Surface Pro came out a few days ago but just like the Surface RT, the availability is limited! And above all, the Japanese currency has depreciated against US$, which would raise the price of the already expensive tablet to a whole new level when/if they become available in Japan. I would look to buy the 128GB model and it is a whopping $999 without the keyboard. I want the keyboard, so it’s an additional $130. Microsoft doesn't have any retail outlets in Japan thus there won't be any price controlling like Apple. The usual retail stores will sell them at a pretty high price. (They’ll probably give us back some points, but that’s just a big lie. I would expect the 128GB model to go on sale for no less than ¥120,000 here. Darn! Dreams shattered; time to move on.
Few days ago I did a final evaluation on the current gen iPads, which are, in fact, attractively priced in Japan. Just ¥28,800 for the iPad Mini (I am not interested in the Retina model) but the next model will probably see a price hike because of the depreciation of the currency. But, there isn't much it can do for me that the iPhone already isn't doing. The iPad is a just a “bigger” iPhone; and it even has a lot of disadvantages. Typing is hard, portability is crippled, it's heavy and the camera is useless. I hardly game on these mobile devices because I have a proper gaming PC at home. Then there are other constraints inherent to iOS. You cannot stream movies without using iTunes (nobody likes iTunes on Windows), cannot access photos and files that are in your PC etc. etc. It's only good for reading, and even then, the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite is much soother on your eyes. So it is a pretty crippled product in every way. So, I have made up my mind not to for got an iPad.
Few days ago I did a final evaluation on the current gen iPads, which are, in fact, attractively priced in Japan. Just ¥28,800 for the iPad Mini (I am not interested in the Retina model) but the next model will probably see a price hike because of the depreciation of the currency. But, there isn't much it can do for me that the iPhone already isn't doing. The iPad is a just a “bigger” iPhone; and it even has a lot of disadvantages. Typing is hard, portability is crippled, it's heavy and the camera is useless. I hardly game on these mobile devices because I have a proper gaming PC at home. Then there are other constraints inherent to iOS. You cannot stream movies without using iTunes (nobody likes iTunes on Windows), cannot access photos and files that are in your PC etc. etc. It's only good for reading, and even then, the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite is much soother on your eyes. So it is a pretty crippled product in every way. So, I have made up my mind not to for got an iPad.
