Last night Microsoft took the wraps of the first of its own-brand tablets. Microsoft took the name for these devices from its touchscreen table dubbed Surface. Now that the name has been re-purposed, you might be wondering what Microsoft plans to do with the massive touchscreen table.
Well, the good news is that the original Surface device is not dead. Though Redmond apparently has no intention of allowing the touchscreen table to keep the Surface name, the touchscreen table isn't being nixed just yet. However, it is getting a new name.
TechCrunch points towards a little footnote at the bottom of surface.com intended to aid lost souls that arrived at the URL in search of Microsoft's smart table.
"Looking for the Samsung SUR40 with Microsoft Pixelsense? Visit www.pixelsense.com," the note reads.
A peek at pixelsense.com reveals that this is the new home for the old 40-inch Microsoft Surface table and there's barely any mention of the Surface branding. Right at the bottom of the 'How to Buy' section, you'll find a mention of the old Surface table:
"Please note that we are no longer selling Microsoft Surface 1.0 hardware. We may be able to help you locate a replacement or rental system. Please contact the Business Desk for more information. Existing customers, please visit Microsoft Surface 1.0 support for additional resources."
So the original Surface has been discontinued, but Microsoft and Samsung continue to sell the newest version of the table on a commercial basis under the PixelSense name. It's worth noting that the Surface 1.0 didn't have Microsoft's PixelSense technology nor was Samsung part of its creation. Surface 1.0 was Microsoft hardware and software and relied rear projection DLP with cameras to capture users' interactions. The Samsung SUR40 with PixelSense was announced in early 2011 and started shipping earlier this year and starts at $8400.
