[tesseractive]

Android doesn't have nearly as many tablet apps for full-size tablets as iPad has, but it definitely has an app ecosystem. Windows RT is starting almost completely from scratch -- like previous marketplace failures like the Playbook and the TouchPad.

If Metro apps take off, then in 6 months to a year, Surface could be a completely viable iPad replacement. But right now, you would have to have a pretty limited set of needs to be satisfied with a Surface.

Worse, I've read more than one review claiming that the software is still glitchy. While understandable in a 1.0 product, that's a huge disadvantage when compared to the famous stability of an iPad.

So while I'm sure there will be some interest just because it's a cool-looking product, I don't think more than a small minority of users will find it a realistic substitute for an iPad.