NFL Sidelines To Receive Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Upgrade This Season

It has already been more than a year since Microsoft officially released the Surface Pro 3 but the company still hasn’t announced when it will launch the laptop-tablet hybrid’s successor.

One year after introducing players and coaches to the Surface Pro 2 tablet, Microsoft is upgrading the devices to a ruggedized, weatherproof version of its Surface Pro 3 tablet, which offers a bigger and thinner screen, lighter weight, clearer images, and a pen that can be used in four different colors.

The instant replay will only be available during 20 preseason games, but it will mark a sea change for the way the NFL handles in-game technology. Referees will also get in on the Surface action during those games by using Microsoft’s tablets to review replays rather than using a video review station on the sidelines.

But the most interesting new feature is Next Gen Stats, which takes advantage of new motion tracker chips embedded in player uniforms during the 2015 NFL season by Zebra Sports Solutions.

“As technology advances, so will the ability of our coaches, players and officials to adapt and adopt new uses”, Troy Vincent, who oversees football operations for the league, has said. “Replays like a one-yard touchdown run, you don’t really need Next Gen Stats”. It got the basics right – like keeping up-to-date on multiple games at once and showing highlights from last week’s games – but the execution wasn’t flawless. So, we should never hear about coaches or players live-tweeting during games. Microsoft even suggested the replays might zoom in on details like how far a quarterback scrambled in a game. Instead, the season will kick off with the Sideline Viewing System.

As for its features, PC Advisor reported that the Surface Pro 4 will probably sport a 14-inch display, which is a significant upgrade over its 12-inch predecessor. Now they are thinking about putting monitors on the field for players to watch as well.

When Tech Times asked Tran what precautions Microsoft is exercising about safeguarding the tablets from possible hacking, he only said that the company trusts each stadium’s safe encrypted network and that the Microsoft rep at each game will accurately account for all tablets. Augmented reality would provide a one of a kind experience for both NFL teams and potentially their fans.

Outside of this feature, there will be an area within “Next Gen Stats” entitled “Afterburner”. Over time, Microsoft will hopefully start incorporating more sophisticated second-order stats, as in the screenshot, which reveal which players hit the fastest top speeds. Here, the NFL will continuously update the speediest players in the NFL, showcasing their individual highlights.

Walking into the Xbox loft, we’re greeted by a large flat-screen television set to the app’s NFL command center main menu on Xbox One.

“To be honest, if the NFL has made a video, I feel like it’s available to our users of the app”, Stevens says. No you won’t see Bill Belichick tweeting from the sidelines.