Ever since Microsoft’s grand unveil of its own-brand Surface tablets we’ve been hankering for more information. However after the carefully orchestrated launch event there has been virtually no news, apart from occasional vague statements from Microsoft head honcho Steve Ballmer.
He has already indicated that the tablets will be sold by Microsoft directly, but the big question (and source of rumours) has been the pricing. While we don’t have an actual price tag yet, we do now have a ballpark figure thanks to a recent interview given by Steve Ballmer to the Seattle Times. In it he dispels the rumours that Microsoft will ship the tablet at a ridiculously cheap $US 199, instead naming a ‘sweet spot’ of between $US 300 and $US 800 for the device.
This is a pretty massive price range all told, and encompasses everything from the Google Nexus 7 to the iPad. It is clear that there will be several price points, with the initial shipments of ARM-based Surface RT tablets likely t ship at the lower end of the range, and the more Ultrabook-like x86 based Surface tablet will inevitably have a more Ultrabook-like price tag to go with it.
SO we are one step closer to an actual price for Surface, but for now all we can really say is that it the various models will come with the kind of price tags that we already expect from Tablets. Just how long we’ll have to wait for actual pricing is unknown, but with the October 26th launch of Windows 8 just over a month away, it shouldn’t be too much longer.
