Microsoft Hiring Up a Storm for Next Generation of Surface
Are they already working on Surface 2 or is Microsoft planning other Surface devices?
Microsoft made a huge splash earlier this summer with the unveiling of the Surface. Though the tablet is not launching until October, Microsoft is thought to be working on the Surface 2 already. TechRadar cites more than a dozen job advertisements posted on Microsoft's Careers site between June and August in reporting that Redmond is currently hiring up a storm for Surface.
TechRadar says all of the ads mention "fast-paced product development cycles" and being a part of creating "desirable and powerful devices that enable the experiences people want, and elicit their excitement."
"Creating these devices involves a close partnership between hardware and software engineers, designers, and manufacturing," TechRadar cites the ads as saying. "We are currently building the next generation and Surface needs you!"
Microsoft is hiring everything from manufacturing and packaging designers to mechanical engineers. However, it's not exactly clear what products these new hires will be working on. Ads mention "alternative power sources" as well as "passive and active cooling thermal designs that best balance performance, cost, manufacturability, acoustics and reliability," but the listings don't mention tablets specifically, which leads us to wonder what's going on over in Redmond. Does the reference to 'the next generation' of Microsoft Surface refer to more tablets or is Microsoft looking to develop additional lines of Surface products?
So far the Surface name only applies to tablets (and prior to that, massive touch-screen tables), but perhaps we'll see Surface laptops, media players and more in the coming years.
You can check out Microsoft's Surface Team job postings here.
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Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.
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killerclick It's just a marketing ploy. They always need quality engineers, but they're emphasizing this so they could project their confidence about Surface. Unless they have like 5 million preorders, there's no way they can go all-out on Surface 2. The corporate culture and associated structures simply wouldn't allow it.Reply -
sp0nger I find myself becoming more interested in surface and windows 8 because it would be really sweet to flick documents from my cellphone to my tablet to my desktopReply -
southernshark killerclickIt's just a marketing ploy. They always need quality engineers, but they're emphasizing this so they could project their confidence about Surface. Unless they have like 5 million preorders, there's no way they can go all-out on Surface 2. The corporate culture and associated structures simply wouldn't allow it.Reply
Microsoft has around 50 billion in the bank. It absolutely can go all out if it feels like it. -
boiler1990 Good on MSFT. Sounds like they're building up to compete on Apple's product schedule, which is what is necessary to prevent Apple from dominating the whole market.Reply -
It just means that they have completed the current surface tablet and is preparing for the next generation. Every companies will do that. When a car manufacturer rolls out 2013 model, they are actually working on the design of 2016 model. They will not wait for the 5 mil preorders before starting the next project.Reply
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Zetto Along with Kinect tech, and with the OS in place to support gesture/keyboard controlled desktops (finally relief for my mouse cramped hand, ha), gesture/touch controlled tablets and touch/voice controlled phones.Reply
The future looks bright, all from the brilliant teams assembled/assembling there folks. They've been building these teams for years, and now it all comes together :lol: -
CaedenV If just one person they hire knows how to make a decent commercial, and the board does not be dumb and shoot it down, then surface stands a good chance at being a winner. It has the hardware, it has the looks, and it has the buzz; All it needs to be is sub $1000 and something to get the word out about it.Reply -
radon_antila southernsharkMicrosoft has around 50 billion in the bank. It absolutely can go all out if it feels like it. Agreed. It's worth remembering that in the late 1999's-early 2000's, Microsoft took on a billion-dollar loss just to enter and compete on the console market with the introduction of original XBox. And that was a market they didn't have a significant stake in.Reply
There are a lot of things you can accuse Microsoft of being, but "not willing to risk its money" is not one of them.