Ask Paul: June 7 (Premium)

Happy Friday from Mexico City! In this Microsoft Recall-heavy edition of Ask Paul, I am not surprised to discover that many of you are asking the right questions. I'll do my best.
Quick update on "What You Use"
I meant to get this started a few weeks ago–OK, several weeks ago–but I think I have figured out a good way to kick of what I think of as "What You Use," a series of articles/videos in which Premium members can discuss their hardware and software configurations with others similar to my What I Use articles.

I asked my friends over at Windows Intelligence–JR and Chris–if they wouldn't mind being the first guinea pigs, er, participants, and they've nicely agreed to do so. We just flew to Mexico this past week, so I'm still getting adjusted to the time zone change and other travel-related tiredness, but I will connect with them next week and see how that goes. And then you can see the results and decide if you'd like to do something similar.

Sorry for the delays on this, but I think it will end up in a good place.

Moving on…
Surface Laptop 7th Generation
rtillie asks:

I still have lots of questions surrounding the new Surface.

Don't we all. :)

If you haven't seen it, I pre-ordered a Snapdragon X-based Surface Laptop, and while I always over-think everything I do, especially big purchases like this, I haven't wavered on this yet. That said, I will be reviewing other Snapdragon X-based laptops, all of which are less expensive than Surface Laptop, and it's possible that some negative early reviews will trigger a rethinking. So far so good, however.

Do you think over time the Surface Laptop will be available in all configurations? I would love a blue 15 inch Elite with 32GB and 1TB. Here in the EU blue is only possible for 13 inch.

Same here in the U.S., and having seen that Sapphire blue color in person now, it's the one I'd choose too, if it was possible. In that article linked above, I explain how limited the choices here are, you get fewer color choices by going with the 15-inch version and then only one choice, black, if you want more than 16 GB of RAM. (There are other limitations, too, around RAM and storage combinations.)

What we're seeing here is Microsoft's limitations as a PC maker. It's the biggest company in the world, but its PC business is almost a boutique start-up compared to traditional PC makers, and that means it doesn't get precedence when it comes to getting parts and materials. And this explains, I think, why the choices are so limited: Given the prices it has to pay, Microsoft is clearly anticipating which color/configuration combinations will sell the best and optimizing for that. But the real impact here is on potential customers. Black isn't my last choice, that Dune color is terrible in person, but it's also the last color I'd choose otherwise.

As to whether this will improve, I can only guess. I would hope so, but that will anger early buyers, too. I don't foresee big wait times...