Surface Buyers Get £50 Voucher for Delayed Shipments

Microsoft MSFT is offering customers in Canada and the United Kingdom a voucher to compensate those who have yet to receive their ordered tablet. According to The Register, Microsoft has apologized for "any confusion caused by emails stating an earlier or later arrival date." "To make up for this inconvenience, we are giving impacted customers a single-use coupon for up to £50 (or $50 Canadian dollars) toward their next purchase from the Microsoft Online Store," the company said. Microsoft is not the only tablet manufacturer encountering problems this week. Google GOOG had planned to host an event to unveil its first 10-inch tablet, along with the 32GB version of the Nexus 7. The search engine giant had to cancel those plans because of Hurricane Sandy. According to BGR, Google went ahead and confirmed the existence of the 32GB Nexus 7 anyway and announced that it will drop the price of the 16GB model from $249 to $199. Storms and shipping delays could not stop Amazon AMZN from launching an anti-Apple campaign this week. The online retailer is using the front page of Amazon.com to highlight the differences between the Kindle Fire HD and Apple's AAPL iPad Mini. Amazon even uses a quote from Gizmodo to bolster its own device. "…your [Apple's] 7.9-inch tablet has far fewer pixels than the competing 7-inch tablets!" Gizmodo wrote. "You're cramming a worse screen in there, charging more, and accusing others of compromise? Ballsy." The Wi-Fi version of the iPad Mini is scheduled to be released on Friday, November 2. Surface and the seven-inch Kindle Fire HD are available now, while the 8.9-inch Kindle Fire will ship on November 20. Google has not announced when the 32GB Nexus 7 will be released. Follow me @LouisBedigianBZ