It's been nearly a year since Microsoft wowed us with its
Surface tabletop computer, a multi-touch display built into a cocktail table that had a number of crazy features. You could set your phone down on it and then, via Bluetooth, literally drag files to and from the thing, pulling your pics from the camera and showing them on the screen. It allowed some crazy interaction with digital mapping programs and even let you order more beer at the bar with just a few swipes of your finer. It was all conceptual, though, and with an anticipated price of roughly $5,000 to $10,000, the things were clearly not destined for the living room in the near-term. They are, however
destined for a select few AT&T shops, starting later this month.
Unfortunately, the Surface units won't be for sale. The tables will be be used as a sort of informational kiosk surrounded by whichever phones AT&T is marketing at the time (probably
not the iPhone). Shoppers will be able to pick up a certain model of phone, place it on the Surface, then pull up more information about it. They'll also be able to drag and drop media onto the device itself to see how it plays videos or songs and pull up maps of AT&T's coverage area. Unfortunately it's looking like you won't be able to interact with your own phones, just the demo models, but it should still be fun to play around.
Look for the Surface to show up at high-end AT&T stores New York City, Atlanta, San Antonio, and San Francisco beginning on April 17.
From Engadget
