The sad saga of Surface problems continues

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You’re going to hear a lot about the shiny new Surface devices coming in the next few weeks. Should you be tempted to shell out your shekels, be aware
[See the full post at: The sad saga of Surface problems continues]

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If I said once, I say it again: MS is not very good at making things. It is very good, particularly with Satya at the helm, at selling to investors the idea of having some truly genius-level projects underway that will pay fabulously well, even in the near future, if they invest on MS right now. And the investors do, they shell out lavishly on MS shares, pushing its valuation through the clouds and moving onlookers to follow their lead — a “bubble” well in the making?  And, apparently, at MS they also have no problem either convincing all those writers of praiseful puff pieces about how great things are at MS now that Satya is the complete Master of the ship.

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

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[b]

They’ve done quite nicely with the Surface segment recently:

Surface revenue has grown by 14%, totaling $1.3 billion. Microsoft says the growth is driven by strong growth in its commercial segment, and it’s pretty impressive considering we haven’t seen the launch of a major new Surface device in recent times.

Microsoft Q4 2019 Earnings Show Growth in Surface As Azure Growth Slows Down

So it’s not all pie in the cloud.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 7 months ago by b.

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That’s nice for MS. Now, a 14% growth over how many, in absolute terms, that were previously sold, would that be? And what is that in terms of Surface’s current share in the market for similar gadgets?

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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OscarCP wrote:

That’s nice for MS. Now, a 14% growth over how many, in absolute terms, that were previously sold, would that be?

Lots and lots.

OscarCP wrote:

And what is that in terms of Surface’s current share in the market for similar gadgets?

Define similar.

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b, You first: define “lots and lots.”

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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$1.11 billions worth. I don’t see how the actual number of units sold is meaningful when their price varies from $400 to $22,000.

My point is that despite you saying, “MS is not very good at making things.” they seem to be very good at selling the things they make year after year:

In less than six years, the Surface business has grown to roughly 20 percent of the size of Apple’s entire Mac business.

So what accounts for this steady success in a market where other OEMs are struggling? In a word, good products.

Surface by the numbers: How Microsoft reinvented the PC

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So some surface laptops sell for $22,000? Those must be some laptops! Who would ever even guess that! Thanks for letting me know.

I have no doubt when you say, even if you do not define what you mean by it, that there are ‘lots’ of “Surfaces” being sold. There are also ‘lots’ of Rolex wrist-watches one can buy from sellers based in Hong Kong. Quite cheap! I myself have been offered Rolex wrist-watches by salesmen in Hong Kong itself, when I was there, and at a most convenient price. And I am assured that lots and lots are bought that way. Good for Rolex and its most commendable push for democratizing high-end wrist-watch wearing instead of selling them only to the top earners of this world that can afford to pay as much for one of those as for a high-end car! Can’t say the same about MS. Charging $22,000 for a laptop? Really? Shame on you, Microsoft!

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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No one said anything about laptops: Surface Hub US$21,999 (84-inch model)

Fake Rolex watches in Hong Kong do Rolex no good at all, and the watch companies spend a lot of money trying to get rid of them:

According to the Swiss watch industry, the replica watch market costs them billions of dollars each year, and efforts are made to confiscate fake watches and destroy them in spectacular ‘demonstrative’ ways. One of my favorite examples was from 2010 when about 7,000 replica Rolex watches were smooshed with a steamroller in front of press cameras as the culprit was sent to jail for six months. [Photos in article.]

Working closely with customs officials in major markets, the luxury industry does play a large part in the successful seizure of fake goods. Though, very many still make it through to market. It is just too difficult to catch them all.

Walk down specific streets in major cities such as New York, Hong Kong, and Tokyo to find known “fake districts” where everything from replica sunglasses to timepieces are peddled to consumers looking to find them. … Fake watches are found in places where you expect to find a fake watch.

The Truth About Replica Watches

But I haven’t heard of any counterfeit Surfaces (yet).

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OscarCP

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You both have good points – but we have no numbers. None at all.

Gross sales mean nothing without expenses. Unit sales percentage differences mean nothing.

Surface is a tiny, tiny slice of Microsoft — and we have no way to know how tiny.

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OscarCP

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There’s no way I’ll pay top dollar for a high-end Windows tablet that you end up destroying if you try to repair it.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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All these super thin devices seem to have a history of issues.  Trying to cram hardware into small spaces can have so many different negative effects. From heat related issues, to micro sizing system parts to fit the design. Besides being mostly sealed up and not easily accessible for repair.

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Gee, guess I’ll be keeping my Surface Pro 2 for a while. It’s old and a little slow, but (so far) hasn’t had any problems and I can buy new Type Covers on Amazon for about $25-30. Was looking forward to getting a new one, but…

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So I’ll be keeping my Surface Pro 3 for just now.  It’s still working fine for me, so why change it.

Dell E5570 Latitude, Intel Core i5 6440@2.60 GHz, 8.00 GB - Win 10 Pro

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My Surface Pro 2 was a victim of a Windows 10 update and is now a doorstop. I “upgraded” to a SP 4. I am now chained to an outlet if I want to use it longer than an hour. Not to mention, I’ve gone through 5 power cords and 3 typecovers. As much as I love the Surface, this will be my last one. I’m done.

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