Microsoft's 84-Inch Computer Is Shipping In September And Will Cost $20,000
Microsoft Surface Hub, a wall-mounted video-conferencing and digital whiteboard device will be available for $20,000 when it ships in September, the company said in a statement. This price makes it the most expensive product in Microsoft's hardware-lineup.
Pre-orders for Surface Hub starts 1 July. The device will run a custom version of Windows 10, Microsoft's new operating system due out in late July.
Despite the hefty price tag, the Redmond-giant is expecting that it will appeal to businesses that are used to spending multiples of that amount on conference room facilities.
"The theoretical market may be much bigger than the actual market," said JP Gownder, an analyst at tech research firm Forrester. He said the device likely will not be an instant hit with businesses, but should appeal to companies where collaborative work is important, such as product design or marketing and advertising.
The device integrates video-calling and note-taking capabilities and sports a touch screen. Anything drawn on the whiteboard can show up in real time on employees' computer screens, and they can also beam their screen content back to the Surface Hub using Miracast.
In terms of tech specs, the device has fourth-generation Intel Core processors (i5 for the smaller model, i7 for the larger), Intel HD 4600 or NVIDIA Quadro K2200 graphics, 128GB of solid state storage, 8GB of RAM, four USB ports (USB 3.0 for two of them), Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and gigabit Ethernet.
Another smaller 55-inch will cost $7,000.
