(I’m probably way off base with this, but the thought keeps going through my mind so what the heck, flame at will)
I think Surface first saw the light of day at CES several years ago, the demo was heavily canned but it was a neat concept that we all knew would come one day… Multi-touch display surfaces which would enable a broad range of interaction and UX that previously wasn’t possible.
Today Surface is finding its way into the real world, however the cost of devices is still quite high when you consider some of the target markets (education being my most recent experience).
Which leaves me wondering… After the E3 keynote this year and the rather excellent Project Natal demos, will the penny drop with customers and this potentially $200 xbox peripheral squash a product which costs 50+ times more?
July 28th, 2009 at 4:24 pm
Does the idea that Natal may cost $50 to $100 change your opinion? I think Microsoft is willing to take a loss with the peripheral, betting on the increased market share a console-release-magnitude game backbone would provide, as well as Natal’s presumed expansion into the living rooms of households that wouldn’t have bought a gaming platform otherwise.