Its like the Google Nexus. I think the aim is not to take over the market with hardware (yet) but more to steal the market from apple with something bold. Microsoft's first tablet will get alot of media attention. More so than a 3rd party Acer or HP tablet would. Get people to shift away from apple to a similar brand making the hardware and software. Microsoft vs Apple is a better battle than HP/Acer/Toshiba vs Apple. Once people shift there thinking away from apple to Windows they'll want options anyway. The problem is apple is a single hardware/software powerhouse that needs to be taken down a notch and Microsoft is finally ready to stand up to them on a hardware basis, just like they did with the xbox 360 and Playstation 3.