Some think Microsoft is being coy about its slate options. Others merely believe the provider is becoming clueless. I think the Redmondians are planting decoys, hoping they;ll supply cover for missteps.Here;s my most recent principle regarding what;s heading on, concerning Microsoft and its solution for slates (or lack thereof). More than the past couple of months,
Office Pro Plus 2010, Microsoft execs have gone from declaring Apple;s iPad is nothing but a crippled Computer, to claiming that Microsoft and its partners have myriad iPad competition prepared to launch any day now. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer mentioned there;d be Windows 7 slates out in time for holiday 2010. And in the latest Computex conference, Microsoft execs crowed about the a lot of Windows slates on account of launch this fall.If any of these slates were really true iPad competitors, Microsoft could be only relatively late to the slate party. This isn;t the situation (creating me happier through the day that I made the decision to get an iPad to make use of as my on-the-go mobile device, rather than waiting for my longed-for “WinPad.”)The “Windows slates” Microsoft showed at Computex aren;t running Windows seven; they;re running Windows Embedded Compact. That means they aren;t heading to be able to run Windows seven apps and won;t sport the Windows seven user interface. Instead, each of those Embedded Compact slates will feature its own custom interface.Meanwhile, the Windows seven slates coming in time for this vacation season are heading to be business-focused products. (HP execs admitted this recently,
Office Standard 2010 Key, noting their coming Slate 500 gadget will be for enterprise users. If there are other Windows seven slates ready to launch this drop,
Office Home And Student 2010, I;d expect they also will be business-focused devices. These models will be PCs without lids; tablets without the stylus. They won;t have the long battery life, touch-centric user interfaces or built-in app store capabilities that have designed the iPad a success.Microsoft;s real iPad competitors aren;t heading to debut until 2011 — I;d guess mid-2011 at best. Ballmer didn;t state this plainly at last week;s Microsoft Finanacial Analyst Meeting,
Office Professional Plus 2010 Key, but he dropped some hefty hints. Ballmer touted Intel;s Oak Trail processors as being key to Microsoft;s iPad alaternatives. The problem is Oak Trail chips aren;t heading to be ready until “early 2011.” Once Computer makers get them in hand,
Microsoft Office 2007, it will take them at a few quarters to build and test slates that use them.I;m curious as to whether Microsoft will continue to try to steer its partners to use Windows seven as the operating system powering these slates. My guess, as I told TechFlash;s Todd Bishop last week, is Microsoft may relent and allow slate makers to use the touch-centric Windows Phone OS 7 on these devices. (Microsoft could still claim that these slates had been running “Windows,” since it is creating sure to brand all of its operating systems as “Windows.”)Bottom line: “WinPads” are still about a year away, I;m predicting. Expect Microsoft execs to downplay the coming Windows Embedded Compact slates and start acknowledging that this year;s Windows seven slates are business-centric devices. Rather than risking another Kin debaucle (launching then pulling a misguided product at amazing cost), Microsoft is rethinking its reply towards the iPad. Better late than lame….