Microsoft Unveils Surface Tabletop Computer
After a few years of taking a beating from Apple on design and innovation, Microsoft is stealing a little of Steve Jobs's thunder. Just a few weeks ahead of the iPhone, Bill Gates (or, actually, Steve Ballmer) has unveiled Surface, Microsoft's new table top computer that features a big-screen version of the multi-touch technology used on, say, the iPhone.
But the similarity pretty much ends there. Microsoft's new Surface is a full-fledged coffee-table sized PC that is completely touch-sensitive, so users sitting around it can move and open files, video conference, watch movies, play games, and flip through photos -- together! CNET spent some time with some Surface software that lets you browse a menu, order items, split the bill, calculate the tip and pay -- all from the tabletop display
Where the Surface gets really interesting is when you add peripherals to the party.
Promotional videos from Microsoft show people dropping their Zunes on the tabletop computer. Surface recognizes that a Zune has been placed there and connects to it wirelessly. Users then use their fingers to drag albums and photos to their Zune. 'Popular Mechanics' also got an early-look at the Surface photo tools and multi-touch technology, which you can check out on this video.Dropping a wireless-enabled digital camera on the table causes Surface to download the photos, spilling them out across the display as if a shoe box full of pictures was just emptied.
The videos also show several people interacting with the table at the same time. No more leaning over a friend's shoulder to watch and direct a slide show: If he or she passes by that great picture of Billy shooting milk out of his nose too fast, just grab it with your hand and look at it with out having to physically assault your pal to take control of the mouse.
Prices are expected to be between $5,000 and $10,000 when the units start shipping around the end of the year to commercial customers. At first, Surface will not be geared towards consumers, though Microsoft hopes that within three years the technology will be affordable enough for the home. T-Mobile, Harrah's Entertainment, and Starwood Hotels have partnered with Microsoft to use Surface as kiosks in retail outlets and lobbies.
With Surface, Microsoft seems to have made computing truly communal, taking the Web 2.0 ethos of social interaction through computers and moving it into the physical world.
From Microsoft.
Gallery: Surface
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