.com
- Surface has a built-in back stand; Ativ doesn't. - Ativ comes with a stylus tucked in at the bottom; Surface doesn't. On a side note: It's funny how Samsung is bringing back the stylus in all their touch products to break away from Apple's revolutionary touch concept. Ironically, Windows were the first to bring out the stylus in their smartphones few years back before iPhone launched. Apple then brought in iPod and iPhone and everyone threw out the stylus and the windows phone along with it. Then came Samsung mimicking Apples design/concept with their slick smartphones on Android OS and now it has partnered with Microsoft to launch Windows 8 in face of iOS & Android and brought back the stylus just to stir the old time memories! Like I said, it is funny to see it come back! - Samsung's windows 8 tablet was bland looking as compared to Microsoft's Surface. I mean except for its wide form you wouldn't know if its Android based or Windows based. A Microsoft/Windows logo "would" have been a nice touch. - Weight-wise I think Samsung's Ativ may have been slightly heavier than Surface. And believe me every additional gram counts when it comes to enduring holding of the tablet for longer periods. - Surprisingly Surface felt more sturdy in the hand especially if you try holding it in one hand. I could hold Ativ with one hand but I could see the pressure points it was building up on my wrist. Ativ somehow looked like a cheap knockoff as compared to Surface. - if you deploy the on-screen keyboard on Ativ you hardly get to see few lines above the typing area...and you are left wondering maybe it should have been longer as well (or you need to rotate the device in portrait mode for typing and ROFL looking at the monolith jutting up in the air) - awkward! -Ativ also comes with external snap-on keyboard for those who really want to type a letter or try doing some serious work (using MS Office); Surface comes with its own magnetic snap-on Touch Cover. - it's funny that you hardly see any ads on TV for Samsung Windows 8 tablet, Ativ; whereas Microsoft Surface hogs the primetime airwaves. Shows who has how much at stake here! :) - Price point wise both Samsung & Microsoft windows 8 tablets are priced in the same range. I was told off handedly by store manager that Samsung maybe $50 cheaper than Surface. (Bottom line) Now that's maybe 'cuz as per Samsung's marketing strategy it's only meant to dirty the waters, undercut the main product and flood the market with cheaper stuff. If i was a gung-ho fan of Samsung then I'd rather wait for prices to drop on these, preferably wait for Ativ 600T or whatever their next version is going to be. Otherwise I would seriously recommend looking at Surface again if you are Microsoft/Windows fan. At these prices I'd rather purchase MS Office suite App for $15-20 from the App Store for iPad 3! Best of both worlds ;)

1 comment:

  1. When it comes to processing power, there are two different versions of the Business Galaxy S3. The international has a quad-core, the US version has a dual-core. As for the iPhone? It is a dual-core device in all markets.

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