back to article Dixons and Microsoft haggling over Surface RT Ts&Cs

Dixons Retail is currently thrashing out the terms and conditions to flog Microsoft's seemingly little loved Surface RT slab. Sources close to the talks say a deal is on the cards but were unsure if it could be struck before the peak festive sales seasons begins in earnest. "Dixons is likely to get it [Surface] but is still …

COMMENTS

This topic is closed for new posts.
  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Fighting over Surace RT?

    Really??? I'm guessing they have yet to actually try and use them... If they knew what they were haggling over, they wouldn't be wasting their breath....

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

      I heard they approached comet first, and that was a few months ago...

    2. Stephen Channell
      Facepalm

      Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

      the surface kit is really quite good with snappy performance and long battery-life... Granted the display it not as good as an iPad3.. But the key question is cost, Suface is an Android competitor, not an Apple competitor and needs to be priced acordingly.

      1. Steve Todd
        Stop

        Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

        You've got some odd definition of quite good there. It's a disk hog, applications are slow to load, the user experience is confused and schizophrenic and its not any cheaper than the iPad (which wups it into the ground on performance).

        1. Hooksie

          Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

          *cough* bullshit *cough* apple fanboi *cough*

          Pish. Absolute bullshit. Have you even used one?? Or are you just regurgitating the same tired old propaganda arse biscuits as everyone else? I know 3 guys who have the surface and use it every day for work. You know, real, actual work, not just watching porn and playing pointless games. From their experience the only real problem with the Surface is the lack of 3G. Big, big mistake from MS there. Yes, there will eventually be 3G dongles etc but it's a bit stupid and smacks of "look what improvements we've made in version 2"

          So yes, there are problems with Surface that can be discussed but please, don't talk drivel just for the sake of it.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

            I know 3 guys who have the surface and use it every day for work. You know, real, actual work

            ------------------------------------------------------

            Seriously? It doesn't have Outlook and according to zdnet -

            "You'd think this would be a no-brainer, but the version of Office that coming on Windows RT-powered tablets expressly forbids its "use in commercial, nonprofit, or revenue-generating activities." It turns out you can only legally use it for business if you have an additional license for "Office 365 ProPlus, Office 365 Small Business Premium, Office Midsize Business or Office 365 Enterprise."

            http://www.zdnet.com/businesses-cant-use-office-on-windows-rt-tablets-7000005882/

            So I hope they have the appropriate licenses

            1. Hooksie

              Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

              Good information mate and thanks for pointing that out. We're a Microsoft partner so yes, there will be appropriate licenses but your point highlights my main problem with the Windows 8/Surface and that is consumer education. Too many people jump on a bandwagon without using the OS or hardware but Microsoft have failed miserably in explaining the differences between the platforms and the UI.

              But I have used an iPad 3 for quite some time and my wife has an iPad 2 and they both have performance issues of their own. Apps on the iPad can be slow to load and crash too, it's not some mythical, ethereal device, it's a computer with limited processor and memory like every other.

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

          I've not heard that apps are slow to load, I have heard that it uses a fair bit of the available disk space, but it does have a micro SD slot and USB port, which basically makes that irrelevant. What I have heard (and seen) is that it can be dropped, I've seen pictures of Steven Synofski (can't spell) using one as a skateboard, with only added wheels. The point I'm making is that I have heard of lots of iPads (about five or six from my friends and co-workers) where they've had a minor fall and needed a new screen.

          I'd rather have tough and avoid cool.

          1. Steve Todd
            Stop

            Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

            My, Surface fans are a touchy lot. Microsoft have seen to it that it's not easy to try one out if you're interested (hence this article), but there are plenty of well informed reviews that back my position up. Start with Anandtech's for example http://www.anandtech.com/show/6385/microsoft-surface-review/10

            App loading 2 to 3 times slower than the iPad. My rule of thumb is always aim to complete normal computing tasks in less than 2 seconds, longer than that and a system feels sluggish.

            Disk usage is pretty well documented. A 32GB surface has about the same free space as a 16GB iPad. Micro SD cards aren't a simple fix either. You have to hack things so that the OS thinks that the card is part of primary disk space before you can use it to usefully store your media etc.

            The schizophrenic UI is also well documented. Two versions of IE for example, one for Windows Desktop, one for Metro, which can't see each other's data (bookmarks etc)? That's pretty poor.

      2. Simon Barker

        Re: Fighting over Surace RT?

        That's not true, certain issues have been blown out of proportion like the screen resolution (it's not that big of a deal unless you want it to be) but the performance of Surface is horrible compared to an iPad etc. RT competes directly with iPad and Android so it needs to be viable in these areas even if it has other strengths.

        Having used one for a while it's equally brilliant and stupid, if only it ran smoothly and had more apps I'd have little hesitation in recommending it.

    3. LarsG
      Meh

      Microsoft know there will be so many returns when people realise that it doesn't match up to IOS

      Or Android that they don't have a plan in place of how to recycle the unwanted items.

  2. basicasic

    I'm waiting for the impending distro deal between Microsoft and Poundland before I snap up a Surface.

  3. JimmyPage Silver badge

    why can I hear bells ?

    In the old days, no supplier would ever risk alienating Dixons - they were one of the major outlets in the UK.

    The times they are a'changing ...

    1. Avatar of They
      Meh

      Re: why can I hear bells ?

      The demise of soment makes dixons one of the few major outlets, so would naturally increase it's share which surely would make currys and pc world the main seller for retail of surface????

      Having used one... Nah, no thanks. My transformer prime widdles all over it. Never mind the ithingys.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: why can I hear bells ?

        However, your Transformer's spell check and predictive typing is rubbish. (I have a Transformer...and the predictive typing on a Blackberry Playbook, which I also have, widdles all over it).

        1. Anonymous Coward 15

          Re: why can I hear bells ?

          Predictive typing in general ducks a great pig monkey sick.

    2. AndyMulhearn
      Meh

      Re: why can I hear bells ?

      I think they still are one of the major outlets in the UK; it's just that they're not as big or important as they once were.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Let them fight....

    ...till death.

    No one's gonna be a winner in this.

    MS seems to think its has an Apple killer (with prices to match) and Dixons think they are onto the holy grail of tablets.

    Idiots, both.

    And Dixons will blame adverse economy and headwinds for the failure.

    1. madferret

      Re: Let them fight....

      But it's mainly idiots that will walk into a PC World/Currys store and buy the thing.

      Nothing wrong in getting exclusive distribution for a while. I got my Transformer Pad from them when they did a similar deal with Asus and were the only seller in town. Literally.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Let them fight....

      Yeah they sell iPads too. So most of their customers are likely to be complete morons.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    what a "dixons"?

    is it one of those thingies, call them "shops", right?

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Getting back on topic...

    DSG getting it?! oh come off it MS. You have how many companies in the channel who've been screaming for it, and the Pro for months and you aren't even attempting to offer us it? We should of all had access to it at the launch of Win8 in October. And now you finally get to act and you're going to give it to DSG who will no doubt go out of there way to load up as much bloat ware that can be possibly found to run on it just so they can tie the poor users into something. I really hope Symantec haven't made a RT version of Norton yet or pitty the poor users who get it off DSG :(

    But come on MS, give it to the proper channel, and by that I mean everyone!

  7. mark l 2 Silver badge
    FAIL

    'In shop by the end of the year' So missing out on the busiest buying period upto Christmas, thats a clever strategy for building an eco system.

    1. tirk
      Unhappy

      ...a clever strategy for building an eco system.

      MS are playing a long game here, a several years long game. They can't compete with Android or iOS yet, and current apps frankly work better on Win 7, but they are betting on their dominant position to make TIFKAM the GUI people use at work, and the one they see in high street PC vendors over the next few years.

      Personally I don't think it *deserves* to work, because they have put the GUI ahead of the applications (you know, the thingies most people actually use a computer for). But I fear it *may* work, due to their close, almost incestuous relationships with corporate/retail customers. Like IBM in the '70s, no-one will get fired for buying MS.

  8. Danny 14
    FAIL

    wut?

    So MS are dragging their heels about getting their unproven tablets into a crowded market place before Christmas? someone would think they don't want to make money or get market penetration.

    Idiots

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: wut?

      Someone might think that, like HP with its tablet, there are competing views of how ready it is in Redmond and somebody doesn't want its product released into the Christmas market followed by torrents of bad publicity.

  9. David Strum
    Trollface

    HAA! HAA! To MS!

    God doesn’t like us laughing at someone’s misfortune or deserved punishment; its different with organizations though: so – a big HAA! HAA! To MS!

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Why bother

    There is a pretty good chance that Dixons will go under within a few years. It's over priced and I've always found their sales staff to be somewhat annoying.

    MS would be silly to put to much effort into selling through them.

This topic is closed for new posts.

Other stories you might like