Who does Microsoft think their customer is for the LTE Surface 2?

mrpuny

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I'm asking this question a bit facetiously, but only a bit. I'm not talking about business vs individual, corporate vs student, or leading into a complaint about the price. What I'm wondering, after looking at the Microsoft store online and reading through the available information, is at a deep level whether Microsoft thinks their customer is the individual purchasing the device, or AT&T.

I mean, I know from searching this forum that the device is unlocked, and works fine with T-Mobile, for example. Yet looking at the Microsoft Store, the only carrier mentioned is AT&T. Even in the tech specs, there's not a single reference I can find regarding use with another US carrier or specific frequencies or bands it supports, just "AT&T 4G LTE". (Unless I'm missing something.) If they're trying for an Apple-esque simplicity in the information they provide, it's a bad caricature because it's easy to find all that information for the iPads on Apple's site.

So why is Microsoft presenting the LTE Surface 2 as an AT&T device? How many potential customers are going to pass on it because they'll think it won't work on the carrier they're using, or just get an AT&T data plan because they don't realise there are other options?
 

sd173

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I think they might be (maybe purposely) trying to seem like they are doing this in in the same way they do with Windows Phone by exclusively giving ATT the most really good phones - ex: 900, 920, 1020, and 1520.
 

DaT Franchise

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I think they might be (maybe purposely) trying to seem like they are doing this in in the same way they do with Windows Phone by exclusively giving ATT the most really good phones - ex: 900, 920, 1020, and 1520.

Ok then why cant I walk in to an att store and buy one?
 

sd173

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It. Makes. Me. Angry. @_@

There are carriers out there besides AT&T. I see nothing good for T-Mobile and it's irritating. They've already lost Blackberry... Don't tell me they're stuck on only Android and iPhone!


Sent from the one in beautiful blue using Tapatalk.

Not trying to be the bearer of bad news here, but focusing on Android and iOS is exactly what ATT's doing. They only care about the money, not which phone they're selling.
 

mrpuny

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Yeah, I figure Microsoft has to be getting some sort of perceived "benefit" from AT&T for the way they're marketing it. If they aren't, whoever is running marketing for the LTE Surface is definitely (instead of just probably :smile:) a complete moron.

The funny thing is, that if this article is correct, T-Mobile was the #1 US carrier for Windows Phone as of January 2014 due to the success of the 521. Granted, that's a lower end phone, but it makes sense that T-Mobile is focusing on a lower end replacement for now, I guess.

The most popular U.S. carrier for Windows Phone users is T-Mobile | WinSource

So I wonder why exactly Microsoft seems so eager to work with AT&T. Do they have some other sort of business relationship? (I do notice that AT&T is using Bing maps for showing coverage, don't know if that means anything.)
 

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