Acer on Microsoft' Surface Strategy: Hope You Like Eating 'Hard Rice'

Posted 11/05/2012 at 9:49am | by Paul Lilly

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Acer has never been particularly keen on the idea of competing with Microsoft in the hardware space, and apparently the Taiwanese manufacturer is still holding a grudge. In a recent interview with Tancent Technology, Linxian Lang, president of Acer's Greater China division, warned Microsoft that the hardware business is like "hard rice" and "is not so easy to eat." Say what?

It's very possible that Google butchered the translation, but the overall sentiment comes through loud and clear. Acer's message is that the hardware market is unforgiving, and that Microsoft would be better served to let its experienced partners do what they do best.

For the most part, Microsoft has done that, save for Surface and Surface RT. Windows 8 is a signficant departure from past OSes from Microsoft, and it's the first to try and truly unify the desktop and mobile experience. Some have argued that Microsoft perhaps paid too much attention to mobile and touch functionality, to the detriment of the desktop. Regardless, Microsoft is serious about its Surface strategy, no matter how much Acer continues to object.

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