Microsoft Surface
Microsoft Corp. will unveil a coffee-table-shaped "surface computer" Wednesday in a major step towards co-founder Bill Gates's view of a future where the mouse and keyboard are replaced by more natural interaction using voice, pen and touch.
Microsoft Surface, which has a 30-inch display under a hard-plastic tabletop, allows people to touch and move objects on screen for everything from digital finger painting and jigsaw puzzles to ordering off a virtual menu in a restaurant.
It also recognizes and interacts with devices placed on its surface, so cell phone users can easily buy ringtones or change payment plans by placing their handsets on in-store displays, or a group of people gathered round the table can check out the photos on a digital camera placed on top.
The company is selling the Surface for between $5,000 and $10,000 each, but aims to bring prices down to consumer levels in three to five years and introduce various shapes and forms.
"We see this as a multibillion dollar category, and we envision a time when surface computing technologies will be pervasive, from tabletops and counters to the hallway mirror," Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said in a statement.
Analysts say the first few applications only hint at what is possible.
"The potential for the interface is huge," said Matt Rosoff, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, an independent research firm. "Once you open it up to applications, what you can think of is limitless."
Microsoft held demonstrations of the technology last week and Ballmer will officially introduce it at the Wall Street Journal's "D: All Things Digital" conference Wednesday.
Microsoft shunned its usual PC manufacturing partners and decided to take control of the surface computer's hardware production using an undisclosed contract manufacturer. It will run the Windows Vista operating system.
Full Version: Microsoft unveils Surface
some other interesting videos I found:
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology...ry/4217348.html
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/sticker-shock/v...able-264453.php
//krunk (^_^x)
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology...ry/4217348.html
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/sticker-shock/v...able-264453.php
//krunk (^_^x)
Story Here
It will sell for no less than $5K
Microsoft today unveiled a "surface computer" capable of interacting with objects placed upon it - an advance that the firm says will revolutionise the way we interact with technology.
Microsoft employees draw with their fingers
The Microsoft Surface - a 30-inch display embedded in a gloss-covered table - will eventually replace the mouse and keyboard, and opens the prospect of a computer in every surface of the home, the company claims.
Consumers will have to wait a few years before getting their hands on the technology themselves, but the first versions of the computer have already been sold to corporate clients including mobile phone companies and restaurants.
When customers at a restaurant put down their glasses, a computer in their table will be able to tailor food recommendations to the choice of drinks, and display pictures linking wines or beers with the vineyards and breweries that produced them.
Diners can order their next course, or split the bill with a touch of the finger and, when a refill is required, Surface could even alert the waiter.
A table in a mobile phone shop would sense what phone it placed upon it, and suggest suitable upgrades, ringtones and accessories.
But Microsoft believes that most of the demand for the Surface will come from home consumers, and said it hopes to bring down the price from the current $5,000- $10,000 range over the next three-to-five years.
Steve Ballmer, chief executive of Microsoft, said: "We see this as a multibillion dollar category, and we envision a time when surface computing technologies will be pervasive, from tabletops and counters to the hallway mirror.
"Surface is the first step in realising that vision."
It can read special bar codes on everyday objects
Las Vegas property group, Harrah's Entertainment, whose portfolio includes Caesars Palace and the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, plans to use the interactive virtual concierge function in Microsoft Surface, allowing guests to reserve concert tickets, review the menu, or book a spa treatment.
Guests can plan their itineraries and preview venues without getting up from their table.
Sheraton Hotels' owner Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, plans to use Surface to enhance their hotel lobbies, allowing guests to browse and listen to music, send photos home, download books and order food and drinks.
Microsoft is the first major technology company to bring surface computing to the commercial market.
Unlike traditional touch-screens, the Microsoft Surface can recognise more than one finger at a time, allowing small groups to gather around and use it simultaneously.
It was launched at the Wall Street Journal's 'D: All Things Digital' conference.
It will sell for no less than $5K
Microsoft today unveiled a "surface computer" capable of interacting with objects placed upon it - an advance that the firm says will revolutionise the way we interact with technology.
Microsoft employees draw with their fingers
The Microsoft Surface - a 30-inch display embedded in a gloss-covered table - will eventually replace the mouse and keyboard, and opens the prospect of a computer in every surface of the home, the company claims.
Consumers will have to wait a few years before getting their hands on the technology themselves, but the first versions of the computer have already been sold to corporate clients including mobile phone companies and restaurants.
When customers at a restaurant put down their glasses, a computer in their table will be able to tailor food recommendations to the choice of drinks, and display pictures linking wines or beers with the vineyards and breweries that produced them.
Diners can order their next course, or split the bill with a touch of the finger and, when a refill is required, Surface could even alert the waiter.
A table in a mobile phone shop would sense what phone it placed upon it, and suggest suitable upgrades, ringtones and accessories.
But Microsoft believes that most of the demand for the Surface will come from home consumers, and said it hopes to bring down the price from the current $5,000- $10,000 range over the next three-to-five years.
Steve Ballmer, chief executive of Microsoft, said: "We see this as a multibillion dollar category, and we envision a time when surface computing technologies will be pervasive, from tabletops and counters to the hallway mirror.
"Surface is the first step in realising that vision."
It can read special bar codes on everyday objects
Las Vegas property group, Harrah's Entertainment, whose portfolio includes Caesars Palace and the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, plans to use the interactive virtual concierge function in Microsoft Surface, allowing guests to reserve concert tickets, review the menu, or book a spa treatment.
Guests can plan their itineraries and preview venues without getting up from their table.
Sheraton Hotels' owner Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, plans to use Surface to enhance their hotel lobbies, allowing guests to browse and listen to music, send photos home, download books and order food and drinks.
Microsoft is the first major technology company to bring surface computing to the commercial market.
Unlike traditional touch-screens, the Microsoft Surface can recognise more than one finger at a time, allowing small groups to gather around and use it simultaneously.
It was launched at the Wall Street Journal's 'D: All Things Digital' conference.
Also posted yesterday by Alan in General Discussion: link
Looks pretty cool, but like I heard some guy say on g4 "Looks like an expensive coffee table."
All new technologies are expensive. I would expect the price to drop sharply after the early adopters get theirs.
I think this is really cool, finally, a computer that people can interact with in a more natural way. And it's the first computing device I've seen where people can also interact face-to-face. Throw all your board games away after this
I think this is really cool, finally, a computer that people can interact with in a more natural way. And it's the first computing device I've seen where people can also interact face-to-face. Throw all your board games away after this
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