Swedish retailer admits Surface prices were false

Webhallen has today admitted that the prices it listed for the Surface tablet on its online store were indeed fake - and not received from Microsoft.
The retailer had the rumour mill buzzing yesterday after it allegedly lifted the lid on Microsoft's Surface tablet, listing the device from between £650 for the base 32GB model and almost £1,389 for the 128GB Pro edition.
However, the company has now confirmed to blogging site Techie Buzz it has received no such information from Microsoft, and instead hiked up the prices in order to attract potential customers.
Webhallen told Techie Buzz: "Our customers are very interested in pre-ordering these products, so we have set a high preliminary pricing for the lineup so that they may be able to pre-order them,"
"Just to clarify, we have not received any pricing from Microsoft regarding MRSP or purchasing net cost, and any people who have booked the Surface at this high price will of course have their order adjusted before any product is shipped. So we're not going to overcharge anyone for being an early adopter," the retailer continued.
Many initially questioned the huge price difference that would have existed between the Surface and its closest competitors, such as the new iPad.
If Microsoft are looking to compete with - and possibly de-throne Apple within the tablet market - it is widely believed they will need to price their device competitively.
The buzz generated by the news yesterday reflects the sheer amount of interest consumers have in the tablet.
Having already unveiled the Surface under secretive circumstances and remaining tight lipped about the device until now, Microsoft might want to provide prospective buyers with more information soon, if they want to capitalise.

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