Microsoft retail outlets: Apple stores for the PC community?

With company after electronics company announcing retrenching, it was startling last week to hear one of the majors actually announce an expansion—namely Microsoft's disclosure that it's planning to open retail stores.

So does this promise to duplicate for PC users the superb retail experience the Mac community enjoys at Apple stores? The Mac outlets, one-stop shops that offer all things Apple, are among the highest-rated chains in our Ratings of computer stores and our Ratings of consumer electronics stores (both are available to subscribers). The stores' Genius Bars also provided the best troubleshooting of all computer manufacturers, whether in-person, online, or by phone, in our most recent Ratings of technical support for laptops and tech support for desktops (also available to subscribers).

Sony retail outlets, too, ranked among the top walk-in stores in our Ratings of electronics retailers. Like the Apple stores, the Sony outlets were deemed to be relatively pricey—both are premium brands, after all. But both were well above average for customer service, presumably because the staff naturally specializes in the brand being sold, and in checkout ease.

However, the Apple model doesn't seem applicable to Microsoft. Apple stores—and Apple products themselves—work so well in part because the company makes and tightly integrates hardware and software. That allows Apple staffers to speak about both with equal authority. And if you seek help at a Genius Bar, as I did successfully with my ailing iPhone a few months back, the "geniuses" behind the bar don't need to set boundaries between the device and its operating system to solve your problem. Such synergy may not be the present at a Microsoft store; save for a relative few hardware items—like the Xbox gaming console and the Zune, a middling performer in our Ratings of MP3 players (Detailed MP3 model information and Ratings available to subscribers only)—Microsoft mostly makes software.

So what might a Microsoft store seek to sell and how? The best clues come from those who have toured a concept store the company has opened near its Redmond, Wash. headquarters. Those glimpses suggest Microsoft is emulating the look and feel of the Apple and Sony stores, offering plenty of opportunity to use products, rather than view them in locked cases or on security cords with the power off.

There's no word yet on when Microsoft stores may open. The "twenty-seven year retail veteran" who will oversee the project began work just this week.

—Paul Reynolds