Microsoft’s Surface debuted to crowds of early adopters across the U.S. Friday, as the Windows RT-powered tablet went on sale.

“It has Microsoft Office, which is the most important reason I’m upgrading from my iPad,” said Joshua Jasper, a veterinary hospital manager who was waiting to buy the tablet. “My biggest concern is app selection, but I know that will grow over time.”

IDC analyst Bob O’Donnell shared Jasper’s concerns. “When I looked in the Windows Store I thought, ‘Wow, there’s not much there,’” said O’Donnell. “There were a lot of cheesy phone-like games in the store, but of course Office is huge,” he said.

“I’m very excited about it,” he said. “It’s Microsoft’s very first hardware and they are coming up against Apple. I’ve always liked Windows products and so I was very excited when I heard they were coming out with hardware.”

“I had a MacBook Pro for a while, but I switched back to Microsoft,” said Mounir Koussa. “I can have a desktop, a laptop, a phone, a tablet and [the Zune] music service all in one.”

It seems that the Marketplace is the only real concern everyone has about Windows 8. Which surely as it will have the largest userbase this time next year will have apps flying through the Marketplace at an enormous rate. Most importantly Metro will most likely be the lead platform for app development as WP7 has sown metro apps when done right can be so much more than what we have seen from apps over the past 5 years.

Going against Apples recent 8% drop in stock earnings of the last quater O’Donnell said that there will be “huge sales and lots of confusion” in the tablet market in the coming months. He thinks that Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD and Google’s Nexus 7 have good chances at capturing some of the market, but he believes that Apple will continue to dominate.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2013173/microsoft-surface-goes-on-sale-to-cheering-crowds.html

Comments from a very select few who don't reflect the mass market.

selnor, you are trying your best at hyping this device but 6 months from now no one here on VGC will be talking about it because it's declared dead by then with less than 5% marketshare.

If I ever want a "tablet" I would buy the "PRO" one. It offers complete compatibility with desktop windows software, good power, and the portability of a tablet, plus touch screen :)

I would actually imagine that the overall market consensus is similar as far as the two main points are concerned: "MS Office support is fantastic" "Lack of Apps is disappointing."

How do you know this doesn't reflect the mass market? He posted an article, you are posting.... your sole opinion.

I'm waiting for surface pro. :) 3 months later according to Microsoft

You keep making these claims. 

I actually majorly disagree with you.

Surface Pro is going to release in January, which not 1 single device out there can compete with. Not 1. It may be a higher price, but comes with a functionality, coherence and portablity that no device matches. 

If Windows 8 tablets have less than 5% marketshare by this time next year, then this will be a parrallell universe.

Are you aware that there are more manufacturers from day 1 making Windows 8 tablets than are making Android tablets? And Android has been allowing manufacturers for 1-2 years already?

Its more than double the manufacturers that are making android devices. 

I see absolutely no evidence that Windows 8 tablets will not sell the igest over the course of the next year.

No.. this is the RT version... where you can't use the desktop mode (except for office and acces to your usb drive.. ms prohibits third party developers to use the desktop on the RT) legacy programs won't run.. it only can run Metro apps... you're confusing (and with you millions of others) it with the PRO version..

Ofcourse this DEVICE will have less than 5% marketshare, but Windows 8 tablets AS A WHOLE will be huge, and Microsoft will probably overtake Android in the tablet market in the not-too-distant future. The Pro will be huge...

It does also come with Legacy Internet Explorer also.