back to article Dell expects slow Windows 8 demand in enterprise

Microsoft is betting big that Windows 8 will revive its flagging fortunes, but the feedback from Dell is that the new operating system will be a consumer release, and it's not expecting too much impact from Redmond's Surface tablets either. In the earnings call to discuss its latest financial results, Dell's CFO Brian Gladden …

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  1. Nate Amsden

    1-2% of PC shipments

    sounds like a lot, doing a quick search I saw a news site say Gartner predicts 368 million PCs in 2012, if MS can push 3-7 million surface units in 6 months that'll be pretty impressive. I'd think more like 1-2 million.

    Another site I see says Samsung shipped ~1.1M tablets in Q2 2012, with the next closest at about 1/3rd of that.

    MS betting the farm on this is pretty scary, I don't see it ending well but I also don't see them giving up either they of course have the cash to keep trying. I'm sure they'll get it "right" at some point but setting such high expectations for a gen1 product really REALLY reminds me of WebOS and the HP touchpad (or RIM for that matter with BB10). Keep expectations lower and over deliver. WinPho7 received similar hype before it's launch and it's gone nowhere of course.

    1. Arctic fox
      Happy

      @Nate Amsden Re: "1-2% of PC shipments" As far as Win RT goes I'm.........

      .........with "Mikel" (a few posting below) as far as "nobody knows" is concerned. I literally do not have a clue how the domestic consumer market are going to react to that version whether on "Surface" or devices from other OEMs. However, I have a gut feeling that the x86 Win 8 Surface may do pretty well in the enterprise market, better in fact than some people appear to think. That of course is just my guess. :-)

    2. h4rm0ny

      Re: 1-2% of PC shipments

      "MS betting the farm on this is pretty scary"

      MS aren't even close to betting the farm on this. They don't expect the entire business world or personal user base to suddenly get up and march to the shops and buy upgrades. Just as they didn't expect it to happen with Windows 7. They even issued advice to Corporate saying they don't advise an immediate rush to upgrade to Windows 8. I have no idea where you got the idea that MS are betting everything on sales of the Surface. It seems primarily to be a stick with which to beat OEMs into shape.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Joke

    TIFKAM

    "Dell said that the release of Windows Server 2012 would give a boost to the second half of the company's year and it was "feeling good" about the new OS."

    Does Dell already know that TIFKAM is also present on Server 2012 ? ;-)

    1. Andrew Jones 2
      Joke

      Re: TIFKAM

      Wasn't sure what TIFKAM was.... nice to see that Google already knows the answer to that.....

      For anyone else: The Interface Formerly Known As Metro

      Now..... who else is quietly talking about shrubberies under their breath??

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: TIFKAM

      But, if I'm not mistaken, 2012 is GUI-less unless you specifically turn it on.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        @AC

        That's not what the release candidate currently shows us.

        1. h4rm0ny

          Re: @AC

          "That's not what the release candidate currently shows us."

          There are three different modes in Server 2012. There's the "Server Core" mode which lacks the full GUI, there's a full GUI version and there's a completely stripped down mode which you manage with Server Manager and use Microsoft Management Console plug-ins. This last one runs on a normal Desktop and lets you manage lots of GUI-less servers from it. MS have said that Server Core is the preferred mode. Your preview is the one with the GUI apparently, but it is definitely not the recommended approach. Possibly you even selected to have a GUI when installing it?

          At any rate, it would have been very easy for you to fact check this before suggesting that the AC above is wrong (they aren't). There's an article that covers the GUI-less aspects of Server 2012 here.

          1. Levente Szileszky

            Re: @AC

            Except it would be very easy to you to understand that Core is *NOT* the default install option as there is no such thing so AC was dead wrong, along with you while he was correct, 2012's default GUI is a retarded tablet UI, period.

            TIFKAM is an *ABOMINATION*, the shining example of the infinite, surrealistic Ballmerian stupidity, fortified by Sinofsky's clueless yet uber-arrogant, 'customers-do-as-I-say-or-screw-them' approach... one idiot can always boost another's ego, I guess.

            In short: MS is saving money on your skin when they decided to force you to use a junk tablet UI on every Windows device.

    3. h4rm0ny

      Re: TIFKAM

      "Does Dell already know that TIFKAM is also present on Server 2012 ? ;-)"

      By default, Server 2012 is effectively GUI-less. Powershell is the normal way of managing it and the GUI is essentially a major re-write of the previous tools as wrappers for Powershell commands. Good to see MS finally catching up to Linux in this area. ;)

      The reason it is GUI-less is that Server 2012 virtualizes extremely well (both as host and guest). The lack of GUI helps keep the memory and processor footprint small when you have a thousand of these buggers all virtualised. Turning on the GUI when you need it is pretty easy. Likewise, when you're done, you can just turn it off again. Though I imagine most real sysadmins will do everything through Powershell, usually remotely.

  3. Mikel
    Happy

    Nobody knows

    There is no point in trying to pretend that anybody knows how people in general are going to react to Windows 8 or Surface until they are on sale. And for a good bit after that, too, as the marketing effort of course includes trying to make it look like a screaming success even if it isn't.

    Meanwhile, Dell's profits are off 18%. That would have been a useful nugget to include in the article.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Last Chance Saloon for Mr Balmer

    >MS betting the farm on this is pretty scary, I don't see it ending well but I also don't see them giving

    >up either they of course have the cash to keep trying. I'm sure they'll get it "right" at some point but

    >setting such high expectations for a gen1 product really REALLY reminds me of WebOS and the HP >touchpad (or RIM for that matter with BB10). Keep expectations lower and over deliver. WinPho7

    >received similar hype before it's launch and it's gone nowhere of course.

    They're not betting the farm on this. They're betting the farm on this; Surface Tablets; Windows phone, and a new version of Office - all at the same time. For sure there will be compatibility issues and inconsistencies between systems. [Who thought that bloody ribbon was a good idea?] And all nicely locked down in favour of Microsoft.

    The games creators are not at all happy about this, and are already porting their games to alternative platforms. [Very interesting article on this in Micromart this week]

    There's a lot riding on this, Steve,where will you go when you're ousted?

    1. h4rm0ny

      Re: Last Chance Saloon for Mr Balmer

      "The games creators are not at all happy about this, and are already porting their games to alternative platforms. [Very interesting article on this in Micromart this week]"

      Well Valve are certainly upset anyway - hardly surprising as the MS Marketplace could (probably will) make Steam redundant. But if other game makers have a choice of whether to sell via Marketplace of Steam, surely that choice can only be a good thing for customers. Competition is beneficial, yes?

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Last Chance Saloon for Mr Balmer

      Exactly.. as mentioned above, Valve were looking for some cheap PR points as they stand to lose out to an MS Store built in to the OS.

      Valve were preaching to the Penguins - a sure sign of desperation.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Cram it down their throats

    That's Microsucks marketing strategy. Any PC seller trying to force Biz or consumers to buy Win 8 can expect a huge loss in sales. Microsucks has never gotten it "right" or even remotely close to "right" but they have raped consumers around the globe for many years.

    1. Arctic fox
      Headmaster

      Re: Cram it down their throats

      As far as tablets are concerned MS are in no position to "cram" anything down the customer's throats nor yet violate them. They are after all entering a market where they have, in practice, zero presence and will be facing two powerful and well established competitors - hmm? Or had you not noticed that?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Cram it down their throats

        You're very naive. Microsucks is good at selling empty promises and coercion. Check their history.

  6. Medium Dave
    Holmes

    Breaking news: Dell expects water to be wet

    Sanest thing they've said in a while...

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Last Chance Saloon for Mr Balmer (Correction)

    Apologies; this should have said :

    They're betting the farm on this plus Surface Tablets; Windows phone, and a new version of Office - all at the same time.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I don't know a single company OR consumer interested in Windows 8/.

    If they have bet the company on this, then Microsoft is fucked.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Admit it, all you Microsoft employees/astroturfers/shills/fans/enthusiasts

    Windows 8 and its entire related ecosystem (WP8, Surface, Microsoft App Store, Skydrive, Bing, Outlook.com, Office 2013) will crash and burn.

    It's Vista all over again. Only this time, the stakes are higher. Much higher.

    Your best bet is to do your homework, learn your lessons, regroup, cut your losses and try better for Windows 9.

    And if possible, by 2013-2014, get rid of Steve Ballmer and replace him with someone with a brain. Microsoft needs a spring cleaning, a revolution from within. Get rid of all the useless politicking managers, sycophants and useless feeders. Let the engineers take charge.

    1. h4rm0ny

      Re: Admit it, all you Microsoft employees/astroturfers/shills/fans/enthusiasts

      Good. Use your aggressive feelings, boy. Let the hate flow through you. Strike Soon your journey towards the dark side will be complete!

    2. digismith
      FAIL

      Re: Admit it, all you Microsoft employees/astroturfers/shills/fans/enthusiasts

      Engineers make terrible stylists and terrible stylists make really terrible Gui's

      Engineers code, Usability experts make it just that Useable. a GUI is needed for id wager 99.99 percent of all users. This New GUI will require hours and hours and hours of retraining which companies will not be doing. This Surface OS wont be used on corporate machines for at least 4-10 years.

  10. Tony Paulazzo

    what is the general consensus on Office 2013, yay or nay, better that Office 2010, too much cloud, awful or better GUI (MUI?)?

    Surface RT will either sell or it won't - it's basically a brand new system and will be competing with iPads & Android, same kind of eco system (dependant on an apps store), and there is no built-in loyalty to ModernUI (it might say Windows on the box, but the picture next to it will not agree with that statement).

    The Intel surface (other manufacturer versions) will succeed, you can take that to the bank - it's full fat Windows that will run Photoshop and all those other programs (not sissy apps) you have backed up.

    1. Richard Plinston

      will succeed ?

      > The Intel surface (other manufacturer versions) will succeed,

      Running full fat windows programs will generally require keyboard and mouse because those programs usually rely on stuff like keyboard short cuts, and pixel level click control. If surface x86 is priced like an ultrabook then you may be better to use one of those. This is certainly true for photoshop where a 17" laptop will be better than a 10" tablet.

    2. Piro Silver badge

      Shouty

      Isn't it just a version of Office 2012 with the ribbon in all caps? I'm not sure I see the draw..

  11. Duffaboy
    Linux

    Xp

    Its still the Elephant in the room, I see the OS day in day out at many of my clients, they willl cling to it till the trap door opens then will migrate to Win 7

  12. digismith
    FAIL

    With the report back feature

    Windows 8 doesnt meet any Security regulations regarding Sarbanes Oxley and or Hippa, Virtualy No bank hospital, or any agency with in house apps can use it.

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