Why Dell? Why?????
So, I'm hoping this is just some goof-up while they temporarily work out the details. The Dell Venue 11 Pro did indeed go on sale today. And the price was indeed what I was led to believe it would be... for today and tomorrow. After which, based on what the site is currently reporting, the cost will go up by $300+!!!!!
I bought one, because I did get it for the price I was hoping to get it for. But if I hadn't been awaiting this and hadn't checked the price until this weekend, or perhaps later, at $800+ for an atom tablet without an included keyboard... no way!
That is totally bat shit crazy. Especially because it leaves an Atom based tablet just $50 shy of a Surface Pro 2 with a Core I-5. And, the only model currently available is the Atom based one. Again, that just happened to be the model I wanted. But these tiered products have a tendency to rise in price pretty damn fast when you start adding options. If that $850 price point remains, this line of tablets is doomed. For $50 more I would buy a Surface Pro 2 any day. Heck, given the track record of updates and maintenance for both the original Surface Pro and Surface RT, if the Microsoft model were Atom based and $50 more, I would STILL buy the MS one over this. At this rate, the Core I-5 based Venue 11 Pro will have to cost more than a Surface Pro 2. And that is going to make this a non-starter.
Worst of all, this may very well help do further damage to the Windows eco-system. I was really looking forward to this tablet being regularly priced where it is today for the Atom version. With a Windows tablet of that size, in that price point, it would have been beneficial to both Dell and Microsoft in my opinion. I think that between the Venue Pro 8 and 11 there was a good value proposition for people who could live without true laptop power processing but who also wanted the full blown Windows 8 experience.
Honestly, if they left the Atom based one where it is right now in terms of price, they could do almost anything they wanted in terms of upping the price for a Core based tablet version, and it wouldn't have a negative impact on the eco-system. Price it too high and people would simply buy the Atom version instead of the Core based one, or buy a Surface.
And, from the second I heard about this device I knew that having an 11 inch tablet in that price point running full Windows 8.1 was what this eco-system needed to get it back on its feet.
I feel the Venue Pro 8, while still a great value, at the 8 inch end of the spectrum, throwing full Windows on it was just a way to shut reviewers up. Who is seriously going to use a tablet with an 8 inch screen as their daily computing device for Windows desktop activities? I'm not saying those people don't exist... just saying they are an irrelevant chunk of the market. When it comes to 8 inch Windows 8 devices, you will most likely be sticking to Modern apps whenever possible. And because of that, they really needed the 1-2 punch of the Venue 8 and 11 Pro at their initially advertised prices to get enthusiasm back into this market. The Venue Pro 8 should have been your impulse buy, or the buy for people who couldn't afford/justify the larger tablet. The Venue Pro 11 then should have been the entry level device for users who are serious about computing on a tablet.
And, just to recap... $800+ is not what an entry level device should cost. $450 for a full blown computer in tablet form, isn't than unreasonable as an entry level price.
[Update]
Dell has their Core i3 and i5 models up now. The i3 is $799.99CAD and the i5 is $899.99CAD. And both of those prices are currently list as temporary deals. I only looked into the full price of the i5 and it was a whopping $1249.99CAD without the current deal. In that configuration it comes with a 128gb SSD which I believe puts it above the Surface base model. So, if your only reason for not buying a Surface Pro 2 is because the base model doesn't have a 128gb drive, then hurry and order this from Dell, because after tomorrow the Surface is a better deal again.
I cannot believe they would try and price their tablets this way. I have no sympathy for Windows hardware OEMs. They are driving themselves out of business. I feel bad for Microsoft though because vendors like this are basically throwing the whole platform under the bus.
[/Update]
I bought one, because I did get it for the price I was hoping to get it for. But if I hadn't been awaiting this and hadn't checked the price until this weekend, or perhaps later, at $800+ for an atom tablet without an included keyboard... no way!
That is totally bat shit crazy. Especially because it leaves an Atom based tablet just $50 shy of a Surface Pro 2 with a Core I-5. And, the only model currently available is the Atom based one. Again, that just happened to be the model I wanted. But these tiered products have a tendency to rise in price pretty damn fast when you start adding options. If that $850 price point remains, this line of tablets is doomed. For $50 more I would buy a Surface Pro 2 any day. Heck, given the track record of updates and maintenance for both the original Surface Pro and Surface RT, if the Microsoft model were Atom based and $50 more, I would STILL buy the MS one over this. At this rate, the Core I-5 based Venue 11 Pro will have to cost more than a Surface Pro 2. And that is going to make this a non-starter.
Worst of all, this may very well help do further damage to the Windows eco-system. I was really looking forward to this tablet being regularly priced where it is today for the Atom version. With a Windows tablet of that size, in that price point, it would have been beneficial to both Dell and Microsoft in my opinion. I think that between the Venue Pro 8 and 11 there was a good value proposition for people who could live without true laptop power processing but who also wanted the full blown Windows 8 experience.
Honestly, if they left the Atom based one where it is right now in terms of price, they could do almost anything they wanted in terms of upping the price for a Core based tablet version, and it wouldn't have a negative impact on the eco-system. Price it too high and people would simply buy the Atom version instead of the Core based one, or buy a Surface.
And, from the second I heard about this device I knew that having an 11 inch tablet in that price point running full Windows 8.1 was what this eco-system needed to get it back on its feet.
I feel the Venue Pro 8, while still a great value, at the 8 inch end of the spectrum, throwing full Windows on it was just a way to shut reviewers up. Who is seriously going to use a tablet with an 8 inch screen as their daily computing device for Windows desktop activities? I'm not saying those people don't exist... just saying they are an irrelevant chunk of the market. When it comes to 8 inch Windows 8 devices, you will most likely be sticking to Modern apps whenever possible. And because of that, they really needed the 1-2 punch of the Venue 8 and 11 Pro at their initially advertised prices to get enthusiasm back into this market. The Venue Pro 8 should have been your impulse buy, or the buy for people who couldn't afford/justify the larger tablet. The Venue Pro 11 then should have been the entry level device for users who are serious about computing on a tablet.
And, just to recap... $800+ is not what an entry level device should cost. $450 for a full blown computer in tablet form, isn't than unreasonable as an entry level price.
[Update]
Dell has their Core i3 and i5 models up now. The i3 is $799.99CAD and the i5 is $899.99CAD. And both of those prices are currently list as temporary deals. I only looked into the full price of the i5 and it was a whopping $1249.99CAD without the current deal. In that configuration it comes with a 128gb SSD which I believe puts it above the Surface base model. So, if your only reason for not buying a Surface Pro 2 is because the base model doesn't have a 128gb drive, then hurry and order this from Dell, because after tomorrow the Surface is a better deal again.
I cannot believe they would try and price their tablets this way. I have no sympathy for Windows hardware OEMs. They are driving themselves out of business. I feel bad for Microsoft though because vendors like this are basically throwing the whole platform under the bus.
[/Update]
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