Microsoft Surface 2 Already In Development, And They’re Looking For Software Development Engineers

A recent job posting reveals Microsoft is looking for people to work on the next generation of Surface tablets – called Surface 2, unsurprisingly. Microsoft of course unveiled the first generation of Surface tablets during its conference in June, generating considerable excitement in the process.

Microsoft’s not a company to sit around and wait for product launches: it’s already developing the next Surface tablets

If you’ve always wanted to work at Microsoft, and you’ve always wanted to build the company’s products, then you’re in luck: Microsoft is advertising for people to work on the next-generation Surface tablets. Surface got unveiled at June this year, seen as a challenge to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) as Microsoft is now producing hardware.

A Senior Software Development Engineer is required by Microsoft, and confirms development is underway on the next generation of Surface tablets. The Engineer is responsible for overall system design; the person selected for the role will be working with firmware, software, design, and mechanical engineers to name a few.

It’s strange Microsoft is working on the next-generation Surface tablet, because I’m guessing (and this is purely guesswork) the second Surface devices (or third if you count the massive touch display also called Surface) will be an iteration on the current design. Therefore are we going to see yearly hardware releases from Microsoft, like Apple? It would be an interesting move, and seems to signal Microsoft wants to move away from relying on partners.

New Versions? Better Pack Your Bags Asus

The OEMs I talked about earlier include Asus: the company’s CEO recently said it may have to look at other options now Microsoft is developing hardware. So let’s consider the choices: Apple? Nope – the company developers its own hardware exclusively. Linux? Nope – it doesn’t have a mobile platform. Windows Phone? Nope – Asus doesn’t want to work with Microsoft, remember? So Android? Possibly, but Google produces its own hardware also so Asus’ stance seems null.

Surface releases October 26 alongside Windows 8, with the Surface Pro version launched around 90 days after the release of the device running Windows RT. Windows RT is basically a feature-limited version of Windows 8, with less powerful internals.

Hopefully Microsoft will retain the fantastic thin form factor of Surface in the next iteration of the devices.