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The partnership
Microsoft is looking to beat Apple to the enterprise tablet punch by announcing new partnerships designed to increase corporate adoption of the company’s flagship Surface Pro tablets. Microsoft’s announcement comes just a day before Apple’s highly anticipated event that is believed to be the stage where the iPad Pro will debut.
As a result of the Microsoft partnerships, Dell and HP will begin selling Surface Pro tablets. In addition to the Surface Pro 3, these companies will offer enterprise software, support and services to corporate users to make it easier to manage Surface Pro deployments, Microsoft said in a statement. Partners Accenture and Avanade will build apps and solutions for Windows 10.
For its part, Microsoft is highlighting the security features that Windows 10 brings to a Surface Pro 3. Not only do Windows 10’s security features and the Surface Pro 3 hardware fall in line with Microsoft’s cloud-first, mobile-first strategy, but it’s also a preemptive play as Apple’s enterprise-targeted iPad Pro is expected to arrive with a consumer-grade iOS 9 operating system.
The enterprise partnerships
In a blog post detailing its enterprise push, Microsoft said that Dell will be the first partner. Starting next month, Dell will begin to sell the Surface Pro and Surface accessories to its enterprise customers in the US and Canada. The program will reach 28 markets by early 2016.
In addition to the mobile form factor offered by the Surface Pro tablet, Dell will also add on key software and services that its customers value, including Dell Hardware Warranty ProSupport with Accidental Damage Service, Managed Deployment and Configuration Services.
Unlike AppleCare, which is offered on Apple products, Dell’s ProSupport offers support and training for third-party software and hardware as well as next-business day dispatch of parts. The former can help walk small business owners through the process of adding a wireless printer, while the latter could mean reduced down time if an incident occurs. You’ll also be covered with ProSupport in the event you drop your Surface Pro 3, dunk it in water or break the screen.
More enterprise-focused Windows 10 features
Microsoft will begin testing more enterprise-specific features in Windows 10 later this month. The features will begin to show up in new Preview builds for Windows Insiders, and if everything goes well, Microsoft will incorporate the new features into future Windows updates.
Some of these features include Enterprise Data Protection, Microsoft Passport for single-signon and Windows Store for Business for users to download company-owned apps and a curated selection of Windows store apps.
A recent survey finds 40% of IT departments plan to adopt Windows 10 before the end of the year.
iPad Pro and Surface Pro 4
iPad Pro
Apple is expected to announce a tablet with a similar form factor to the Surface Pro 3 called the iPad Pro. The tablet is expected to come with optional accessories, including a keyboard and a digital stylus, both accessories will compete with the Type Cover keyboard case and the Surface Pen for the Surface Pro 3.
To support the larger 12.9-inch iPad Pro, Apple had announced that its new iOS 9 software will support split-screen multitasking and a picture-in-window feature for watching videos. The Surface Pro 3, on the other hand, comes with more advanced multitasking with Windows 10’s Snap feature, run legacy Win.32 programs and support a broader range of peripherals, including external drives.
It’s also unclear at this point how Apple will address the security needs of enterprise users with the iPad Pro. Apple will likely use Touch ID for biometric security and data encryption, but Apple has not supported TPM or Smart Card readers in prior iPad releases. Apple had announced partnerships with IBM and Cisco to help drive iOS adoption in the enterprise space.
Why you may want to skip the Surface Pro 3
Even though Microsoft’s latest partnerships will make the Surface Pro 3 more readily available to IT managers looking to deploy new slates or upgrade their existing tablets, corporate users may want to skip the Surface Pro 3. Microsoft is rumored to announce a Surface Pro 4 in October alongside a new lineup of Lumia smartphones and the Windows 10 Mobile operating system.
Some of the new features expected on the Surface Pro 4 include a transition to Intel’s sixth generation Skylake processor and a configuration with an even larger display. Skylake will deliver better processing performance and improved battery life, but the biggest improvement will come in the form of stronger integrated GPU performance.
Intel claims that the integrated Intel HD graphics in Skylake can deliver about 80% of the graphics performance offered by today’s discrete graphics chips. This means that you can get mobile workstation-like performance in a slim tablet form factor. For those who need a versatile device that can double as a desktop workstation, Intel demoed a Skylake-retrofitted Surface Pro 3 that can drive up to three 4K displays at 60 frames per second.
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[li]Read our Surface Pro 4 coverage[/li][/ul]
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