Surface 2.0 specs revealed

According to the report, the Surface 2 will run Intel’s latest line of chips, a Haswell based Core i5. In addition, the RAM will receive a considerable bump, being doubled 4GB to 8GB. The battery life of the Surface Pro 2 will go from the current four to five hours to up to seven hours. Finally, while the device will look similar to the current Pro, Microsoft has ‘refined’ the kick-stand that ships with the device.

But both are predicting it won't change much from current Surface Pro pricing, meaning it could start around $799 (U.S.) if Microsoft matches the recently reduced Surface Pro price.

Surface Pro 2 is expected to come with Windows 8.1 preinstalled. Like the first-generation Surface, it will offer users the ability to run existing desktop apps, as well as new Metro-Style/Windows Store apps.

Microsoft took a 900 million dollar write-down recently, but that hasn't stopped Microsoft from dropping prices for the Surface RT and Surface Pro, along with its accessories, as of late. We learned recently that Microsoft had dropped the price of the Surface RT and Surface Pro by nearly $150. Microsoft also dropped the price of the Surface Touch Cover to $79. On top of that, Microsoft has also dropped the price of the Surface RT and black Touch Cover bundle by $50.

source via via

Microsoft preparing to "relaunch" Windows 8 in February

It's no secret that Microsoft is blaming PC manufacturers for the weak sales of Microsoft's latest Windows 8 operating system. Now, new details have emerged indicating that Microsoft is preparing to "relaunch" Windows 8 in February with the launch of the Surface Pro.

"Now Microsoft is planning to reboot its launch of Windows 8 next month. On Tuesday the company gave 9 February as the date for the US and Canada unveiling of the Intel-powered Surface Pro tablets. But sources tell us Microsoft is actually preparing for a February 'relaunch' of Windows 8," the report claims. Microsoft is apparently upset that manufactures did not follow guidelines for creating Windows 8 PCs while manufacturers argued that high-end and expensive devices would have been created and consumers would be confused and would not want it. As for this so-called relaunch of Windows 8, Microsoft could be planning a massive media campaign highlighting everything great about Windows 8 and the Surface Pro. We will just have to wait and see exactly what Microsoft has up its sleeve when the Surface Pro is launched on February 9th.

We've already heard from several different PC manufactures such as Acer, Asus, Fujitsu, and Samsung regarding sales of Microsoft's new Windows 8 operating system. HP even offered an opinion explaining the weak Windows 8 sales: "Clearly it's as been reported, it was a slower start than many people expected. But I think as we've gone through January, as we look at retail sales week to week, as we look at web sales week to week, we see continued momentum and continued growth. So, I think the combination of a very new experience, a very touch driven experience, and lots of choices over the holidays, it's not to be unexpected," HP stated in a recent interview. It's pretty funny to see Microsoft blaming PC manufacturers for the weak Windows 8 sales, while PC manufacturers blame Windows 8 for weak PC sales. Will a correctly timed "relaunch" of Windows 8 fix the problem?

Source
follow me