A month with the Microsoft Surface tablet

The Microsoft Surface got off to a shaky start. Preorder demand seemed strong for Microsoft’s (MSFT) debut newest tablets but the company made it a point to note that initial supply would be limited following the Surface’s launch. CEO Steve Ballmer then stated on multiple occasions that Surface sales have been relatively slow, likely in an effort to keep investors’ expectations in check. Microsoft’s partners have slammed the Surface time and time again, and analysts have done the same. Is Microsoft’s premiere Windows hardware offering doomed to crash and burn?

First and foremost, I still firmly believe that Microsoft has built the best tablet on the planet in terms of hardware. Seriously.

The Surface isn’t anywhere near as thin as Apple’s (AAPL) fourth-generation iPad but the thicker case is easy to forgive when you consider the various advantages the Surface offers. For one thing, it features dedicated charger, USB and HD video-out ports. The ability to charge the latest android tablet while an accessory or a flash drive is plugged in and while connected to a second monitor or TV is a welcome change from the single-port setup on the iPad. The Surface also features stereo speakers on either side of the top of the device when held in landscape — where speakers should be — along with a microSD slot and a kickstand.

The kickstand is a huge benefit for the Surface. Machined from the same “VaporMg” magnesium as the rest of the Surface’s case, the integrated kickstand props the tablet up on a table or even on a user’s lap quite comfortably. The result is a tablet that is perfect for watching movies or TV shows in any setting. Add on Microsoft’s Touch Cover or Type Cover and you have a legitimate notebook computer that occupies a fraction of the space despite its full size keyboard.df2Dsda2

The utility of a device in a work environment will always vary dramatically depending on what the user does for a living. Some people can do their jobs just fine on the iPad, for example, while others laugh at the idea of even trying to work on Apple’s tablet. I fall into the latter category.

If you live in Microsoft Office apps like Word and Excel, it just doesn’t get any better than the Surface. This is a $499 Q88 Tablet that offers a true desktop Office experience — for free — that is so much better than similar experiences on the iPad or on Android tablets, there isn’t even a usable scale for comparison. Multitasking and switching between open apps is also a far better experience on the Surface than it is on any other tablet.

Apps are still the Surface’s biggest problem for all the reasons I covered in my initial review. Good apps are very hard to come by and many popular cheapest tablet apps simply aren’t available for Windows RT. Some will launch eventually and others might never make it to the Surface.The potential is there — I see it now as much as I saw it when I first reviewed the Surface. Whether or not Microsoft’s first tablet will ever realize its full potential remains to be seen.