The Surface is a touchscreen tablet with a 10.6-inch high definition screen. It will run Windows 8 Pro or Windows RT (more on that in a moment)--using the tile-based operating system familiar to Windows Phone users.

What Microsoft demonstrated on stage at its press event looked interesting. At least, some of it did. There were clever bits of innovation--most specifically, the -esque Touch Cover and Type Cover. Each connects magnetically to the Surface to protect its screen, and each can trigger the same sleep/wake behavior that the iPad Smart Cover (and now, the ) achieves. The innovative part is that the covers double as keyboards for the Surface: The thinner Touch Cover uses a multitouch keyboard--the keys don't move under your fingers, but you can rest your fingers on them without typing. The thicker Type Cover uses actual buttons.

No one outside of Microsoft has had the chance to use one of the Surface covers in tandem with a functioning Surface just yet, so it's hard to say how well the setup works. Still, integrating a keyboard into the cover is an awfully clever idea, and Apple has never been shy about improving upon innovations from elsewhere--see the original Mac OS, the iPod, and Notification Center for examples from three different eras in the company's history.

Some Surface elements, however, don't seem likely to catch Apple's eye: The integrated kickstand seemingly defines the Surface as a landscape-orientation only device, and isn't compatible with the smooth aesthetic Apple favors.

Of course, we won't really know how good (or not) the Surface is until we can truly get our hands on a functioning version of the device. In the near-term, though, while Apple might be intrigued, I doubt Cupertino is ablaze with panic in the aftermath of Microsoft's Surface unveiling.