Game Changer...

Internet Explorer RT has no problem running Hulu, Netflix, nfl rewind...all of the video sites that don't run on mobile

Who needs a YouTube app when it runs perfectly on Explorer RT?

Gmail, etc all run perfectly via IE. Microsoft needs to be talking about this more when people diss the lack of apps.

To my tablet associate

Hey Jae,

I responded to your facebook comment with some more thoughts about the Surface, but I've thought of a few more things since then: 

• Some more thoughts on the software: I can't comment enough on how nice it is using Office RT. It's just great not having to pause and figure out whether I can really do something on the Surface or not when using Word RT. Instead the experience is seamless with regular office. My only gripe is that there are certain things that are not optimized for tablets on Word RT (small icons, etc)
• Wider screen: As we noted on Friday night, the Surface's screen forms a longer rectangle than the iPad, which gives it true widescreen viewing in landscape, but a really long pageview in portrait mode. I've got the feeling Microsoft just had to differentiate itself from the rest of the crowd as the iPad's size/shape strikes me as more intuitive. That said, I kind of liked viewing Word documents in portrait mode (and as I said in the last post Word RT has a nice viewing option for that.
• Laptop replacement?: Pastor Brian has been urging me to sell my laptop and get the type cover (and pocket a few extra hundred while I'm at it!). I'm going to try using the Surface on its own for awhile, and see if the desktop will fill in everything I won't be able to do with tablet. Without the type cover the surface is outstanding as a media consumption device. With the type cover this might lighten my bag by about 8 lbs.
• Ports, ports, ports!: Gotta love the full sized usb, mini hdmi, and micro sd slots...I heard with the sd slot you might have to do some jerry-rigging in terminal to get everything to show up in the default surface media viewer, but it only takes a couple of steps
• Almost forgot: Windows RT/8 have these really nice start menu apps that deliver news, videos, and other media in a really stunning fashion. It really is the next generation of news consumption

Alright, I think that's it for now. Let me know if you have any specific questions that you'd like me to answer!

To someone well versed in tablets

Dear Jae,

As you have requested, I'm posting some of my thoughts regarding both the Nexus 7 and the Microsoft Surface. I decided to move things over to a blog because I don't think I'm going to be able to put everything into one facebook post, and I like the idea of updating this blog as thoughts regarding the two devices come to me.

So, a few initial thoughts:

• Size, Weight, and Feel: 
• The Surface is heavy, in a very pleasant, professional way. The magnesium case is really solid feeling, and the tablet has a nice heft to it. With that said, I kind of have to cradle the tablet in my arms like a football in order to hold it for any length of time. The screen is a really nice size: Microsoft Word RT has a nice feature where you can view documents almost like eBooks, meaning you can just swipe from page to page. I'll definitely be trying that feature out from the pulpit on Sundays. (But I will have a hard copy of my sermon just in case...) 
• The Nexus on the other hand is really the perfect size and weight for one handed holding. Many people have said this, but the 7 inch tablet might be the ideal dimension for a media consumption tablet. The plastic case feels appropriate, though you kind of get the sense that you're holding a large phone. 
• Software:
• The Surface has been widely panned for not having that many apps, but I suspect that will change soon. Since Windows RT will be used on multiple devices, and with Microsoft handing out devices to employees soon, I've got the feeling the app store is going to start filling up soon. On the other hand, it's really too bad that Windows RT can't handle legacy Windows apps. That would be incredible if you could bring a bunch of your old programs over from XP and 7. Office RT though is pretty powerful, as is the OS itself. I'm still getting used to the differences between Android and RT, but I'm finding RT sufficiently well built, if not quite as advanced as Android 4. 
• Nexus - it really is incredible how far Android has come. I started with 1.6 I believe, and I've been using 2.2 for quite a long time on my Optimus V. Our 7 just received the Jelly Bean update, but I haven't had a chance to really see how that is. 4.1 was running quite smoothly, and Felise is pretty proficient at using the Nexus even after just a week or so.
  
  The greater number of apps on Android really makes the Nexus 7 more powerful than the Surface for the time being. You can do so much more on an Android device. Surface can catch up quickly, though, if developers can just put out more programs.
  

Okay, I think that's it for now. I'll have more as I think of it.