Does Microsoft want to sell their Surface Pro?

[NGC]

The lack of product to sell at Staples, Best Buy and the Microsoft Store makes me wonder if Microsoft really cares about selling the Surface Pro or is the Surface just a "trial balloon" for a completely different Tablet from Microsoft to arrive in the future?

 

[Klownicle]

Its better to sell a product that is hard to find and wanted than it is to over produce and not wanted as much as expected. Ala, HP Touchpad. That had a lage following in the webOS community, but the launch was botched and ultimatly had way to many produced. In the surface example, the launch isn't really botched moreso that there is currently a limited production. I would say they are doing it right to guage interest as if people want it they will but it eventually.

 

[TeknoBlast]

Oh yes they do. Now they can produce a crap loads for the high demand.

 

[Nemesis296]

I feel like they didn't release quite enough devices for the initial launch. Maybe 5 or 6 devices per store instead of 1 or 2. I guess they figured that people weren't going to stand outside in waves for this thing since the RT was such a flop. I guess I'm a little surprised myself since the hype was ALWAYS about the Pro, and not the RT. Why Microsoft wouldn't at least take a bit of a gamble with the launch is beyond me. (Maybe even letting people pre-order 10% of the devices would have been a sign of good faith in the product)

I've seen numerous comments on Facebook and other news sites where people say "Well, that horrible launch just solidifies my purchase of #insert different tablet here#". People who *want* the Pro will wait, but not everyone will. Time will tell how much the launch with limited supply actually affects the final numbers.

 

[bosamar]

IMO there will be plenty of stock soon. I don't believe the RT was a flop. Sales are growing and as more people buy it and tell others the demand will continue to grow. Most of the time it's difficut for a new product to be overwhelmingly successful. Many wait for v2.

 

[GreatWindows]

For being this late in the game......Surface RT did great, people are expecting 20 million sold in 4 days etc......that wont happen on such a new product, give it time.

 

[Nemesis296]

IMO there will be plenty of stock soon. I don't believe the RT was a flop. Sales are growing and as more people buy it and tell others the demand will continue to grow. Most of the time it's difficut for a new product to be overwhelmingly successful. Many wait for v2.

I called it a flop because I thought I saw that Microsoft only sold about 230,000 RTs when they shipped a million. That's not bashing the quality of the product either, just based on sales. While you're absolutely right that the demand will continue to grow, Microsoft probably didn't want to make the same gamble with the Pro. Really makes you wonder how many Pros they actually did produce initially. I know I have one, but there are people on Facebook who still don't believe that it exists because every store was "sold out" of them last weekend.

It's also somewhat of a double-edged sword with new products. There have to be enough adopters of v1 for there to even be a v2. I'm pretty much always an early adopter though; I like trying new tech and helping to improve it for future buyers. I bought the original iPad when it first came out despite many people saying that v2 would probably be 10x better.

 

[J515OP]

I believe many of you make far too many assumptions. There are a great number of examples of products being delayed or shipping in small quantities from numerous manufacturers with far more product experience than Microsoft. I don't believe MS is holding anything back or intentionally creating a shortage. I do believe they are being prudently cautious in their targets and production capacities though.

There are many factors that can lead to a shortage in supply and worldwide distribution is tricky business. Not even the mighty Apple has a worldwide product launch on the same day. I understand there is disappointment for some that would like to get a device on launch day but this is not always possible. Despite the gloom and doom that the lack of availability will mean people will instantly give up on their purchase and switch to a competitor this is typically not the case in this space. People who know what a Surface Pro is are not suddenly going to find the all they need is an iPad since that is what happens to be in stock. This "botched launch" attitude is pervasive and applied to tech more and more frequently and in my opinion more than likely the result of the shift in attitude by the "anything less than instant is unacceptable" generation.

Nexus 4 Shortage Problems Due To ?Scarce And Erratic? Supply From LG, Google Exec Claims | TechCrunch

Analysts say Galaxy S III supply shortages may have robbed Samsung of 2 million units

Online shortages reported for some Nokia Lumia 920 models - Neowin

Apple removing delivery dates for LTE iPad mini preorders | 9to5Mac

Sound familiar? This is not an uncommon problem and is usually blown out of proportion for the period where demand outstrips supply. Eventually it is usually corrected and then everybody moves on and forgets about it.

 

[magicrobots]

I agree J5, but to an extent. Cautiously prudent is a good way to be, but delivering only 1 device of each capacity to massive chains like Best Buy and Staples seems a little short sighted.

I think they were smart not to ship too many, but I think they ended up being overly cautious.

 

[J515OP]

There are many reasons that the units could be in short supply. I am not convinced that there were only a few units per store because MS was being cautious. From the news thread on this subject.

Would everybody have been happier if MS had said "Ok guys we don't have enough of these made right now, so we are going to push the release date back a month that way there will be plenty available for everybody to buy on day one"? Of course people would have thrown fits if that was done. Short of hitting the exact number per store (if even possible form a manufacturing supply standpoint) or very slightly more than required MS would probably have caught flak from somewhere about over supply or under supply. What counts now is how frequently the shipments come to fill the demand. Right now it has only been 3 days since release.

 

[NGC]

You can't make money if the PRO is not available for sale, Microsoft you have a superior product to Apple. Sell it!

 

[Nemesis296]

There are many reasons that the units could be in short supply. I am not convinced that there were only a few units per store because MS was being cautious. From the news thread on this subject.

Would everybody have been happier if MS had said "Ok guys we don't have enough of these made right now, so we are going to push the release date back a month that way there will be plenty available for everybody to buy on day one"? Of course people would have thrown fits if that was done. Short of hitting the exact number per store (if even possible form a manufacturing supply standpoint) or very slightly more than required MS would probably have caught flak from somewhere about over supply or under supply. What counts now is how frequently the shipments come to fill the demand. Right now it has only been 3 days since release.

As you said, we live in a world where everything is supposed to be instant. Remember Antennagate with the iPhone 4? Apple held a press conference 21 days after it was announced and people were furious that it even took that long. I agree that MS was overly cautious on the Pro launch. Could have been better, but what do I care in the long run, I have one already