Skip to main content

Why Microsoft killed the Courier

microsoft-courier-tablet-pc-screenIn an interview with various Microsoft execs, CNet has unearthed new details about what killed the Courier. Microsoft’s fledgling attempts at a corporate-friendly tablet were notoriously squashed last April when it put the kibosh on the whole thing. While the device was never officially announced, we couldn’t help but wonder why such a hyped product was so unceremoniously dumped.

In with the old, out with the new

Microsoft had a two tablet strategy, with Xbox’s J Allard and Robbie Bach leading the Courier’s development and a Windows-focused team working on the other unit. And at the end of the day, Microsoft was more comfortable cozying up to a more familiar product than go out on a limb with something more novel.

In part, this was because the Courier didn’t naturally complement existing Microsoft services. Pointedly, it didn’t make use of Outlook software, which was apparently a deal breaker for Bill Gates. You can look at this two ways: Either Microsoft is anti-innovation and overly concerned with sales, or the company foresaw the possibility of software fragmentation that could not only affect revenue but user experiences.

And thus, Windows 8 tablets were born

Regardless of whether Microsoft was trying to hedge off fragmentation or simply trying to bolster consumer reliance on Exchange, there have been consequences. Namely, the company is horribly, horribly late to the tablet party. Windows 8 tablets are slated to debut next year, and while there is some definite excitement surrounding this launch, there’s plenty of “iPad clone” chatter to go along with it.

The other consequence is that fact that the Courier, from the sounds of it, could have been a great device. “There is no commercial product today that meets the specs we had for it. It was highly demanding and innovative and no one partner had all of the pieces,” an Anonymous member of the Courier claims. 

Editors' Recommendations

Molly McHugh
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Before coming to Digital Trends, Molly worked as a freelance writer, occasional photographer, and general technical lackey…
Microsoft admits defeat on its controversial OneDrive change
Microsoft OneDrive files can sync between a PC and a phone

Microsoft has canceled plans to update how photos are stored on OneDrive after heavy criticism from its users.

The changes, which were set to go into place on October 16, would have made it so photos uploaded to your OneDrive account would count toward your data quota for every location they existed in your account, according to Neowin.

Read more
Microsoft Copilot sounds great. Here’s why I definitely won’t use it
Using Windows 11 copilot to summarize a document.

A lot of Microsoft's September event was dedicated to Copilot, Bing Chat, and other AI-driven features. In a way, the updates made to laptops like the Surface Laptop Studio 2 almost felt like an afterthought. It was a real AI fest -- and no wonder, as Microsoft has certainly created something bragworthy.

Despite how impressive Copilot seems to be, I can't see myself actually using it. It's a neat party trick, but my concerns with the AI outweigh any upsides it might have.
AI everywhere

Read more
Microsoft September 2023 event: Copilot, Surface Laptop Studio 2, and more
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella talks on stage during the Microsoft September event.

Microsoft's September event delivered a slew of exciting announcements. All things AI were a hot topic, ranging from the Microsoft Copilot to updates to Paint and Snipping Tool. Several new Surface products were also revealed, including the Surface Laptop Studio 2.

We were at the event and got all of the news firsthand. Here's everything that Microsoft unveiled as part of its September 2023 event.
A new category of computing

Read more