Microsoft’s new, wall-mounted video-conferencing and digital whiteboard device will cost a whopping $20,000. The company unveiled the device during its Windows 10 launch event in Redmond last January.
Available in two main configurations, the 55-inch Surface Hub model costs $6,999 and the giant 84-inch model costs $19,999. The smaller model weighs 105 pounds, while the larger weighs heavy at 280 pounds.
As claimed by Microsoft, the Surface Hub has been designed to harness the power of a range of its products including Windows 10, Skype for Business, Office, OneNote and Universal Windows apps to deliver a new kind of productivity experience that has been specifically optimized for businesses.
The device combines a high-end video conference system and electronic whiteboard so workers in different places can share their ideas and information simultaneously as if they were in the same room. Users can draw on the screen with the Surface Hub pen and enlarge or shrink images with their fingertips like on a smartphone.
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The Surface Hub features fourth-generation Intel Core processors (i5 for the smaller model, i7 for the larger), Intel HD 4600 or NVIDIA Quadro K2200 graphics, Windows 10 OS, 128GB of solid state storage, 8GB of RAM, four USB ports (USB 3.0 for two of them), Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and gigabit Ethernet.
Both versions of Surface Hub are integrated with optically bonded displays capable of detecting 100 points of multitouch and up to three simultaneous pen inputs, dual 1080p front-facing video cameras- one showing close-up of the presenter and the other showing the rest of the conference room and a four-element microphone array that detects and follows voice to eliminate background noise during videoconferencing sessions. The Surface Hub also has sensors that automatically wake it up from sleep mode when a user approaches.
The Surface Hub will be available for preorder on July 1 in two dozen countries including the United States, Canada, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Qatar, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Microsoft will start shipping it in September.
I know. Damn costly unlike Apple (which sells high end apple watch for a similar price) LOL