Microsoft Surface (Available End of This Year)

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:05 AM

At first glance, Microsoft's secret project looks like a 2007 version of the sit-down arcade game Ms. Pac Man. Only, if this machine were running the game, you could just take your finger and flick away any monsters chasing the heroine.

On Tuesday, Microsoft took the wraps off "Milan", five years in the making and the first in what the company hopes will be a long line of "surface computers". The Microsoft tabletop PC, called "Surface", for which Microsoft has created both the hardware and software, offers shades of the technology seen in the sci-fi thriller Minority Report. The whole unit is controlled entirely through touch — there's no mouse or keyboard.

To paint, people can pick up a paint brush or just dip their fingers in virtual paint cups. Sharing photos is similarly intuitive. A stack of pictures can be easily sorted through and shared. To resize a photo, just stretch two fingers apart. Pivot the fingers and the image rotates. More than one person can be interacting with the computer at a time.

"It's very approachable," said Pete Thompson, the former T-Mobile executive who runs Microsoft's surface-computing business. "You just want to touch it."

While consumers will be able to touch it later this year, most won't be able to buy a surface computer any time soon.

The expensive components required to allow multiple users to touch the device simultaneously give it a price tag approaching $10,000 (£5,057). As a result, Microsoft isn't targeting homes initially, though it hopes consumers can own their own Milan within three to five years. For now, Microsoft is focusing on getting the products into public spaces in the hospitality arena — hotel lobbies, restaurants, and casinos, to name a few.

The company's initial customers are cellular carrier T-Mobile, which will use the units in its retail stores; hotel operator Starwood, which owns brands including Sheraton and Westin; casino owner Harrah's; and slot-game maker IGT. Each of the initial partners should have a few initial machines up and running around November, Thompson said.

Thompson said the roll-out approach is similar to that taken by the tech industry with plasma displays, which were used in trade-show booths for years while they were still too costly for the home.

Sheraton vice president Hoyt Harper said Microsoft's tactic is pretty savvy, noting that many guests who might see the product in a Sheraton lobby could easily be among those who will buy one when it finally does go on sale widely. "I think that's one reason they chose us," he said.

Harper said the computers fit perfectly into his company's efforts to turn its hotel lobbies into destinations rather than merely places people stop on their way somewhere else. That, he said, makes them easily worth their high price tag.

"How can you not take advantage of something that could materially change the guest experience in the lobby?" Harper asked. Initially, Sheraton plans to have three Milan machines at hotels in New York, Boston and Chicago, with two in each lobby and one in the club lounge. If that means folks are lining up, he said, all the better.

"It will be a nice problem to have," he said.

Another consideration, in addition to cost, is how well Milan holds up to wear and tear. Harrah's chief information officer, Tim Stanley, wants to make sure the machines are built to last before he starts placing them in casinos on the Vegas strip.

If he puts one in the Pure nightclub, for example, "they might dance on [the] table", he said. "Can it handle that?"

The guts of Milan
At its core, Milan is powered by a fairly standard high-end Vista PC with an off-the-shelf graphics card, 3GHz Pentium 4 processor and 2GB of memory. To make the touch screen work, Microsoft crams a lot of other stuff into its tabletop unit. Underneath the roughly textured scratch-proof and spill-proof surface covering the top of the unit, five infrared cameras sense fingers or other objects touching the surface, while a DLP projector turned on its side generates the screen image people see.

To show off the technology to the public, Microsoft has written a few demo applications, such as the paint and photo apps, as well as a program in which specially tagged clear tiles make up a jigsaw puzzle. Instead of a still image, however, the tiles are part of a moving video (it's harder than it sounds to put together).

But Microsoft has hooked up its partners with a handful of software companies it has certified to write Milan-compatible programs. The company isn't making the technology widely available to developers, though it may do so down the road.

Microsoft is not alone in the arena of multitouch computing. New York University professor Jeff Han wowed the crowd at the March TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) conference with a similar technology and has launched a start-up, Perceptive Pixel, to commercialise it. Apple has also got patents in the area and has talked about the use of multitouch in its upcoming iPhone.

Still, Thompson said he isn't worried about infringing anyone else's technology.

"Our legal team feels really good about our IP situation," Thompson said.

The Milan effort began during a series of conversations between Microsoft researcher Andy Wilson and hardware designer Steve Bathiche. The team presented the idea in 2003 to Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and started working on prototypes.

Microsoft itself has launched other ventures in this area, largely through Microsoft Research, which has been demonstrating projects in this realm for years. It even licensed a derivative of the touch technology to a medical-imaging company last year. Another version, dubbed PlayAnywhere, is a mobile take on surface computing, using a can-sized projector and camera to allow any flat space to be turned into a computer.

As for Milan, the software maker hopes to get the technology into lots of other areas, such as the education market, as well as into consumers' hands. Although the initial customers are getting the same tabletop design, Microsoft says the product will eventually come in other shapes and sizes, including vertical, or stand-up, units.

It's the interface that makes the difference. Not only is it easy to use but, unlike traditional computing, it's not an isolating experience.

"We're all connected through MySpace.com and have all these virtual worlds and virtual friends but we don't do a lot of socialising like this," Thompson said, pointing to several chairs seated around the Milan device.

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:06 AM

Scratching the Surface

If you've been lucky enough to catch the first episode of our new weekly web TV show "Dialogue Box", you'll be familiar with our Axis of Awesome. Rather than taking the usual "marks-out-of-ten" approach to reviewing kit, we ask two pithy and pertinent questions of new enterprise tech: is it useful and is it cool? A hearty "yes" to both questions is rare, as is a double "no", but, from a business-technology viewpoint, a surprising amount of utilitarian product has unexpected depths of coolness.

Over the years, Microsoft has provided ample fodder that warrants rating on our axis, including its ill-fated Smart Display, described by one our reviewers as "not so much a tablet as a suppository". This week, the company unveiled its latest foray into the hardware world, in the shape of the tabletop PC — codenamed "Milan", but officially known as "Surface". Tempting though it is, and not just because of the pun, to write it off as another shallow piece of Microsoft thinking, the company's Entertainment and Devices Unit does deserve some kudos for taking a different look at computerising our lives.

However, as usual for tech marketing, the background story around the development of the device is more spin than straight. According to Microsoft, the idea sprang from the minds of its inventors in 2001 — ignoring the fact that multitouch technology similar to that in Milan has been in development since at least 1984. Nor has it gone away since then: New York University professor Jeff Han has launched a start-up, Perceptive Pixel, to commercialise the technology; Apple has it in the iPhone; and anyone who saw the movie Minority Report will already be familiar with the interface.

So where does Surface rate on the Axis of Awesome? Microsoft has hopes that it will take off as a consumer home-device — but, so far, the $10,000 (£5,051) price tag means that it's businesses such as casinos and retailers who've shown an interest. Even if the price drops, this particular Surface form-factor is unlikely to break out of this niche. But others are being planned which may have more useful applications. For now Milan earns a "quite-cool-but-not-very-useful" rating. So far, Surface's beauty is just skin deep.

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:10 AM

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:12 AM

VISIT THE WEBSITE HERE

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:14 AM

As General Manager for Microsoft Surface Computing, Pete Thompson is responsible for the group’s end-to-end business, including hardware, software, Web-based services development, business development and marketing.

When Thompson first saw the prototype of Microsoft Surface, the first commercially available surface computer from Microsoft Corporation, he was struck by the degree of simplicity of the user experience. He is enthusiastic about the innovative hardware, software and integrated services and believes the viral nature of the user experience will lead computing in exciting new directions.

Thompson joined Microsoft in January 2006. His previous experience focused on launching new product categories across various industries and scaling them to the mass market. These products included T-Mobile’s WiFi HotSpot service, Hewlett-Packard’s Officejet multifunction printers and Levi Strauss & Co.’s Dockers.

Before joining Microsoft, Thompson was the executive director of marketing and business development for T-Mobile USA Inc., where he helped increase the company’s HotSpot network from several hundred locations to more than 10,000 worldwide. Before working at T-Mobile, he was at Hewlett-Packard, Motorola Inc. and Publicis USA.

Thompson holds a bachelor’s degree in international economics from the University of California, Los Angeles and a master’s degree in management from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management.

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:15 AM

Today at The Wall Street Journal’s D: All Thing’s Digital conference in Carlsbad, Calif., Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer unveiled the company’s first surface computing product, called Microsoft Surface – an innovation that will change the way people shop, dine, entertain and live. Viewers tuning into "The Today Show" on NBC-TV this morning also got a taste of this powerful new technology.

Surface Computing is part of Microsoft's recently formed Productivity and Extended Consumer Experiences Group, run by Corporate Vice President Tom Gibbons, and is within the Entertainment & Devices division. Gibbons is helping lead the charge for this new product category. PressPass spoke with Gibbons to learn more about today’s announcement.

PressPass: What is surface computing? Is anyone else doing this?

Tom Gibbons: Surface computing is a completely intuitive and liberating way to interact with digital content. It blurs the lines between the physical and virtual worlds. By using your hands or placing other unique everyday objects on the surface – such as an item you’re going to purchase at a retail store or a paint brush – you can interact with, share and collaborate like you’ve never done before. Imagine you’re out at a restaurant with friends and you each place your beverage on the table – and all kinds of information appears by your glass, such as wine pairings with a restaurant’s menu. Then, with the flick of your finger, you order dessert and split the bill. We really see this as broadening content opportunities and delivery systems.

Microsoft is the first major technology company to bring surface computing to market in a commercially ready product. Although there are some companies working on similar technology projects, nobody is doing exactly what we are with Surface.

PressPass: What is Microsoft Surface?

Gibbons: It’s a powerful technology that is visually compelling. Surface is a horizontal display on a table-like form factor that morphs from an ordinary table-top into a new, vibrant way to bring connected entertainment and digital content to users. The cool factor is the way you interact with digital content by using your hands to get what you need. Surface provides effortless interaction with digital content through natural gestures, touch and physical objects. Because Surface is essentially housed in a table, it’s easy for individuals or multiple people to gather around it in a way that feels familiar – making collaboration more powerful and fun.

PressPass: You’re introducing surface computing as a new category. Why?

Gibbons: Surface computing is a powerful movement. In fact, it’s as significant as the move from DOS [Disk Operating System] to GUI [Graphic User Interface]. Our research shows that many people are intimidated and isolated by today’s technology. Many features available in mobile phones, PCs and other electronic devices like digital cameras aren’t even used because the technology is intimidating. Surface computing breaks down those traditional barriers to technology so that people can interact with all kinds of digital content in a more intuitive, engaging and efficient manner. It’s about technology adapting to the user, rather than the user adapting to the technology. Bringing this kind of natural user interface innovation to the computing space is what Microsoft is all about.

PressPass: Why is Microsoft Surface in Microsoft's Entertainment & Devices Division?

Gibbons: Entertainment & Devices has a long history of bringing innovative product experiences to market – such as Xbox, IPTV and Zune. Today, E&D’s vision is anchored in delivering end-to-end hardware, software and services across different pillars of Connected Entertainment, such as music, video, communication and gaming. That’s exactly what we’re doing with Microsoft Surface. The E&D strategy is all about connections and so is surface computing - connections to content, connections across communities, connections to new experiences and connections to people.

Through the years, we have done a tremendous amount of research and development in this area. The new hardware and software in Surface, along with a predominant focus on the consumer experience, support the Connected Entertainment vision – making entertainment more personal, more interactive and more social. As a new product category, we see the Surface Computing group as extending Connected Entertainment to new devices, categories and platforms.

PressPass: Why should consumers take notice and care about Microsoft Surface? How will this change their everyday lives?

Gibbons: Surface computing is going to revolutionize everyday lives, much like the way ATMs changed how we get money from the bank. Surface lets us manipulate a tremendous amount of information with our hands so that the content works with you rather than for you. For example, with Surface’s mapping application, you can manipulate a map and move it, shrink it and access personalized data for local sites, attractions and venues. To do this today, you’d need a paper map, books, concierge and even a bookstore to find and gather all the information. Or, with Surface’s photo application, you have the ability to sort through pictures, decide which ones you want to share, zoom in for a closer look and more. In these ways, Surface is unlocking content; making it rich, more fun and easier to use.

PressPass: What kinds of companies will be deploying Surface? What value will it provide your partners?

Gibbons: Our first partners come from the leisure, entertainment and retail industries and Surface has the potential to span many other industries. That’s part of the beauty of surface computing – the market for this type of experience is significant. Right now there are half a million high-end restaurants, hotels and retailers in the U.S. alone. That’s pretty impressive. We’ve looked at the market extensively, and when you consider that the revenue-generating opportunities include services, hardware and software, we believe there will be a multi-billion-dollar addressable market for surface computing.

The first companies to roll out Surface will be Harrah’s Entertainment, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, T-Mobile USA and a distributor, International Game Technology (IGT). Surface is giving these partners a distinct and very easy way to differentiate their consumers’ experiences.

PressPass: What future innovations do you see emerging from Surface Computing at Microsoft?

Gibbons: Right now we’re focusing on launching this surface computer into public spaces. Future versions of Surface will incorporate a myriad of device-sync capabilities. For instance, users could set a digital camera or mobile phone on the surface and watch as their pictures spill out across the table.

As our world continues to be permeated by digital content from music and photos to games, surface computers will put users back in control by making it easy and natural to interact with the digital world. Over time, we envision a wide range of surfaces with surface computing technology and believe that this will become pervasive both inside and outside of the home.

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:19 AM

Product Name: Microsoft Surface

Category: Surface Computing

Product Overview: Surface is the first commercially available surface computing platform from Microsoft Corporation. It turns an ordinary tabletop into a vibrant, interactive surface. The product provides effortless interaction with digital content through natural gestures, touch and physical objects. In essence, it’s a surface that comes to life for exploring, learning, sharing, creating, buying and much more. Soon to be available in restaurants, hotels, retail and public entertainment venues, this experience will transform the way people shop, dine, entertain and live.

Description: Surface is a 30-inch display in a table-like form factor that’s easy for individuals or small groups to interact with in a way that feels familiar, just like in the real world. Surface can simultaneously recognize dozens and dozens of movements such as touch, gestures and will be able to recognize actual unique objects that have identification tags similar to bar codes.

Surface will ship to partners with a portfolio of basic applications, including photos, music, virtual concierge and games, which can be customized to provide their customers with unique experiences.

Surface Computing: Surface computing breaks down traditional barriers between people and technology, changing the way people interact with all kinds of everyday content, from photos to maps to menus. The intuitive user interface works without a traditional mouse or keyboard, allowing people to interact with content and information by using their hands and natural movements. Users are able to access information either on their own or collaboratively with their friends and families, unlike any experience available today. Surface computing features four key attributes:
Direct interaction. Users can actually “grab” digital information with their hands and interact with content through touch and gesture, without the use of a mouse or keyboard.

Multi-touch contact. Surface computing recognizes many points of contact simultaneously, not just from one finger as with a typical touch screen, but up to dozens and dozens of items at once.

Multi-user experience. The horizontal form factor makes it easy for several people to gather around surface computers together, providing a collaborative, face-to-face computing experience.

Object recognition. Users can place physical objects on the surface to trigger different types of digital responses, including the transfer of digital content.

Features: Multi-touch display. The display is capable of multi-touch interaction, recognizing dozens and dozens of touches simultaneously, including fingers, hands, gestures and objects placed on the surface.

Horizontal orientation. The 30-inch display in a table-like form factor allows users to share, explore and create experiences together, enabling a truly collaborative computing experience.

Dimensions. 22 inches high, 21 inches deep and 42 inches wide.

Materials. The tabletop is acrylic, and its interior frame is powder-coated steel.

Requirements: Standard American 110–120V power

System: The custom software platform runs on Windows Vista and has wired Ethernet 10/100 and wireless 802.11 b/g and Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity.

Availability: Beginning at the end of this year (2007), consumers will be able to interact with Surface in hotels, restaurants, retail and public entertainment venues

**donsaeid** · 06-06-2007, 05:36 AM

Video About Microsoft Surface

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtrztnqCrm4

YouTube - Microsoft Surface - Exclusive Review

YouTube - Microsoft "Surface" - The Possibilities

YouTube - Microsoft Surface: Business 2.0 Demo

Microsoft Surface (Available End of This Year)

Microsoft Surface (Available End of This Year)

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