Microsoft's Surface line-up has come under a lot of fire since it was launched, but the Surface RT and Windows RT have been the main recipients of the criticism.
Regarding the Surface/Windows RT, many have complained about its cost relative to its functionality, as well as its lack of compatibility with legacy Windows programs. Microsoft executive Michael Anguilo, however, clearly sees things differently.
Anguilo took the time to respond to these criticisms during an interview with CNET, in which he expressed that the Surface RT was a fully-realized iPad rival at the time of its launch.
"It [Surface RT] was a ton of work for us and we didn't do the work and endure the disruption for any reason other than the fact that there's a strategy there that just gets stronger over time," he said. "Looking at things now like power performance and standby time and passive [fanless] form factors. When we launched windows 8, it was really competitive with a full-sized iPad. A lot of that was made possible by the ARM [chip] architecture."
As for why the Surface RT has its best days ahead, Anguilo had this to say:
"People are talking about legacy desktop software not running, but they don't think about the customer benefit of only running modern apps. The only apps that you install from the Windows store are the kind, that as a customer, you can manage your rights to."
This defense, in particular, only holds up as well as your view of the Windows Store apps currently available. After months of holding out, Twitter only released a Windows RT-enabled app in March. Meanwhile, popular apps like Facebook are still missing, and who knows when or if they'll arrive.
The Windows Store is making some progress, but until Microsoft can fully flesh it out with quality programs, the lack of Surface/Windows RT compatibility with traditional programs sticks out a little too much. And not in a good way.
Still, Anguilo continued to tout some other benefits of the Surface/Windows RT platform.
"Let's say you drop that PC in a pool," he said. "Well, you get a new one and then you just redownload [the apps]. That's the kind of model people are used to with a phone or tablet today. I can maintain all the apps in the [Microsoft] store and reset with a single switch.
"So, on Windows RT, the user experience stays consistent over time. That's a big benefit. And as the number of apps grow in the store, that value promise only gets stronger."
