Report Says Microsoft Has Killed Surface Mini

When Microsoft didn’t unveil the Surface Mini at its event in May, no one was too upset – mainly because the company revealed the Surface Pro 3 instead, a powerhouse ultrabook/tablet hybrid. With a flashy new PC to drool over, who cares about the Surface Mini? It seemed like Microsoft was thinking the same thing. As it turns out, the unrevealed device’s own lack of flash may have been its death, as new reports claim that Microsoft has pulled the plug on the Mini entirely.

A post on Digitimes from yesterday reports that Microsoft has looked at the small-size tablet space and decided that there’s too much competition there for the Surface Mini to stand out – an assessment we’ve heard before. According to the post, “the Surface Mini’s specifications have nothing in particular to boost its competitiveness.” The post adds that, according to an inside source, this has led Microsoft to postpone the Mini, but it “may not even launch it to the market at all.”

Its brand vendor clients weren’t too keen on the Mini either, says the post. But interestingly, it’s competition from Apple’s upcoming iPhone 6 that might have also helped hasten the Mini’s unceremonious demise. The report says that the upcoming 4.7- and 5.5-inch displays on the two forthcoming models of iPhone will “undermine demand for 7-inch tablets,” and “are another key factor that prompted Microsoft to change its plan for Surface Mini, the sources added.”

That’s a bit of a neat twist, and it actually makes sense. Microsoft knows that the iPhone 6 will be a smash despite the fact that Apple is beefing up its traditionally small smartphone line. Between that device and the already-crowded small tablet space, where does the Surface Mini fit in? The reality is that it doesn’t.

Windows RT was a nice idea, but no one wants an underpowered version of Windows that’s pretending to be the real deal. That’s why Microsoft seems to have also killed the non-Pro Surface line that ran on RT. Hopefully going forward Microsoft will know that splitting your main OS into too many flavors will only confuse consumers, and cause tons of compatibility and performance issues in the long run. The Surface Mini, cute as it sounded, didn’t really have much of a reason for existing. Seems as though Microsoft would rather not invest any more cash into a product that was doomed to fail.

[Source: Digitimes]