At an event on Monday, June 17 in Los Angeles, CA Microsoft announced its forthcoming tablet offering - Surface. Surface will be available in two models - The ARM-Based Surface for Windows RT which will be shipped with the general availability of Windows 8, expected in late September or early October. The Windows 8 Pro version of Surface will run on Intel core processor and will ship roughly 90 days after the Surface for Windows RT.

Among the innovations in Surface, Touch Cover is a magnetically attached protective cover that doubles as a keyboard. Touch cover uses pressure sensitive technology to sense keystrokes which the company claims allows a user to type significantly faster than on touch screens. Other features includes a retractable stand and a unique fabrication process called VaporMG which allows the magnesium casing to be moulded thinner than a credit while remaining light weight and strong. The Surface will come with a 10.6" HD screen in a 16:9 aspect ratio, weighs 1.5 pounds and will come in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB configuration.

With the tablet market getting increasingly crowded the competition is just going to get fiercer and the battles will occur beyond just the hardware device. With Surface, Microsoft has introduced a tablet device that allows the company further to penetrate the market and bring the user experience of Windows 8 across all devices and touch points. While pricing was not announced, numerous press reports suggested that the Windows 8 tablets coming from other OEMS (Other Equipment Manufacturers) would likely be priced higher than iPad given the OS license fee. Furthermore with the Google acquisition of Motorola Mobility, the danger of OEM perception of increased complexity might become a concern. Microsoft is also entering the tablet market at the same time as making its tablet OS available to other OEMs.

For the consumer, this is good news as it provides alternatives and options. The competition is not standing still either with their advances in the tablet ecosystem and providing the best user experience across devices by combining hardware and software. Microsoft has demonstrated that it is also working in the background on advancements that certainly the competition have taken notice.