Some PC makers complain about the Surface Book
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At this point, no one doubts that the Surface Book, announced by Microsoft last week, promises to be an excellent product that will attract the interest of many consumers once it is put on sale (in fact, it is already doing so in its pre-sale phase, having already exhausted the inventory of all its models).
In fact, in the eyes of some analysts and manufacturers the Surface Book turns out to be too good , and not in a positive sense. This is because Microsoft's new laptop would be threatening the participation of other manufacturers (its partners!) in a market that is already declining non-stop.
"This is reflected in things like statements an Asus executive made on the day of the Surface Book&39;s unveiling. Jonney Shih, the company&39;s current president, had this to say as he unveiled Redmond&39;s laptop: >Asus on the Surface Book: We&39;re going to have to talk to Microsoft about this."
Part of Shih's annoyance seems to stem from the fact that Microsoft did not inform its partners in advance of the release of this device, to to which the head of the Windows division, Terry Myerson, replies that in Redmond they did notify their partners about the release of new devices from the Surface range, but without giving more specific details in order to keep the surprise of the event (otherwise there would have been leaks, which was precisely what was avoided this time).
Microsoft has also given other responses stressing that for them relationships with their manufacturing partners are extremely important (which is true), but at the same time they seek to complement their role, expanding the Windows ecosystem towards segments in which today they have a very weak presence, such as high-end laptops (something Guillermo Julián already told us about more than a year ago ).
The underlying problem: manufacturers are not up to the task
There are several reasons to think that in this incipient conflict (if we can call it that) the reason is more on the side of Microsoft than that of the manufacturers who feel threatened.
For starters, if manufacturers did their job right, the Surface Book wouldn't even have to exist (or rather, it wouldn't have to be made and sold by Microsoft).We have already commented here at the time how the role of hardware in the new Microsoft is not to constitute a business model in itself, that is, that Microsoft does not want its business to be hardware manufacturing, but to create new devices as a means to an end: Expand and improve the Windows ecosystem Cover areas that manufacturers aren't covering.
In the past, Microsoft has canceled the release of devices (like the Surface Mini) that overlap too much with what other manufacturers are already doing well. Microsoft does not want to take away their share in those segments since, as we said, manufacturing PCs is not Redmond's line of business. But they are determined to act in those categories where mediocrity or reluctance from Dell, HP, Asus and the like are hurting the platform, and giving people reasons to switch to Macs or Chromebooks.
Precisely the high-end is one of those segments where PC manufacturers are most debited. Most expensive laptops today are just mid-range laptops with more specs (more of the same), something that sounds obvious, but it shouldn&39;t be, since the high-end is the segment where we should see more innovation. and new technologies that leap forward for the entire industry, such as liquid cooling, a special GPU, and the Muscle Wire connector that holds the Surface Book&39;s display."
With the Surface Book, the only thing Microsoft does is set a bar or goal that manufacturers must exceed And the truth is that it turns out hard to believe that companies that are primarily dedicated to making PCs can't do better than a Surface Book, created by a company focused on software and services (and if they really can't, what is their reason for existing? What competitive advantage have they developed that justifies their presence in the industry?).
Finally, manufacturers should consider as an opportunity the renewed interest in high-end PCs that has arisen following the announcement of Microsoft. The company has taken great care not to start a price war, and instead is charging quite a lot for its new equipment, which is still selling like bread hot.
This is proof that there is willingness to pay for premium laptops, and that if Asus, Lenovo, Dell and company do things may well manage to capture an important part of the income that Microsoft is receiving today in this area (and even obtain better results, since they have a better distribution network at a global level).
In short: Dear manufacturers, stop crying over the Surface Book and go kick some ass.
