Can Microsoft's $499 Surface tablet lure you away from iPad? | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times

The deeper Surface competitive landscape

"Though the Surface aims to be a different tool — more productivity-oriented — than the smaller and less expensive 7-inch tablets such as Kindle Fire and the expected iPad Mini, it still will compete with the companies that produce them.
That's because the larger battle now is not merely between devices. Those devices are simply ways for consumers to access the large array of services the companies provide and a way for those companies to keep selling services to customers.
"It's not iPad vs. Surface vs. Nexus," Gartenberg said. "It's the Microsoft ecosystem vs. the Google ecosystem vs. the Apple ecosystem.""

Can Microsoft's $499 Surface tablet lure you away from iPad? | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times