Overall, the Surface RT looks like a solid machine. At $499 to start, it comes with a premium price compared to other tablets sell for as low as $199 (with less ), but Microsoft is positioning Surface as a competitor to the iPad, albeit .

Potential buyers will want to spent a while trying out the touch commands after it goes on sale Friday at Microsoft stores and other retailers. Even though the tablet is obviously physically durable, the real question is whether users will adapt to the touch interface quickly. Some like me might just want to use it as a modified laptop with the Touch or Type cover in place.

Matt Hamblen covers mobile and wireless, smartphones and other handhelds, and wireless networking for Computerworld. Follow Matt on Twitter at or subscribe to . His email address is .

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