wifi issues

I am a GM of IT for a very large corporation in Australia.  I have supported Microsoft in the enterprise for many years with a substantial EA agreement.

I have found it challenging over the last few years to manage the consumerisation of IT in the enterprise, which has really meant the proliferation of Apple products.  Apple does not integrate well in the enterprise and they never intended it to do so.  They were after the consumer and won that market, but never told the CEO that the iPad would not authenticate to the corporate AD and that it was not a true productivity platform.

I have watched Microsoft prepare to advance on the consumer space starting with the Xbox 360 and Windows Phone, while keeping a focus on the enterprise.  I love my Nokia Lumia 800 Windows Phone.  The experience of Windows Phone is far better than that of iPhone and its integration into the corporate network is smooth and supportable.

I get the strategy to have a common experience across all platforms.  I think Windows 8 will become a winner, but I am not yet certain of that in the enterprise.

Having said all of this, Surface is a failure.  I cannot believe I am returning mine to Microsoft.  There are few redeeming qualities.  Windows 8 Pro on other hardware may be acceptable.  Microsoft's view that controlling the hardware and the OS as does Apple makes sense.  Unfortunately, at a time when they needed to get it right, they got it so wrong.

They need to drop Surface and Windows RT quickly and partner with hardware vendors like Nokia to deliver quality,  innovative solutions.

well, i think that you are right in the first half but totally wrong in your second half. Microsoft patners have been delivering so far what I call Second Level in quality products. I went the other day to a store electronics department and compare all the tablets rt there with the Surface RT and the ipad. All of them looked as cheap products compare to those two.

To compete against Apple's quality Microsoft needed to step out and do it themselves. So far I have not seem anything in the Surface that compares to the Antenna scandal in the iPhone, the connections issues when the 3G iPhone was released and many other Apple issues. To be the first version and the first attend from Microsoft in this arena I would say that they are doing it well.

And whoever think otherwise, I would remind them that when people reported the Antenna issue of the iPhone, Steve Jobs very quickly went public saying that it was not a hardware issue that it was users not knowing how to hold the phone.

Do you prefer that type of answer or a team working slowly in a solution. Which BTW, is a software solution. Nothing compare to the Antenna fiasco where the solution was a cheap plastic cover around the device. Come on! We are talking here about an issue that most of us, IT, already went around in one way or another. I want this device to be perfect and I demand from Microsoft a fix. So it can compete against Apple's iPad. But they need sometime and just because they are doing what they are doing releasing this devise I'm going to keep it, I'm going to keep helping those who needs help adapting to a new OS design (the biggest change since W95).

I have used an iPad for the last year and I replaced it with the Surface and since I did it I have found myself doing more things  and in easier ways and depending less in 3er party applications. Because the "We have an App for that" Moto is not more than a way to hide all the iOS imperfections, the lack of tools included in the OS that will allow an average user to be productive.

Again, I understand the frustration of those who do not know how to work around the WiFi issues. And I join them demanding a software fix. At the same time, I ask for a little bit of patience. There have been many changes included in W7 and W8 to make the WiFi connection faster and better, unfortunately those changes (no present in Apple's products) do not work well with old and sometimes new but no prepared for these new features Access Points. This is what makes so hard to fix this. How to keep all features there for those who can use them and turn them off for those who have problems with them.