Apple has sold over 3.3 million iPads so far, but Microsoft is still waiting for those Windows-based tablets to start capturing the hearts and minds of users. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, however, is confident the company has a bright future in this space.
Speaking to analysts on Thursday, Ballmer said Microsoft is hard at work to make Windows 7 a great OS for tablets. “We have got to make things happen. We’re in the process of doing that as we speak. We’re working with our hardware partners. We’re tuning Windows 7,” he said.
Ballmer also recognized the success of Apple’s iPad, saying the company has “sold certainly more than I’d like them to have sold.” However, at a later Q&A session he took a jab at one of iPad’s drawbacks. “When you get your Windows 7 machine, it will print. Some people actually like to print every now and then,” he said.
Ballmer is right: printing on iPad is a problem. But Microsoft might encounter far more problems adapting Windows 7 for tablets. Apple’s iOS was designed for a touch screen device from grounds up, while Windows 7 was primarily created with a regular keyboard-and-mouse-equipped PC in mind. And while Windows 7 was a clear win compared to the disaster that was Vista, Microsoft’s track record of late – remember Kin? – tells us that a great Windows 7 tablet, while not an impossibility, might not be right around the corner just yet.
[via CNET]
Reviews: Windows
More About: microsoft, Steve Ballmer, tablets, Windows
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Too late. I was interested in the HP Win7 slate that was rumoured, along with other Win 7 tablets, but the iPad is actually on sale now. I took the plunge, got an iPad and am loving it.
By the by, isn't printing from a tablet PC kinda missing one of the points of a tablet PC, namely that you can use it to view documents etc?
Sorry Ballmer, you may have guns, but your guns don't fire. Dead cannon!
Microsoft used to “lead the charge”. But now they are just like sheep following, where others innovate.
good that there are print apps on the ipad. need wi-fi though, but more and more people do have that over here, in belgium that is. good thing btw printing isn't that easy. it's a – perhaps unintentional – green touch. what's the use of e-mail if you still print everything?
cheers
kevin major
brussels, belgium
Oops, the comment “sold certainly more than I’d like them to have sold” says it all.
Microsoft tried for years to make tablets work but didnt realise that simplicty and low-cost were the main issues in their offerings.
Apple's product is easy to use and won't cost over $1000.
It will be interesting to see how Microsoft tackles the 'sclaing up' of their Windows Phone OS onto a tablet. Can they make it as seamless as Apple have with theirs?
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