A few years ago, the National Football League inked a deal with Microsoft to provide Surface Pro tablets to act as digital playbooks.
However, they haven’t always performed as advertised and not all coaches like using them instead of the traditional photo-based paper playbooks.
One of those coaches is the New England Patriots’ Bill Belichick who also happens to be the most accomplished head coach in the game. He hates the Surface Pro, which you can probably tell from him trying to kill one here.
Today, Belichick said he was finished with the Surface Pro and has gone back to the old fashioned method of using paper.
“As you probably noticed I’m done with the tablets,” he said in a five minute rant about unreliable tech, as reported by NESN’s Zack Cox (via TechCrunch)
“They’re just too undependable for me. I’m going to stick with pictures, which several of our other coaches do as well, because there just isn’t enough consistency in the performance of the tablets.”
“I just can’t take it any more.”
Related: Surface Pro 5: Everything you need to know
Belichick also bemoaned not being able to possess the tablets during the week and work out any kinks in performance.
This is something the league has mandated to ensure there’s not any tampering with the technology.
Given Microsoft handed over a buttload of cash to the NFL for the visibility of being an official partner, Belichick’s comments are sure to cause embarrassment.
Could there be more of a putdown for Microsoft either? Someone would rather use paper print outs than your fanciest piece of consumer tech? Ouch.
Can you think of any similar tech putdowns? Share your thoughts below.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
