Introducing Microsoft Surface
Microsoft unveiled their iPhone-esque device today — the table. Alright, so I can’t turn it on its side and flick through my album art and I can’t make a call on it — but damn, this is cool. Called Microsoft Surface, it’s a 30-inch tabletop display which allows for several people to work independently or simultaneously without the need for a mouse or keyboard. Surface allows users to grab data with their hands, using natural gestures and touch.
Surface is the first commercially available surface computer from Microsoft Corp. It turns an ordinary tabletop into a vibrant, interactive surface. The product provides effortless interaction with digital content through natural gestures, touch and physical objects. In essence, it’s a surface that comes to life for exploring, learning, sharing, creating, buying and much more. Soon to be available in restaurants, hotels, retail and public entertainment venues, this experience will transform the way people shop, dine, entertain and live.
Inside Surface is a projector, a computer and five cameras which respond to your touch and allow interaction. The Surface can also interact with wifi cameras, pulling photos off them so that you can view and play with them; expanding and contracting the photos just by pulling on their corners. The same goes for the Microsoft Zune.
While it isn’t aimed at the home (right now), Surface has given me something to get excited about from Microsoft. They are first going with retail partners, such as restaurants and other services to allow you to order and pay for food using your credit card simply by placing it on the table. That’s something I never thought I’d say! If I could get one of these in my house, I would. Alright, a price at $10,000 would probably slow me down as being a poor student doesn’t really let me make purchases like this. It’s definitely something to look forward to in the future, though! Take a look at some of the videos over at the Microsoft Surface website, Bill Gates showing it off and this behind the scenes look at Surface.
7:36 pm
I was watching the Forbes interview with the marketing guy behind this and I like the idea, although some aspects worry me. Will reply more in depth later. Does it not seem like a more realistic version of what we discussed last year in Duryard? Computers with interactive virtual objects? Except no holograms…
With this and the Xbox 360, are you rediscovering Microsoft?
7:38 pm
It does! However, our hologram idea was so much better. For a start, lack of Zune support would be a must! I don’t need another reason to buy a Zune.
How unfortunate is that? I’ll be wanting to buy a PC next. Some of those slimline laptops unveiled recently would look gorgeous running Vista.
3:41 am
do u realiuse it weighs 11 stone!!!!!! thats like an average teenager weight