Today's Top Stories Dispelling rumors of a "mini" Surface tablet launch, Microsoft announced on Tuesday the availability of a thinner, more powerful Surface Pro with a larger screen, the Surface Pro 3, apparently targeted at the enterprise market.  The new device, with a 12-inch screen, runs the Windows 8.1 operating system and is powered by an Intel Haswell processor. Unlike the Windows RT Surface, the Surface Pro line tablets can run the full complement of Windows apps and services. The Surface Pro is 800 grams (1.8 pounds), and it's the thinnest Intel-core-powered device on the market at 9.1 millimeters (one-third of an inch), according to Microsoft.
The Surface Pro 3 "takes the best of the tablet and the laptop and enables any individual to be able to read and create and write, allows you to watch a movie and make a movie, enjoy art and create art," said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in unveiling the new tablet. "Pushing to 12 inches was critical. If we want to do more, if we want to be more, if we want to be more productive ... this is a critical element," added Panos Panay, head of the Surface division. In a research note supplied to FierceMobileIT, Jack Gold, founder and principal analyst with J. Gold Associates, observes that the new Surface Pro tablet is "destined to be an enterprise play and not one targeted at the highly competitive consumer and/or BYOD market. This is a smart strategy, clearly differentiating Microsoft's product from other tablets and the best hope for Microsoft to finally have impact in this space," he says. Gold says that with the launch of Surface Pro 3 Microsoft has decided not to compete directly with the iPad in the consumer market. "Directly targeting the high end of the enterprise market with full Windows compatibility across all apps is an area where Microsoft can win and it doesn't need to sell tens of millions of this device to be successful," he observes.
For more:
- check out Microsoft's Surface website
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Thursday, May 29th, 12pm ET / 9am PT Our panel of experts will help you understand how to develop effective strategies that accelerate mobility transformation and prepare your organization for the mobile future. Register Today! |
A growing number of organizations are adopting, or at least condoning, bring-your-own-device practices, but there appears to be a growing disconnect between what employers want and what employees expect.  That is the finding of new research by Harris, which was commissioned by cloud-based Internet security provider Webroot. The study looked at how employers and employees each view the elements and restrictions of a BYOD program.
The greatest gap between employers and employees seems to be in regard to mandatory security features. While a majority of organizations now permit the use of BYOD, in many cases it is with the understanding that the organization's IT department can secure each device and, if necessary, wipe it of sensitive data when lost or stolen. In an email to FierceMobileIT, Webroot revealed the key findings of the study as follows: - 62 percent of respondents agreed that organizations have the right to secure personal phones if they are being used for work purposes
- 54 percent of respondents would allow the installation of security software on their phone
- 46 percent of respondents said they would stop using their device for work altogether if security features became mandatory
- 37 percent of respondents said they currently use only default security precautions on their phones and tablets used for these purposes
To help resolve the gap, Webroot has devised a BYOD Bill of Rights. In the email to FierceMobileIT, the firm noted: "The BYOD Bill of Rights has been created as a guideline to bridge the gap between employees' preferences and the needs of their organization." According to the BYOD Bill of Rights, employees have the right to: - Privacy over their personal information
- Be included in decisions that impact their personal devices and data
- Choose whether or not to use their personal device for work
- Stop using their personal device for work at any time
- Back up their personal data in the case of a remote wipe
- Use security apps that do not significantly degrade speed and battery life
- Know about any activity that might affect device performance or privacy
- Download safe apps on their personal device
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Google and Apple, longtime legal sparring partners in the mobile realm, called a truce Friday in a joint statement that announced the two would suspend any outstanding smartphone patent litigation against one another. The two tech companies said they will work together to remedy the country's muddled patent system. 
"Apple and Google have agreed to dismiss all the current lawsuits that exist directly between the two companies," the companies said in a statement quoted by Bloomberg. "Apple and Google have also agreed to work together in some areas of patent reform. The agreement does not include a cross license," the statement added. Across all industries, Google and Apple have filed about 20 lawsuits against each other, according to Bloomberg. The mobile cases mostly stem from the 17,000 patents and applications Google acquired following its purchase of Motorola Mobility. Most--if not all--of the court time between the two firms was symbolic, and the companies "have little to show for the litigation except legal bills," the Bloomberg article states. And while wars of attrition can be a valid tactic, little is gained when two healthy giants try to starve the other out. During one hearing, Apple revealed to the court that it had already spent $32 million on just the one case, and through their many encounters, neither company ever forced meaningful sanctions on the other. With Google selling off the tangible assets of Motorola Mobility--while keeping most of the patent portfolio for itself--some experts believe the ceasefire was brokered by Apple so it could set its sights solely on Samsung. "This could signal a new strategy on Apple's part to focus its litigation efforts even more squarely on Samsung, which is by far the largest Android phone manufacturer," Brian Love, a Santa Clara University School of Law professor, told Bloomberg. Apple's other main litigious foe, Samsung, mainly runs Google's Android operating system on its devices, but is not involved in this agreement.
For more:
- read this Bloomberg article
- read this Reuters report
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