Surface RT lags behind iOS
and Android for consumer consumption, but it could very well be the first
tablet that’s actually ready for the enterprise.
The ASUS TF101 Transformer Android tablet
should be recognized as a trailblazer, because it delivered a vision of a
lightweight ARM-based mobile device that bridged the tablet experience and
promised on-the-go productivity. Unfortunately, the TF101 and its successors
didn’t ever really catch on with mainstream consumers. It wasn’t until the 7″ Kindle
Fire and Nexus 7 that Android tablets became a viable iOS competitor, and
they’re largely not suitable as productivity platforms.
After trying to make a 10″ Android
tablet work in this hybrid capacity for over two years, I finally gave in and
bought a Microsoft Surface RT. I suspected that it wasn’t ARM devices that were
the problem, it was OS limitations. Android is a great mobile OS for
smartphones and consumption tablets, but it has serious design limitations for
productivity use. My guess was that while Windows 8 and RT aren’t the greatest
platforms for mobile consumption, they would both be better at delivering
mobile productivity. So far, I don’t think I was wrong. But there are challenges in adopting
RT for a long-time and invested Android and Google services user like myself.
Some of those issues may have solutions that actually work better, once you
change how you approach the problem. Other issues can be worked around, but the
solution isn’t ideal. Still other issues are potential deal breakers. In this
post, I’m going to discuss a few of my experiences and observations about the
RT device.
Crippled
Windows 8?
A claim I frequently hear is that
Windows RT is confusing and limited. I think this is the wrong perspective. It
isn’t fair to compare RT to Windows on IA. Instead, RT should be compared to
Android and iOS. Especially for professionals working in a Windows environment,
RT offers the most seamless integration of any mobile OS. With few exceptions, every shortcut
or feature — even my favorite Windows keyboard shortcuts, plus Windows Snapping
and Resizing — work the same in RT. While there isn’t a keyboard shortcut to
take a screenshot on Surface RT, holding down the tablet’s Windows button and
Volume down easily performs the same task. Once you have a screenshot, you can
open and edit it in Microsoft Paint, just like you would on a traditional PC.
You can even copy and paste the image right into Word or PowerPoint. Honestly,
the ability to open a file or image in the Classic desktop, left-click to
highlight, right-click to copy, and then paste it into any other app, including
a Modern UI app, is something that you have to experience to appreciate.
Windows RT can be easily joined to a
Windows Workgroup, gaining access to all shared resource. With some simple and
familiar administrative modifications to the services control panel, the RT
device can share its resources on your Windows network as well. Android offers
SMB support for sharing through 3rd-party file managers, but these are not an
OS-level integrated solution.
Printing support for both Android
and iOS has been consistently frustrating and complex. RT isn’t perfect, but the
printer support is still miles ahead of the competition. In my case, I have an
OfficeJet 7310 All-in-One network printer. This printer isn’t currently
supported by HP, but I gave the included Windows “HP OfficeJet 7000 E809
series” driver a shot, and it seems to work fine. If you’re familiar with a
Windows environment, you’ll find RT to be a more powerful and smoother process
than any other mobile platform. Inevitably, when I encounter
shortcomings with RT, it’s more about getting my mind around the issue than RT
being inferior. For example, I took screenshots on my TF300 and my RT device to
illustrate that the desktop IE browser on RT gave a full desktop
experience when writing a blog in Google Docs and publishing it to my site on
blogger.com. On the Android TF300, I went into
the Gallery, pressed on the images, tapped the Share icon, and selected Dropbox
from the pull-down menu. On the native RT Modern UI Dropbox app, I couldn’t
find the method to upload a local file to Dropbox. A quick web search indicated that it
isn’t possible with the Modern UI app — and of course, the Windows
Classic Dropbox app is Intel-only. Then I realized I was missing the example I
was trying to illustrate in the first place. I went to dropbox.com
from the Classic IE, logged in, and uploaded the image from the web interface. Surface RT is the only ARM-based
platform that delivers a true desktop browser on a mobile device, and — in many
cases — this opens a whole new world for ARM tablets. Not only is Microsoft
Office included with RT, but RT also currently delivers a better experience in
Google Docs than any Android tablet.
The
FUDder becomes the FUDdee
For years, Microsoft has been
accused of spreading fear, uncertainty, and denial (FUD) about competitive
products. With the arrival of RT, Microsoft is now the victim of FUD. While
some people may consider this “just desserts” for Redmond, many users could be
missing out on a fantastic platform because they’re listening to half-truths
and outright lies. The Modern UI portion of Windows 8
is not as mature of a mobile OS as Android or iOS. For achieving the goals of
hybrid mobile devices though, RT is more like a real desktop than a mobile
device trying to stretch and reach that goal.
Bottom
line
When I try to use Surface RT as a
classic mobile device, I’m less thrilled. For consumer consumption and non-business
driven social media, RT lags behind iOS and Android. The app ecosystem is
struggling, the Modern UI social media integration is not consistent or robust,
and the media content is not as rich. I’ve asked before, “What good are tablets in the enterprise?” and I
still wonder that when it comes to Android and iOS. To me, it seems like a way
to justify consumer content consumption devices in the workplace. Surface RT,
however, may be the first tablet that’s actually ready for the enterprise.
