I'm not sure how close the Surface experience will be, but using the optional docking station and Bluetooth keyboard with the Series 7 Slate PC you can basically achieve a normal PC experience while you're sitting at your desk. The dock includes a full-size HDMI port, USB port, and gigabit Ethernet port. You can connect to a large monitor, hook up a USB hub to connect with other devices, and use the tablet as if it were a desktop or laptop PC.

The difference is, when you want to leave you can simply detach the tablet from the dock and you still have your entire Windows PC with you. The iPad is a tremendous device for working on the go, but it requires a lot of "duct tape and chewing gum". You have to find apps and workarounds that let you be productive until you can get back to your "real" PC, and find ways to smoothly integrate and sync data between the two. But, with a Windows tablet you just use the same tools and software you always use.

The biggest hurdle for the success of the Microsoft Surface--and Windows 8 tablets in general--. Amazon currently lists the Windows tablet I'm using--the Samsung Series 7 Slate PC with optional docking station and keyboard--for a . For that amount you can buy a laptop with better specs than the tablet, and two Wi-Fi iPads, and still have some change left over.

Microsoft may not need to undercut the iPad on price, but the Windows tablet should at least compare favorably with the Windows PC it hopes to replace. If Microsoft can price the Surface competitively, we could see a quantum shift in the tablet market.