Samsung's Ativ Tab Windows RT Tablet Will Not Be Available In The US

Samsung's Windows RT Ativ Tab tablet will not be available in the US, Samsung's Mike Abary told the folks over at CNET. The reason? Samsung's retail partners reportedly indicated that demand for Windows RT tablets is low, and that the burden of educating consumers on Windows RT is too high. As a result, the Korean company has decided that it "ought to wait."

Mike Abary, Senior Vice President of Samsung's U.S. PC and tablet business, offered his statement during CES. In addition to the above issues, he also is quoted as having said that Windows RT products necessitate hardware tradeoffs in order to keep the price point low enough to attract buyers, and that such moves are not something the company is fond of. No information was given on what Samsung has planned for the tablet.

"There wasn't really a very clear positioning of what Windows RT meant in the marketplace, what it stood for relative to Windows 8, that was being done in an effective manner to the consumer ... The investments necessary to educate the consumer on the difference between RT and Windows 8, plus the modest feedback that we got regarding how successful could this be at retail from our retail partners, we decided maybe we ought to wait."

If the market shifts and demand for such products grow, Samsung will reevaluate its decision to withhold the product. This is another blow to Microsoft's Windows RT operating system, which has failed to attract the attention of consumers. Among other things, many buyers are confused about the differences between Windows 8 and Windows RT.

[via CNET]