So as time goes on I’ve grown to more and more like my Surface RT.  There are quirks, the modern interface is both fun and frustrating at times (the icons can sometimes all look the same when they’re populated with pictures or news stories, and I definitely am not a fan of the fact that it’s just too easy to re-arrange the icons…. wish there was a way to “lock” positions so that you could remember where something was even if you don’t remember specifically what it looks like — especially since that look might change hour to hour!).

Also flash simply doesn’t run on this system — so any videos or websites that are flash heavy (which seem to be fewer and fewer) will be an obstacle if this becomes your main computing interface.

Surprisingly the most difficult paradigm for me to get used to is storage-in-the-sky.  Since the RT (and the Pro for that matter) aren’t designed to have gobs of local storage they push you towards Microsoft’s SkyDrive alternative.  In reality in-this-almost-always-connected world I rarely find myself someplace where I can’t reach out via the Internet to my storage-in-the-sky, but the speed at which you can navigate a web page versus a folder structure is not comparable, I think this will be a hard paradigm for Microsoft to overcome and their continued force feeding of a web interface storage will be a(nother) hurdle for users to overcome — at least for a power user that wants to zip through their work day.

Conversely one of the great benefits of the modern interface is the “charms” bar.  People who use Windows programs are probably used to the first menu drop down on the left is almost always FILE, etc.  The charms bar is a hidden bar that appears when you “swipe” from off screen to on screen from the right (so you swipe right to left) and it has common features for all apps that are running under the modern interface.  To wit;  search, share, devices and settings.  So if you’re in a news reader and want to share an article you’re reading you swipe, click share and then enter an email address (or just click on one of the previously cached ones).

If you want to send an article to OneNote or the printer you click devices and chose the device, etc.

This great feature however also demonstrates the one clumsiness of the modern interface.  Support of legacy applications (and Office 2013 is considered a legacy application) are through the traditional desktop and the charms don’t effectively cross the “old” and “new” desktop barrier (kind of like the galactic barrier in Star Trek — you know it’s there, and usually you don’t notice but every now and then you hit it with a jarring thud).  So when you’re in a article in the internet explorer running on the legacy desktop you’re just as likely to get an error when you’re using the charms as not (like it won’t see the email app running on the other desktop so you get mail program not configured error or something similar.

Note:  in a previous post I said I hadn’t found how you could configure the default search engine on the modern desktop Internet Explorer?  The key is to go to the other internet explorer running on the full desktop. The settings are actually shared between the two different appear versions of the application (including “remembering” site visits, if you visit in one it will be memorized in the other). Thanks to my friend Jamaal who pointed this out to me.

Next Article:  From desktop to phone, does the interface carry over to Windows 8 Phone?

So as part of my looking for a tablet that could really be used for business I decided to give the Microsoft Surface RT a whirl.

I read the mixed reviews, many adamantly against the Windows 8 interface and then had a walk through of the Surface at a Microsoft pop-up demo site.  I was impressed.

So here is my story:

I literally stepped off of a plane (for a meeting in NC the next day), drove to a Microsoft Store and plunked down the $570 give or take it took to buy the Surface and the keyboard (which is sold separately — Microsoft obviously wants to be on a fair footing when being compared to an iPad which doesn’t come with a keyboard so they make you buy it separately).  First of all those cutesy multi colored keyboards you see on all of the commercials aren’t the only options, they had a more typist orientated one with real (chicklet) keys (the colored keyboards are flat and you really don’t get tactile feedback — well more than a flat screen I suppose but not anything I’d want to live off of).

I bought the black keyboard the snaps to the Surface and off to the hotel I went to plug it in for a charge and then go out to dinner.

Microsoft’s certainly got the packaging and “go live” routine down pat. Dare I say it?  It’s actually cool.  The unit was already charged and upon turning it on it asked me for my any Microsoft logon (I have a Hotmail address but I forgot the password — it graciously walked me through a recover password routine that didn’t seem to take me outside the normal set up process…. it was very smooth).  It asked me a few questions, did some screen gimmicks and in about 5 minutes my surface was ready to rock and roll. If you want to share with someone else you just create a separate user account, no sweat, no confusion.  Here’s an added bonus:  the Surface RT is automatically encrypted out of the box — if someone steals it they’re not getting your data without your password (so no sticky notes!).

The next day I took my surface (NOT my laptop) to my meeting and had access to my email, calendar, and favorite note taking application (evernote).  I was about 70% proficient on the user interface (really more like 95% but a couple of the swipes I kept doing wrong out of habit so I consider that a negative on me).  The user interface is well designed and works very well. BUT IT IS NOT INTUITIVE. If you don’t get 5 minutes worth of instruction you will garner tens of hours of hateful glaring at the screen.

As time has gone on I’ve been extremely impressed with the battery life (I get through a work day), the usability and the new interface which in a work environment is actually a little fun.  Make no mistake, this is a tablet but it also works quite well as a light duty laptop — a very light laptop at that!

I’ve read lots of negative reviews on the surface and my first opinion is:  the reviewers for the most part, don’t get it.  If you’re looking for a toy this is not it.  Buy an iPad, buy an Android tablet.  There are more apps to play with and more things to do.  If you’re looking for a work machine that’s portable, let’s you actually do work and has some play abilities (movies, books, music, etc.) then this is the machine. Period.  For the same price as an iPad I get a tablet WITH MICROSOFT OFFICE 2013 (sans Outlook). That’s like a $300 freebie. I don’t see the reviewers really noting this.

Don’t misunderstand, this is the full version of Office so when someone e-mails you a spreadsheet you’re not in view only mode, or going to a web interface or able to see some-of-it-but-its-not-quite-right because it’s not really MS Office that’s viewing it — nope, this is the fully version and you’re able to edit / view / do graphics and in fact do just about everything you could do on your regular laptop.

Is it as fast as a laptop?  No, but to be honest I didn’t see that as a show stopper — or even anything that really impacted me (gamers won’t like it though).  Between instant on and what I saw as flawless WiFi connectivity where I normally would have been waiting for my laptop to book and logon, I was already in and productive on my Surface (this doesn’t not include a 4G card built in only WiFi — at first I thought that was a negative but then on the other hand, I pay for 4G on my phone, why do I want to pay the phone company for another account just for my tablet?  I hook my tablet to my phone when I need to and it works fine).

Are there as many apps?  Well, no — but the average knowledge-worker probably lives in e-mail, web surfing, calendar/contacts and Office.  That’s about 90% of most people’s daily computer interactions.  I consider myself a power user and with the exception of one app, I found all of my apps had a Microsoft Surface counterpart.  I was pleasantly surprised.

Another surprise is how much I really like the new Internet Explorer.  I was a FireFox guy but I have to admit, this has almost won me over (negative:  you can’t change the search engine or if you can I haven’t figured out how yet — and I don’t like Bing).

See my next blog about the Metro, er sorry, “Modern” Windows 8 interface and how it both blows regular Windows away and at the same time changes your machine from a Windows machine to a Window machine…..

Okay. I’ve done it.  I didn’t just drink the kool aid I dove head first into the pond.

So maybe a start at the beginning.  I’m a windows user.  Always was, always will be (okay, there was a brief dalliance with the iPhone — though I refused to stand in line — and I did own a MacBook Air… of course I immediately formatted it and installed Windows 7 on it).  But my passion has always been Microsoft systems being used for productivity type applications.  To me this is a wonderful time to run a business because there’s so much good software available to get you to the next level.

About three months ago dissatisfied with carting about a laptop I started looking for devices that would let me read & respond to mail, browse the web and do some rudimentary business activities largely with out opening and powering up the laptop (and maybe later without carrying it).  I had been an iPad user but found that to be an overgrown movie watching music box.  Mind you — very sexy — but as far as using it for work, not quite there yet especially for people living in the Microsoft Office – Outlook – Exchange eco system.

I originally thought I’d try the (big) Kindle Fire because it had built in cellular data for a flat rate of $50 for the year (250mg month limit).  It had a email client that would connect to Exchange, a browser which reviews said was good and of course books, music, etc.  Well…. epic fail.  Totally useless device.  Ate through my month’s allotment of data when it switched from WiFi to Cell without warning me and between the browser crashing and a few other things, just not my cup of tea.

It was while I was struggling with my Kindle at the airport that I walked past one of the Microsoft popup show & tell stores (well actually I glided past on the walkway, I then walked back).  After a 5 minute tour I was hooked.  I boarded the plane and by the time I landed I already knew where the local Microsoft store was, that they had stock and I picked it up.  By the next day I was taking notes, reading emails, etc. all on my new Surface RT.  I was hooked!

Read about my experiences in following posts