Microsoft's J Allard Gone Walkabout

Post by Steve Farrelly @ 09:43am 25/05/10 | 26 Comments

If, like me, you were pissed at Microsoft's decision to can their iPad competitor, the Courier Tablet, then you're likely feeling Microsoft Chief Technology Officer, J Allard's pain. He championed the tablet, and is synonymous with the Xbox brand, but has since gone on "sabbatical" and may never return to the company, according to ZDNet.

Word inside was Allard was none too happy about the killing off of Courier and has finally made good on his (what sounds like they may have been regular) threats about leaving the company all together. (Another person with whom I communicated claimed CEO Steve Ballmer showed Allard the door because of disagreements regarding the Courier's potential.)

Just where Allard ends up is anyone's guess, and Microsoft have yet to comment, so he may not be gone after all. Wish we could say the same about the Courier Tablet. If you missed the whole affair, a few videos of it in action were released, one of which we've embedded for you below.

ipad microsoft courier tablet j allard

Latest Comments

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TiT
Posted 09:55am 25/5/10

That is bloody awesome!

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Steve Farrelly
Posted 10:03am 25/5/10

was :(

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tequila
Posted 10:27am 25/5/10

it would have just ended up like everything else microsoft try to copy
ie the zune, which I've never met anyone who actually owns one, or at least who would admit it

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deep
Posted 10:44am 25/5/10

Maybe you've never met anyone with a Zune because it isn't sold in Australia?

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tequila
Posted 11:07am 25/5/10

yeah I mean, how else would you get one other than walking into a brick & mortar store eh
it's not like this internet fad is ever going to take off

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Tetsuo
Posted 11:14am 25/5/10

No but deep has a point, alot more buyers are impulsive so a brick and morter store still does well if given the chance.

TBH Microsoft have one thing over apple. They arn't the best inventors persee, they are just amazing and taking someone elses idea and making it better.

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Steve Farrelly
Posted 11:17am 25/5/10

I dunno, these days I think Apple are turning into Microsoft

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konstie
Posted 11:33am 25/5/10

cue mac fanbois foaming at the mouth gracing us with a long and tiresome rebuttle. ;)

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`ViPER`
Posted 12:27pm 25/5/10

I dunno, these days I think Apple are turning into Microsoft

yeah its funny how apple are now the bad guys, and microsoft are looking like the good guys.

At least it might end the "micro$oft" which i always though was pretty lame.

$pple ?

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skythra
Posted 12:46pm 25/5/10

I think people like competition. Who doesn't like seeing the underdog rise up and defeat the champion?

Its a very healthy want.

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FraktuRe
Posted 01:02pm 25/5/10

Except Apple has gone from underdog to evil corporation.

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mongie
Posted 01:06pm 25/5/10

ie the zune, which I've never met anyone who actually owns one, or at least who would admit it

Quoted for lols

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glynd
Posted 01:26pm 25/5/10

I dunno, these days I think Apple are turning into Microsoft
yeah its funny how apple are now the bad guys, and microsoft are looking like the good guys.

At least it might end the "micro$oft" which i always though was pretty lame.

$pple ?

Appl� maybe works better

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Phar4oh
Posted 02:44pm 25/5/10

that product looks awesome.

btw, I hate apple. Owning an iPhone made me hate them more... pity it's such a good product (for what it can do properly)

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trillion
Posted 02:53pm 25/5/10

Allards assistant while he's in the Bahamas on summer vacation sounds like a cutey

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Tetsuo
Posted 03:12pm 25/5/10

I don't hate apple, i don't hate Microsoft, just apple doesn't do anything i am interested in. If they inveted something pimpin that i can see a use for then i would buy it like any Microsoft product.

I enjoy those old sort of phones (Not those ancient bricks) i mean phones that just txt and call. I have no use for the internet in my palm, that is reserved for something else ;)

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BillyHardball
Posted 04:58pm 25/5/10

With regard to the vid in the OP - it looks just like a concept video to me? I highly doubt they had a product that got even close to that sort of hotness. Or did they?

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trog
Posted 05:03pm 25/5/10

With regard to the vid in the OP - it looks just like a concept video to me? I highly doubt they had a product that got even close to that sort of hotness. Or did they?

yeh pretty sure it's just a simulated concept

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skythra
Posted 05:03pm 25/5/10

Yeah, reviews even before it dropped off were "IF and this is a big IF, they manage to make it as good.." so i don't think it was shocking to that many people..

To be fair i somewhat expected MS to make it semi-decent and then sell it to a phone company like vodafone who'd load up f***load of apps on it and then they'd crash and fill up all the ram so it'd be laggy. Much like my windows OS phones.

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trillion
Posted 06:09pm 25/5/10

while we're all oogling about visiony and simulation, this one from last year where Microsoft really seem to have nailed the augmented reality vision

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iWhoop
Posted 06:35pm 25/5/10

cue mac fanbois foaming at the mouth gracing us with a long and tiresome rebuttle. ;)

I saw this video review of an ipad on youtube, well when I say I saw it I watched a minute or two until the stupid girl showed just how brainwashed she really is.

She was talking about how the ipad has no flash support and what was her excuse for this being a good thing? "When Steve Jobs talks, HE'S USUALLY RIGHT"..... yeah ok whatever maybe you have a crush on him. She also said it's good the ipad has no flash because flash makes her computer overheat. THE HELL WOMAN?

Check her out for yourself, she even drops the stupid thing. Nice review, not.

I should probably add I only watched it up to the part where she started praising jobs for being always right, it may or may not be a parody but I can't watch it long enough to find out.

last edited by iWhoop at 18:35:35 25/May/10

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Nathan
Posted 07:25pm 25/5/10

Until they figure out how to make a stylus that digs into the screen to provide resistance to your hand movements in the same way pen does on paper, it will always be fail IMO.

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skythra
Posted 07:33pm 25/5/10

Wouldn't just a rubber tipped one be fine? But nevermind that stylus's don't exatcly work on a capacitive screen do they..

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Eorl
Posted 07:34pm 25/5/10

God I hate that woman. She's a brainless slug eating up everything to do with Steve Jobs.

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trillion
Posted 07:38pm 25/5/10

motormouth Justine rides the iHype like its her magic Unicorn

//insert picture of guys head spinning in octagon mode here//

yeah yeah yeah but does it blend? it's ok we know the answer to that one already

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Dazhel
Posted 07:53pm 25/5/10

I saw this video review of an ipad on youtube, well when I say I saw it I watched a minute or two until the stupid girl showed just how brainwashed she really is.

Not really brainwashed I don't think, just someone with different computing requirements and doesn't value having an open platform.
Though if stupid is the iPad target audience then Apple is going to make a fortune because there's no shortage of stupid in the world.

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