Microsoft is said to be planning to
introduce its second generation of Surface tablets with smaller displays this
June, but the company is reportedly taking a "cautious" approach
after the initial models got off to a lukewarm start.
Sources in
Microsoft's upstream supply chain indicated to hit-or-miss industry publication DigiTimes
that new Surface-branded devices are expected to be announced at the company's
Build Developers Conference, scheduled for June 26 through 28. If true, the new
hardware would be unveiled about a year after the first Surface units were announced, though the
actual hardware didn't go on sale until late 2012.
Suppliers for the second-generation
models are said to include manufacturer Pegatron, chassis maker Ju Teng,
displays from Samsung and LG, and processors from Intel and Nvidia.
As the market trends toward smaller
tablets, Microsoft is expected to only introduce new Surface models with screen
sizes between 7 and 9 inches, the report claims. The first generation of
Surface hardware featured 10.6-inch displays.
Thursday's report reiterated claims that Microsoft only achieved sales of 1.5
million total Surface units to date, with a million of those being ARM-based
Surface RT devices, and the remaining 500,000 being Intel-based Surface Pro
units. Those numbers were said to be about half the sales of 3 million to 4
million that Microsoft had anticipated.
Because of those apparently
disappointing sales, Microsoft is reportedly taking a "cautious
attitude" in hyping its second generation of Surface units.
Microsoft
officials already tipped last month during their company's quarterly earnings call that
they are working on "a new suite of small touch devices powered by
Windows." The hardware will have "competitive price points,"
Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein told investors and analysts.
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