News - Microsoft announces gadget bounty for employees

[HEXUS]

Giving out Surface tablets, new PCs and Windows Phone 8 smartphones.

Read more.

[crossy]

Be nice if other tech companies with Windows8 products did the same - quite fancy getting a Win8RT tablet free, or failing that at low cost.

[tickleonthetum]

Maybe they've realised the only way they can get people to have Windows 8 is to give it away for free! If I was one of their staff, the first thing I'd do is reformat the PC and stick Windows 7 on it!

[cheesemp]

It might just be me but isn't it sort of worrying if you have to give your workers a new product for free to get them to use it. I'd understand giving them one at a discount mind but free does sort of seem a little desperate.

[kingpotnoodle]

Why do we always have to look at this negatively?

Perhaps Microsoft just want to hold onto their staff by making it a good place to work, give them what they need and ensure nobody at the company feels left out? Also wouldn't you want all your staff to know and understand your latest product inside out? It's not "desperate" it's bloody sensible! 94,000 devices even at a few hundred dollars each is pocket change to Microsoft - a company which usually makes BILLIONS every year, hell it's probably a tiny fraction of the Windows 8 marketing budget.

[crossy]

Maybe they've realised the only way they can get people to have Windows 8 is to give it away for free! If I was one of their staff, the first thing I'd do is reformat the PC and stick Windows 7 on it!

Doing that with the desktop PC's (and laptops) fine. But if you're suggesting doing that with the tablets and smartphones, then surely that'd be a real boneheaded move?

It might just be me but isn't it sort of worrying if you have to give your workers a new product for free to get them to use it. I'd understand giving them one at a discount mind but free does sort of seem a little desperate.

Nope, I see what they're trying to do - it's the old "we eat our own dogfood" cliche. Or more specifically they can then use ads along the lines of "Microsoft trusts it's business to Windows8 - why shouldn't you?".

Not to say anything of the fact that if Windows8 on desktops/laptops is as good as MS claim (and I have my doubts) then you've just enrolled your workforce as (unpaid) salesfolks - spreading the "good word" around.

Where I'm going to agree with you is that while this is okay for Microsoft, for OEM's wanting to follow suit then discount rather than free would probably be more appropriate. Heck, if my employer wants to sell me a Win8RT tablet "at cost" (or preferably less than!) then I'd probably go for it.

[mark22]

Maybe they've realised the only way they can get people to have Windows 8 is to give it away for free! If I was one of their staff, the first thing I'd do is reformat the PC and stick Windows 7 on it!

Absolutely loving windows 8 myself, rock stable, faster and a few nice features. It's basically windows 7 optimised, no idea what all the fuss is about, install start8 if the start screen bothers you.

[krazy_olie]

Seems like a nice gesture.

We don't get given anything of the stuff we produce for free.

[aeonf242]

I got a Digital camera from ING Direct when I worked there during the UK start up, very nice

[Whiternoise]

What's the problem? If everyone has to use it, that includes developers and managers, the people who ultimately have the power to make improvements and say "wait a minute, why the hell did we get rid of this?".

[NecroAngel]

Pretty cool of them, wish the company I worked for gave out such freebies.