A portal to a parallel computing universe opened at the Tysons Corner Center mall in Fairfax County, Virginia, Thursday morning. In this alternate reality, enthusiastic crowds were greeted by cheering employees at the opening of an elegant boutique stocked with touchscreen smart phones and tablets, ultralight laptops and all-in-one desktops -- all running Microsoft software.
The reality of the Microsoft Store, the Tysons location is its 14th, is that, yes, it looks a heck of a lot like the Apple Store. It has the same shoebox lineup, with computers and mobile devices displayed on tables for easy evaluation; as in Apple's store, a tech-support desk and a small theater area await at the back.
|