Wow, this actually looks fantastic. Microsoft has always killed it in the hardware department. Looks like it connects to their cloud service as well. Will probably consider getting one.
While MS has built a reputation for solid build quality on its peripherals, they are not immune to the race to the bottom. If you liked your old MS Intellimouse, for instance, it would be wise to check the date of manufacture before buying another.
This affects more than just Microsoft. Other brands have changed ownership, or changed manufacturing facilities, but kept the same trademarks. Or items with the same advertised model number could now be manufactured in multiple facilities, to the same nominal minimum standard, but widely varying actual performance. I'll leave it to you to do your own research, but LCD display panels and SD cards are a particularly obvious example of this.
If Microsoft wants me to trust its hardware like I once did, it doesn't need to actually open a new manufacturing facility in Washington under the burning eye of its QC employees, but it would at least have to be embarrassingly open about it manufacturing process. I simply don't trust anyone to build quality for the mass market any more.
I'm not saying companies don't build quality anymore, but you can't just trust a brand. You have to do your research on each new model, every time.
Of course trust is easily lost, but they haven't disappointed me yet.
Yes, the RROD was a huge debacle and too many lost money on broken Xboxes. That doesn't change the fact that people bought 70 million of the things, and generally seemed to love them.
A whole cottage industry of aftermarket console cooling apparatus was spawned due to the first Xbox's history, and it didn't help whatsoever in staying the problems that the second one had.
It was a business success regardless, but that's not the topic at hand.
So, Surface won't be replacing Windows/Office any time soon, but nearly a billion in revenue for what a lot of people try to frame as a failed product is not too shabby.
I wouldn't say it's a key profit area for them yet, and we also can't call it a success yet (as they haven't reported the total retail purchases).
[1] http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2014/10/24/a-win-for-microsofts-...
If you had actually used one as a real phone, I doubt you would be saying that the "hardware" isn't good. The core components are as good as the competition. The amount of sensors available to developers is ludicrous. Not only that, if the build (phone body) forms part of what you would call "hardware" - it truly lives up to the Nokia reputation.