Why Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)’s Surface Pro Can’t Replace Your Laptop

Raining on Mr. Softy’s parade
This comes just as Apple has added a new 128 GB option to its full-sized iPad lineup, in part to position it as a productivity device for business users willing to pay for more capacity if their work depends on it. Apple’s move, while seemingly insignificant, appears to be aimed squarely at Surface Pro, since the new high-capacity iPad will be available just days before Surface Pro launches.

Sources: Apple and Microsoft.

The iPad undercuts the Surface Pro price points by $200, and that’s before factoring in the storage shortages inherent in Microsoft’s tablet. One differentiator in Microsoft’s favor is that Surface Pro supports legacy Windows apps, which makes it easier for enterprise customers to use existing software.

Sources: Apple and Microsoft. Images not shown to scale. Surface Pro (top) vs. iPad (below).

Apple’s positioning of the 128 GB iPad as a business device is readily apparent in its press release, making numerous references to business uses. The iPad makes a “significant impact on business” with almost all Fortune 500 companies testing or deploying the device. Apple mentions Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK)‘s AutoCAD several times and the large files it uses. This was clearly a move for the benefit of the enterprise market and to the detriment of Surface Pro.

Business customers aren’t going to be thrilled when they find out how little of their critical work data they can carry around with the Surface Pro.

The article Why Microsoft’s Surface Pro Can’t Replace Your Laptop originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Evan Niu, CFA.

Fool contributor Evan Niu, CFA owns shares of Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Apple and Intel. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple, Intel, and Microsoft.

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