Microsoft’s Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2 represent big improvements over the originals, but they still make sense just for certain users.

Of the complete critiques which have been directed at Microsoft’s device strategy, Apple CEO Tim Cook’s is among the most apt: The outside campaign is “confused.”

“Confused” fits better than “doomed,” “failing,” or any of the alternative terms that seemed appropriate a number of months ago, when the skin line was defined entirely by unenthusiastic reviews, unsold inventory, rapid price reductions, and a $900 million writedown.

The harshest criticisms aren’t any longer appropriate since the Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2 are big improvements. The previous beats its predecessor in every regard, while the latter addresses the unique Pro’s biggest weaknesses, inclusive of battery life. Windows 8.1 also is a way more cohesive experience — even the fashionable UI, whose once-anemic core apps at the moment are full-featured enough for comfortable day-to-day use. The devices also include pretty nice perks: a year of free Skype WiFi and 200 GB of SkyDrive storage for 2 years.

Why does this progress represent a confused strategy? As the devices still cater to a single idea with limited short-term upside: desktop-laptop convergence. Hybrid devices might eventually be the norm, but for now, they represent a distinct segment category.

If this weren’t so, Windows 8 tablets would have already made an impression in the marketplace. The research firm Gartner projected in September that the devices will account for just 1.7 percent of the sphere this year. IDC estimated in August that the devices accounted for 4 percent of second-quarter shipments, which implies modest improvement, but the firm emphasized in October that Windows slates were struggling to win consumer support.

[ Look at the battle for tablet supremacy. See Apple Vs. Microsoft: Tablet Empire Strikes Back. ]

The subtext is obvious: If tablets that supported true multitasking and local desktop apps were so appealing, they would not have sold so poorly. Windows 8’s rough edges deserve a number of the blame, and Windows 8.1 will help. But when the core concept had greater than niche appeal, more people would have taken an opportunity on a number of the first-generation devices.

Analyst surveys add more evidence. Over the summer, separate studies from Gartner and Forrester indicated many users consider tablets and laptops to be separate tools. Forrester’s research also indicated many of us who like to use tablets with keyboards are content to pair iPads with third-party options, and that interest in Windows 8 tablets had declined for the reason that OS launched.

Apple still produces laptops without touchscreens and an iPad catalogue bereft of first-party attachable keyboards. The company’s refusal to embrace convergence has had little perceptible impact at the iPad’s marketshare. If anything, early iPad Air sales suggest Apple is poised to beat new ground.

If you add up the preceding factors, demand for a superlative tablet experience is gigantic. That’s why Apple makes probably the most money, commands the foremost attention from developers, and dominates most usage-share metrics, as Tim Cook is keen on mentioning. It is also why Samsung, Amazon, and others have had success with premium Android devices. The market is large enough for plenty of players.

But Microsoft hasn’t pursued this mainstream market. Both the outside Pro and the skin Pro 2 cater to rather more specific needs. They’re for those who want touch apps but don’t want (or are no less than willing to attend for) a totally developed ecosystem. They’re for those who desire to use their tablets in landscape mode greater than in portrait mode. They’re for those that need Microsoft Office but are looking to apply it to a comparatively small 10-inch screen, and who’re willing to type on relatively cramped keyboards. Everything the devices excel at, in other words, appeals only to niches.

Take the outside Pro 2’s much-ballyhooed support for desktop apps. What’s running Photoshop on a ten-inch screen if not a distinct segment use case? Granted, the professional 2 could also dock to an external monitor, which would sway some users. But powerful because it is, the professional 2 still isn’t a workstation replacement for desktop power users. It is a niche device for those that need power and portability in an excessively specific ratio.

To be fair, Surface-friendly niches are numerous enough for Microsoft to sell millions of units over the subsequent year. It sort of feels like a gigantic number, but it also includes one who the iPad Air has likely already annihilated. And that is where Microsoft’s strategy becomes confused. The corporate has hyped its Surface products with the similar gusto — and willingness to spend — that Apple applies to its iPads. But what’s the company looking to achieve by doubling down on any such finite product category?

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