I’m worried about the future of the Microsoft Surface

Digital trends ^ | 26th November 2023 | Luke Larsen

[Cronos]

I’ve always rooted for the Surface. What started exclusively as a way to push the concept of the Windows 2-in-1 has grown into a full-fledged premium laptop brand, with options at nearly every price point. But after a year like 2023, it’s hard not to feel like we may be reaching a turning point for the brand

This year was a very slow year for the Surface. Microsoft announced four new Surface devices in 2023: the Surface Go 4, Surface Laptop Go 3, Surface Hub 3, and the Surface Laptop Studio 2. That might sound like a lot, but when you break it down, the “Go” devices are both budget-focused, and the Surface Hub 3 is a purely commercial product. The Surface Laptop Studio 2 was really the only exciting new consumer device announced, and it was a fairly minor spec update. The Surface line has never been known for consistent updates or drastic design changes, but that’s still a very quiet set of updates to Microsoft’s flagship line of PCs.

...The Surface brand has had a particularly hard time in 2023 on the financial side. Of course, PC sales have been in decline all year. But in its annual report, Microsoft indicated that Surface revenue decreased by $1.8 billion, falling even harder than its competitors. Surface PC sales are not just a normalization of pandemic trends — they have toppled to pre-2019 levels.

One less premium player in the world of Windows devices is never a good thing for the health of the ecosystem — especially one that was willing to push boundaries and try new things.

Surface might still be around in five years, but it might not have the same brash and ambitious spirit that made it an important player in the Windows ecosystem.

[chrisser]

I’ve been out of the day-to-day desktop game for a few years, so maybe things have changed.

But, during and shortly after Covid, at a small hospital, we gave docs/employees the choice between a laptop and a Surface.

90% of the people who chose the Surface requested it be swapped out with a laptop within 3-6 months. Ended up with a stack of Surfaces in the hardware storage room. All were deployed with MS keyboards when they went out, so that wasn’t the issue. Left shortly after that and never found out if there was a common issue that caused people to change their mind.

[itsahoot]

I’ve never really understood the purpose of a tablet.

When you get old enough you will. {:~)

[MachIV]

I’m on the back side of 56....still do not get it.

[MachIV]

If a tablet is like a phone then in my opinion its just a clunky cumbersome object without phone capabilities.

Without a keyboard, I cannot do any serious work and I do only moderate browsing on a phone, which suits me fine on the go.

[BlueMondaySkipper]

If you have a TV at home, can I assume it’s the smallest one available?

The tablet has much more real estate which makes reading and typing substantially easier. I do almost all of my personal stuff on a tablet. Email, surfing the internet, viewing photos, reading e-books. All of these are much more enjoyable on the tablet than the phone. You do you I guess.