Samsung Won't Launch Windows RT-Based ATIV Tab On U.S. Soil
As of now, we're still waiting for Microsoft to come clean with Windows RT sales figures. And while waiting takes time, Samsung's giving us a clue: things probably aren't so great. Mike Abary, the head of Samsung's PC and tablet business in the States, has confirmed to CNET that no Samsung-made Windows RT products will be released on American soil. Yikes. Samsung is a major, major PC player, and its Galaxy line of phones and tablets have taken on a life of their own. So, why skip the WinRT fad? Because there is no fad, it seems. In fact, Samsung believes that retail partners "don't see strong demand," and that the "value proposition for Windows RT isn't clear to consumers."
The ATIV Tab, which runs Windows RT, is a potent device on paper, and has been fairly well regarded by critics. But unfortunately, it'll only be destined for shops in foreign lands, and in fact, there's no real word on which international markets will get it. Samsung just didn't feel like it was worth the investment to educate the public on Windows RT, signaling that there's still a lot of confusion surrounding the WinRT/Win8 launch. To quote: "When we did some tests and studies on how we could go to market with a Windows RT device, we determined there was a lot of heavy lifting we still needed to do to educate the customer on what Windows RT was. And that heavy lifting was going to require pretty heavy investment. When we added those two things up, the investments necessary to educate the consumer on the difference between RT and Windows 8, plus the modest feedback that we got regarding how successful could this be at retail from our retail partners, we decided maybe we ought to wait."
Microsoft had to figure that its own Surface RT would burn some partners, but for Samsung to make such a clear and bold move so early... well, it's not a great sign for Windows RT.
The ATIV Tab, which runs Windows RT, is a potent device on paper, and has been fairly well regarded by critics. But unfortunately, it'll only be destined for shops in foreign lands, and in fact, there's no real word on which international markets will get it. Samsung just didn't feel like it was worth the investment to educate the public on Windows RT, signaling that there's still a lot of confusion surrounding the WinRT/Win8 launch. To quote: "When we did some tests and studies on how we could go to market with a Windows RT device, we determined there was a lot of heavy lifting we still needed to do to educate the customer on what Windows RT was. And that heavy lifting was going to require pretty heavy investment. When we added those two things up, the investments necessary to educate the consumer on the difference between RT and Windows 8, plus the modest feedback that we got regarding how successful could this be at retail from our retail partners, we decided maybe we ought to wait."
Microsoft had to figure that its own Surface RT would burn some partners, but for Samsung to make such a clear and bold move so early... well, it's not a great sign for Windows RT.
