That is what Microsoft is using a an excuse for the lack luster sales of Windows 8. Microsoft is saying that PC Vendors didn’t make enough ‘enticing touchscreen tablets’ powered by Windows 8 for the 2012 Christmas season. Seems Microsoft had offered guidelines for hardware that they wanted on all Windows 8 machines (mainly touchscreens) to take advantage of Windows 8 touch interface.

The manufacturers responded by claiming “….if they had followed Microsoft’s hardware requirements and invested in production, all they would accomplish is building a variety of high-end expensive tablets that consumers weren’t interested in.”

So Microsoft is blaming the PC vendors for not producing enough hardware to support its crappy new OS. Though the focus on the article seems to be more on tablets, I do believe they also mean touchscreen monitors for the home PC users. A decent resolution touchscreen monitor is going to cost the consumer at least $350 (almost double of a non-touchscreen version at the same resolution), which I believe many consumers just don’t want to spend that kind of money just to ‘interact or navigate’ Windows 8. It is not like all the applications are going to support touchscreen. They would use the touchscreen interface to get their web browser,  email, MS Office, etc. But once they are in those applications it back to using the traditional mouse and keyboard to interact and navigate within those applications. Bottom line, people don’t want a Windows Phone (or now tablet) on their PC which is basically what Windows 8 is trying to emulate on a PC.

Those who do want tablets are going with Apple or Android. Microsoft was so late into the market with The Surface. Plus, they have shot themselves in the foot…twice…with The Surface Tablets. First with the (crippled) Windows RT version and the price point for the Windows 8 Pro version. Especially now that Apple has announced a 128 GB iPad 4 coming out four-days prior (February 5th) to the release of the Windows 8 Pro Surface (February 9th) and for $100 -$200 less (64 GB/128 GB Windows 8 Pro Surface models).

Let’s for a moment say that in the tablet market it is either the Apple iPad or the Microsoft Surface (no Android). Not only is the iPad cheaper, but you get more with it. Not only do you get a lot more apps, but you get so much more space. Yes, space…Microsoft does disclose that Windows 8 is a space hog and your 64 GB Surface Tablet has about 45 GB of usable space and the 128 GB version about 83 GB. Sure you can recover some of that space by booting off a USB stick, using the cloud based Sky Drive or deleting the recovery partition.

If space and money were not factors, then it would come down to apps. People love apps and businesses are jumping on the app bandwagon. From Banks, Grocery and Drug stores to the local pizza place down the street “there is an app for that”. But many of them are only making apps for Apple and Android devices. They just don’t see they would get a decent return to spend the time and money to develop their apps for Windows Phone or Tablets.

Bottom line, Microsoft still thinks it is the king of the PC market and that everybody will want Windows 8, or a Windows Phone/Tablet. They seem to think their problems with Windows 8 sales are nothing to do with them. Nothing to do with them making a crappy OS or entering into the tablet market late with their over priced/under performing devices. Nope, they are trying to blame their woes on the PC Manufacturers (who know market better than Microsoft).

Microsoft doesn’t understand they can not do again what they did in 2007 with Windows Vista. When consumers needed or wanted a new PC, their choices then were to grin and bear it and get that new PC with Windows Vista (been there, done that)  or ‘Get A Mac’. Now there are new options, get a Chromebook or a tablet to replace their PC . But the consumer is not going to purchase a Surface Tablet (especially since they don’t like Windows 8 to begin with), they’ll get an Apple or Android based tablet. Even if Windows 8 wasn’t a factor, it comes down to more bang for your buck, something that the Microsoft Surface and Windows 8 are seriously lacking.

via Tom’s Hardware