The popular 8" format has a new contender: a quad core Windows 8.1 tablet with monitor connection, extendable storage and a Microsoft Office 365 licence for less than the price of a basic Nexus 7" android.
True Google's Nexus has a higher resolution, but 1280×800 is very workable and the larger screen will help in productivity. What the Nexus 7 doesn't offer is expandable SD-storage, a mini-HDMI port to use your (hotel) television or an existing monitor and compatibility with all Windows applications.
Add a BT keyboard and you have an extremely flexible travelling solution as this tablet has a serious Bay Trail CPU good enough to run the included Office package.
If this Office 365 Personal version comes with the new 1 Terabyte OneDrive option by Microsoft it's some very serious competition for the Android consumption tablets. Undercutting them on price, features and productivity.
Brand, not the best one: Point of View, Recommended Retail Price 169 Euro (so expect it to drop further). Limitation: only 1 Gb memory. Expect more W8 tablets in this price range soon.
specs: http://www.pointofview-online.com/showroom.php?shop_mode=product_detail&product_id=437 #Tech
I'm a big fan of the Windows 8.1 tablet.
Said it before, and I say it again. Windows 8 is brilliant, and the new machines are very well designed.
Do you have a specific link to this +Max Huijgen?
Added the link to the article +Mark McKinlay
I got the RRP price from a Dutch tech site.
What is the app selection now like? Previously it was lacking and to me this is the most important criteria.
Microsoft has a big opportunity here if they don't screw it up.
It looks good, but I don't trust Microsoft longer than I can reach with a baseball bat- too many disappointments over too many years.
Interesting and no doubt value for money. I looked it up on various sites but none of them specify the exact windows version. If it is full windows and not RT then on 1GB of ram it isn't going to be a good experience. If it is RT it will run much better but isn't compatible with any windows software.
I always liked Corel WordPerfect over Microsoft Word. WordPerfect has a killer feature, reveal codes.
When you write in Microsoft Word, you can't see the underlying code for all of the formatting. That makes it hard to edit, and it's easy for bad things to happen.
When typing in WordPerfect, with reveal codes, you actually can see all of the formatting embedded on screen, in an easy to edit format. It made working with complex documents much easier.
Is there anything like this they can be enabled on Microsoft Word?
+Mark McKinlay it's an X86 cpu, no Windows RT.
In that case with 1GB of ram it will run incredibly bad.
Is this spam?
Windows 8 lags no where as much as Android. Even if the Android specs were greater.
+Tormod Renberg Lerøy Except for InsideH20 and the UEFI controls that keep you from running anything else on your machine. I use Windows 8 on a VAIO and everything is satisfactory except that I can't boot another OS.
1GB RAM is 2011 now it is 2014…
I've always been a big fan of Word Perfect, as well, +Robert Kaiser , and introduced law offices to it over Microsoft Word years ago and would still, for the same reasons. Having those reveal codes is critical when making edits to lengthy legal documents that must be be letter and punctuation perfect for law courts. Word Perfect is a precision monument in my book. I do use MS Word, though, for work communications as it is required for our wide variety of platforms and BYODs at the company I work for.
+Mark McKinlay +Scott Wilson +Frank Schulz did you ever try W8.1 on 1 GB?
The memory footprint (and the efficiency) has been greatly enhanced over older versions, but I can't judge as I don't have the experience.
+Chris Westcott It's Windows 8.1 not Windows Phone. Ten million + applications?.
If you can afford it, the Surface Pro 3 is the best device available…
+Max Huijgen with the start oft Win8 I switched to Apple…(after 20years Microsoft) I'am open minded and would give a Windows tablet a chance but in 2014 it must min 2-3GB. In 2014 we are using 4k Video, big Panorama Pictures and a lot more RAM hungry apps…
+Max Huijgen when the Surface was first released it was in ARM and Intel variants, which did affect the number of apps (Windows RT and not Phone). The 2nd iteration passed me by hence my question.
No problem +Chris Westcott This one will support everything written for X86.
+Frank Schulz there are fine Microsoft Surface tablets which suit your requirement, but I don't need 4K output nor a responsive Photoshop on an entry level tablet.
Ah +Scott Wilson now I remember: I had a 1GB netbook! I hated it as the keyboard was too small and the old Atom CPU unusable, but the worst was that it had a hard disk instead of this tablet so if it ran out of memory it was a goner.
I recall that typing in Microsoft Word or browsing the web with just a few tabs went fine. With a much faster processor and digital instead of mechanical storage this 8" tablet should be very usable.
+Max Huijgen all Microsoft tablets are entry level because Apple and Android dominating the market. From this point oft view Microsoft should make 110% steps to gain market share…
+Max Huijgen the lowest I have went with 8.1 was 2GB and an i5 processor on a notebook. It was barely usable but it did work so long as you kept everything to a minimum. This is why just about everything comes with 4GB. 1GB is absolute minimum for 32bit and 2GB is min for 64bit. Will it run? Yes but I doubt it will handle office 365 in Internet Explorer very well over a couple of tabs.
+Frank Schulz You can't find a faster or higher resolution tablet than a Surface Pro 3. No matter the OS.
Nice to see some real competition, on paper, but it still lacks apps. And don't tell me it has 10mn+ apps… that's only true if you count desktop apps, which is not what most people understand by tablet apps, and are basically worthless without a keyboard.
Anyway, this is about a device which after subtracting the cost for 1 Terabyte online storage costs is less than 85E ($115)
Based on: google drive costs 9.99 * 12 = $120 = 88E . This 8"tablet in total is less or equal 169E.
+Max Huijgen your post starts: for less than the price of a basic Nexus 7… my basic nexus 7 has 2GB and 1920×1200 resolution…
I for one will definitely attach a mouse and kb to any Windows tablet when it's hooked up to a monitor and use desktop applications if I need them.
Where does it say people don't use applications? That's just the tech press which doesn't understand ubiquity
There is currently no way I can type more than one liners on any tablet. I need a keyboard for that.
Understood +Frank Schulz but you said all Microsoft tablets are entry level and the SP 3 isn't!
This one definitely is though, but it will be faster than the N7, have a larger screen, expandable storage and a monitor connection. Oh and 1 TB of storage and an Office license.
+Max Huijgen tablets/smartphones need apps and because Microsoft has only little market share in the tablet and mobile market all of their gadgets are entry level because of the lack of apps…
Although I'm sure they'll tune the OS for the hardware, 4GB has been the sweet spot for Windows 8.1 (32b) and 8GB for 64b. Personally, I'm sceptical they'll be able to get the performance to battery life ratio right.
I tried a Windows Phone for some time and am now back at an Android one +Frank Schulz but I still use the same apps.
Everything I need seems to be available on both platforms.
I also have an Android tablet and most of zillions of apps seem to be written for phones so I don't count them.
+Nate Berry I'm pretty sure this little tablet won't work like my 12 GB desktop, but then again it costs less than a Windows 8 + Office licence so essentially you get the hardware and 1TB online storage for free.
I find it interesting that someone from Europe would entrust so much of their data to Microsoft given recent revelations. OT, but where is the outrage in Europe by the way?
I had a quick look and it seems there are about 150.000 so called apps (most I will never use) for Windows 8.1 and of course the 10 million + applications.
That's an awful lot more than the number of applications/apps ever written for Mac OS X and people buy Apple machines in substantial numbers. I guess it's all about the apps you need.
Looking at specific tablet apps (meaning they use touch, are optimized to use the 7-11" space etc) I find Apple does well while Android is limited (mostly phone apps). I guess +Eli Fennell has an iPad as he seems to be right that Windows and Android are lacking there.
For me it's not that important. I use a limited number of tablet / mobile apps, love the chance to use the little machine as a temporary desktop replacement and for the money it's a no brainer.
Did I say I would use the 1 Terabyte you get for free here? +Nate Berry
For most people online storage with a company not making its profit from reading it, makes sense so Dropbox, Apple, Microsoft, etc are slightly better than Google, but I doubt it's a deciding factor.*
Price is though. Getting that free terabyte will convince people. To get that from Google, you need to buy a very expensive and very limited Chrome laptop (just a browser with a few extensions) alternative to get that for free and that's with a company specializing in harvesting your data.
ok, well I personally don't find the included Office a selling point, nor the included 1TB of free space on some NSA server, but the hardware might be interesting if I can wipe Windows and run Linux on it! 😉
…and I deal with "most people" all the time. "Most People" wouldn't know what a terrabyte of cloud storage is, or why they would want it anyway!
+Scott Wilson these are court ordered data transfers. Google does exactly the same. That's why I don't want to work with any US provider for anything confidential.
of course +Nate Berry personal choices are always legit. My post was directed at a general audience and people still use Word a lot. I know as I get mail with Word or Excel attachments and miss my easy option to open them.
Used to have that on the Windows Phone, but then again Real Racing was more important… 🙂
I use android and have no problem opening the odd Word document. There are a ton of free apps to do so, as well as Google Drive which will display most common Office stuff.
Too small of a screen, low resolution, add a keyboard — wait, why are you counting MS-Office as a paid product when so many Office-compatible Android products are free? Ripoff again, Micro$oft.
+Max Huijgen I have a Nexus 7, and nearly every app I use is optimized for tablets. The few that aren't are either in beta or I use them more out of necessity than wanting to have to use them at all, like the Facebook Page Manager.
There are plenty of tab optimized Android apps to choose from these days.
For a long time, McDonald's made their money, not off hamburgers or Big Macs, but Fries and Soda; also for many years, HP's main source of revenue wasn't printers, but printer ink, and the internal joke among the HP execs one of whom is a friend) was that HP isn't a tech company, it's an ink company.
My point: Microsoft is going to do the same thing with their tablets. They're going to be like HP printers: merely a point of sale device to encourage add-on purchases and upsells.
And that's an important thing for consumers to consider. Buying a copy of Windows x.y without it being bundled with OEM is costly, and MS has been nickeling people to death with charging extra for being able to join a domain, for example, or throwing together various configurations of Office that, at times, was fairly mind-boggling (which version had the Accounting package??). Adding the point that there's actual, relevant competition in software for Android platforms that doesn't exist for Windows platforms, I think consumers need to really consider more than just the tech specs. Finally, consider that Microsoft can have some very draconian anti-piracy practices and the never-ending flow of security updates and other fixes, and the maintenance overhead can be a little extreme for some tablet users (perhaps).
I'm not saying that Windows isn't the right choice for anyone; in fact, I think that it will be for many people (myself included, yes, I'm in the MS Windows group), but people should consider what their usage expectations will be after the wow-factor wears off.
Just my opinion, FWIW.
+Max Huijgen So SO sorry, Mad Max, "Undercutting them on price, features and productivity" ??? You lied three times in one sentence. How much is Satya Nadella paying you?
And of course M$ can undercut on price with all the royalties they're collecting on frivolous patents — almost as bad as Apple.
Gawd, I'm muting this post — can't stand all the hype and fawning.
Microsoft just doesn't seem to "get" mobile. If you honestly think you're going to be happy composing a book on a tablet, or getting any serious work done on an 8" screen while fiddling with some crappy BT keyboard, more power to you. The use case for these things is on the factory floor where there is legacy Windows software, or maybe as a sales tool for doing presentations. It in no way competes with a real laptop, and misses the whole point of why people are buying android tablets.
Ah, thought you were comparing with the superior iOS tablet apps +Eli Fennell
Can you list the apps you regularly use on Android tablet.
does this Microsoft can have some very draconian anti-piracy practices and the never-ending flow of security updates and other fixes make you make pay more for an Android tablet? +Bobby Bryla
Pay more to get illegal software copies at the expense of security and your wallet?
uh +Nate Berry for the last five (more, not sure) I have been using a BT keyboard as my only input device I'm pretty sure I can all work done as long as this tablet small mobile windows computer currently priced at peanuts can connect to my keyboard and a monitor.
+Max Huijgen G+, Chrome, Gmail, Hangouts, YouTube, Drive, QuickOffice, Kindle, Play Newsstand, OverDrive Media Console, Netflix, Maps, Pinterest, WordPress, Xfinity TV Go, Play Books, and a variety of little apps, mostly news apps and games, all of which deliver full blown tablet experiences.
Instagram doesn't offer a full tablet experience yet (do they on iPad?), Facebook Page Manager, LinkedIn, Klout (which is beta), a library app which is actually the same on all platforms (a wrapped for their mobile site), and really the biggest omission still is Twitter.
So what am I missing?
+Nate Berry and others Why do people buy Android tablets? They cost more than this little thingy, often have no SD-card expansion so you depend on cloud and peeking by Google, they can't connect to your monitor so forget playing games on your large TV and they don't run the most common office app?
Totally agree on the power of a little Asus transformer and RDP +Scott Wilson but that same transformer can be bought as a Windows machine and suddenly it's on steroids.
+Max Huijgen Let me sing the song of my people to you:
We don't care about those things, or we care about them less than we would if it was a PC. Frankly, I don't want them to all be one thing, not the way MS does it at least. I don't want Update Tuesday, or worse to subject my mother to Update Tuesday, or bundled McAfee Antivirus, or a license for Office that they'll forget not to keep paying for when the free period expires.
I don't even want that on my tablet. No sir. No thank you.
My N7 is light, portable, slick and responsive, and does exactly what I need such a device to do. When I don't need that, I've got my Chromebook or my Smartphone handy. I can darken my toast in the toaster and put my milk in the fridge, and ne'er do the twain need to meet.
I've been using my ASUS Transformer for years now and its fairly pokey but its rooted and has a custom Rom on it which makes it useable. I have two USB ports, an SD slot, miniSD, full keyboard with additional integrated battery which still gives me about 12 hours of usable battery life – it'll last longer if its sleeping. I posted a list of the android apps I use as it seems you're interested in that sort of thing:
http://pastebin.com/6i3zQHm6
as far as the BT keyboard – ok, but I prefer a detachable hard keyboard which serves as a cover (wait, I've invented the laptop!) if only for one reason – no charging it up. Not having to bother with pairing the thing is a plus too. Glad yours is working out though.
I'm missing the music +Eli Fennell must have sounded better at your mum's place 😉
But I don't argue with your choices: single purpose devices had a good time in the past and if you want to extend it: good for you, mum and the other Amish.
However allow us modern people to go where no mum went before. Dish washers, cars with navigation systems, phones on which you can read the internetz, hell, even fully functional Windows tablets cheaper than Microsoft Office.
There is a place and it's a large one for people who don't sing, but work. They rejoice if they can get things done without spending more.
They would prefer a proper menu over the chance to bring their own meat to a public BBQ and won't drink milk straight out of the fridge.
These are people who like choices, who understand productivity and if they see an opportunity tot get that proper meal with freedom of choice for the price of a Android burger, they won't think twice.
+Nate Berry why would I want a keyboard which can act as a cover? We're talking tablets here. 8" in this case, but most are 10". A keyboard that size is unusable. Why do you want one?
+Max Huijgen Sorry, son, but you clearly missed the rhythm.
Of course, it must be hard for you, way back there in 1998, to hear that music. Instead, try listening the market, which has sung in aloud and glorious voice, "We're not gonna take it, no we ain't gonna take it, we're not going to take this Windows Everywhere stuff, anymore."
Charging up a keyboard? what does it mean? I haven't changed the batteries in my kb in months? How does that impair my use of this tablet? +Nate Berry
Wow, that certainly was a mouthful! Sadly though, I think I have now lost my appetite. I do hope this works out for Microsoft – they were getting so close to becoming completely irrelevant. Except of course, to people who obviously have skin in the game of keeping the zombie shambling along.
+Nate Berry you posted a list of 82 apps. This little tablet will run millions.
Thats the list of apps I regularly use which, I thought incorrectly, you were interested in.
To answer your earlier question, I don't want to have to remember to charge my keyboard as it will likely die at an inopportune time), and if you're lugging a BT keyboard around anyway, why not just get a laptop? I like the transformer form factor – I'm not judging which is the better OS for you.
I have a hard time restoring comments as Google is removing them. For some reason they delete things they think i'm not happy but I hate censorship.
+Bobby Bryla your comment containing the question to me 'How much is Satya Nadella paying you?'has been restored by me.
I prefer freedom of speech, but I do expect responsibility so let me hear your defense of that statement.
What's your point +Nate Berry replacing the batteries six times a year is not exactly a chore. And mind you, I do type a lot (and that's a lot) on it 24/7
Ah +Eli Fennell is this all about Microsoft offering flexibility in usage or do you object to the principle of it?
If Android would offer some limited productivity features (yes, I realize these are currently restricted to Chrome and you stated you would prefer to switch to another device, but just as a mental exercise for the reader, don't get upset now) would you fight these if they were offered at a lower price that then the current N7?
Hey +Max Huijgen I made a perfectly cogent point (two in fact) about why I don't want a BT keyboard above. If you actually cared what I thought (which I am beginning to doubt) you can go read it.
+Max Huijgen Depends on how it was handled. Also, it depends on the existence of a good mobile ecosystem.
I don't want a 7-8" Notebook, except maybe in a pinch. I can already do some productivity work on an N7 between Google Docs/Sheets, QuickOffice. But realistically, I don't want my mini tablet having pretenses of being a PC. I don't want a thousand extra ports for a bunch of different connectors. Maybe some day the one device that shapeshifts into everything will happen, but it ain't there yet. I don't think too many people want or need a PC that size.
Only now I realize that the most expensive Google Chrome book (limited to uh, chrome and its extensions) came with 100 MB instead of this Windows 8 device 1 TB.
+Max Huijgen My CB came with 350GB internal with 200 GB Drive space free. Throw in 15GB base, 15 for installing QuickOffice, and 50 GB for the Moto G plus the ability to expand the memory I'm comfortable.
Oh and I've got 1 TB photo and video on FLICKR if I really need more space.
It all works for me. If this works for you, great.
but +Eli Fennell it's about choice and you don't like it. Fair enough. Lots of people want simple, one task at a time devices. You're certainly not alone.
It can be frightening and although I like a cheap ubiquitous device like this one, I would pause for thought at a smart fridge tweeting its contents.
We all have our limits and there is nothing wrong with a mental step back to a limited android tablet which can't cross that boundary to content production.
+Max Huijgen Bahahaha!
I understand how it can be frightening for you to enter the 21st Century, where we have specialized devices like one that goes in our pocket, one we sit or lay down with in hand, and another that sits on a lap or surface that each does what they do well, but trust me, it won't hurt once you get used to it.
Like you I probably have 50 GB Google space from my Moto G. However this tablet comes with 1 TB. You get 15 Gb + 1 TB with this tablet!
No doubt you can find more space elsewhere, but how do you integrate it with this tablet? Having a phone or an account with flicker is not an argument when picking a tablet. +Eli Fennell
You miss out on the pleasantries in both your comments +Eli Fennell but I do hope that's youth as in that case time will take care of that.
You're really hot on that 1TB of cloud storage. What do you think the masses are doing with these devices? They're looking at and posting pictures on facebook! They've all pretty much been weaned off of having their own music collections – they just stream anything they want – music, movies, etc. And if they DO decide to put their illegal mp3 library up there, you can bet there's no better company than Microsoft to help ferret out those thieving communists! Somebody who is into serious video or music production might need that space, sure – but they're sure as hell not going to be doing it on an 8" tablet! If your "content creation" isn't anything more than text you'd probably be good with your onboard 32GB for a good long time.
I now, thanks to +Eli Fennell understand that it would be a waste of money to get access to all Windows applications ever written, using a tablet with the possibility to hook up your existing monitor and keyboard, play Windows games, read and edit Office documents, store movies on SD-cards, use an operating system you already know or recycle your knowledge of Excel, Powerpoint or Word.
I'm sorry for pointing out this opportunity. I now understand I'm a relict of the past and buying everything produced, powered by or compatible with Micosoft is morally wrong.
Another Google deleted comment restored by manual intervention. This is really annoying +Yonatan Zunger It's a lot of work to counter Google's censorship on my posts. Be assured it's not me doing it.
Don't get me wrong, having a tablet that can do x86 is great! If someone can port linux to it we'll have access to a huge catalog of free and open source software like I already have on my laptops.
+Max Huijgen LOL See only a Window fan drags morality into a discussion of utility. 😛
+Max Huijgen nice try… Next post you should do about storing movies, pics… on SD-Cards. It doesn't make sense that everybody stores the same stuff trillions oft times as duplicate content on every device he/she ownes… In 2014 we are living in a cloud based environment and this concept is given fact for public content.
It's memory cards and USB sticks for me +Frank Schulz. Cloud is too slow, controlled by others, and … what's the advantage?
+Max Huijgen save your breath, remember this is G+, the place where all hail Google and everything else sucks, is worthless and useless, regardless of reality and what happens in the real world. Anyone who suggests ChromeOS or Linux as a productivity tool in a non-techie environment should not be taken too seriously on that particular subject, and I have been using Linux since kernel 0.95.
It still surprises and amuses me +Gijs van Dijk to see arguments against online storage and multi-purpose devices when it's about a Windows device.
Imagine Microsoft had invented the modern smart phone: +Eli Fennell would refuse to use it as he prefers dedicated devices like watches, laptops, good ol' phones and maybe pagers for instant messaging instead of multi-function phones.
+Max Huijgen Not at all. Because that would be clinging to the past, sort of like clinging stubbornly to a vestigial desktop on a device optimized for touchscreen app use. 😛 Like Microsoft did back in the late 90's the first time they tried this whole tablet thing, and that worked so spectacularly they thought, oh heck, let's just do it again with a prettier coat of paint!
+Max Huijgen not too bad actually. Tough (possibly subsidized) price competition should have always been MSFT's route in mobile, but they may have wasted too much time under Ballmer clinging to a (long gone) "MSFT pricing power of yore" dream…
+Max Huijgen ah, just saw some comments further up, the x86 is the Achille's Heel in this and always has been…
The mix of 1(-ish) (heavy-weight-ish) OS for all purposes, requiring higher CPU specs / x86 and more memory to run well (except for the WinRT version that feels all but dead at this point?!), leading to higher prices, lower battery life, higher weight, need for fan cooling, asf. has proven toxic.
It sounded good on the drawing board when MSFT first announced it, but the light-weight OSs have been running circles around this strategy, no?
E.g. compare here:
https://plus.google.com/+AlexSchleber/posts/jiGgBD55tSr
"…That Microsoft was creating a real Franken-OS situation, that was of little added use for desktop and regular laptop use cases, and wouldn't be tight/efficient enough for less powerful tablets and similar devices.
Basically, MSFT is falling into the "Netbook Trap", again. Win8 and RT probably only run well with premium spec'd devices, which end up making them unnecessarily expensive. Precisely the problem of netbooks that the iPad has been meant to solve: Running very smoothly on lower-powered (ARM), long-battery-life, ultra-portable/mobile devices.
So basically MSFT is failing to grasp the primary reason as to why the iPad has been selling so well. I don't get it, though I did predict that this was exactly what was going to happen.
-> businessmindhacks.com/post/steve-ballmers-nightmare-scenario -> plus.google.com/112964117318166648677/posts/NFSG3jDQrPD -> plus.google.com/112964117318166648677/posts/GSFHSNdr8nR (March)
"—
Not subsidized except for the existing 8"or less -> free Office MS plan and the lower priced W8. Both were already in force so it are lowered device costs which make this happen. +Alex Schleber
I know your mantra Alex, but so far benchmarks of 2GB W8 devices show excellent performance on battery and productivity.
The only one with a real advantage in this space is Apple by producing everything from chip to OS.
They should consistently win on performance/power ratios.
Android + ARM is itself not a champ over X86 + W8. The platform is optimized for lower power, but at the expense of lower performance. That's just a design choice, but at heart the two platforms same to match each other on a performance / watt level. +Alex Schleber
I was purely talking about performance ratios +Scott Wilson
I'm not enough of a developer to judge which environment is more productive at the moment.
I do hear from friends that if they had a free choice they would chose a Windows development environment with an Apple effective revenue market, but that's not a choice
Are you now talking about development or about raw performance / watt +Scott Wilson ?
Minimum memory requirements are not that relevant considering memory is dirt cheap. Battery life vs performance however is where the current battle is fought.
Frankly I don't care so much about what developers can or cannot do, nor benchmarks. I am a user. I recently got me an iPhone 5S again after multiple years and multiple devices using Android. I just got tired of crashing phones, buggy apps (and I don't even use that many) and terrible battery life. The iphone 5s is, for me, the closest thing to a smartphone with the reliability and sure operation of a dumb phone. And the real world battery life I get is twice that of the best Android phone I have had.
I do get annoyed by the closed ecosystem and lack of customisation options, but that doesn't weigh up, again for me, to the thing just doing what I expect it to do when I want it to do it. I paid full price w/o contract and the worry free reliable operation has been worth every friggin penny I spend on it.
Whatever floats your boat +Scott Wilson 🙂 Fortunately we have choice and we can pick what works best for us and not have someone else decide for us.
Same for me +Scott Wilson , I just so happened to have made a different choice. 🙂