Bill Gates does a turnabout; talks about the iPad as a superior tablet

In a candid moment, former MIcrosoft chief Bill Gates opened up about a variety of topics, including Steve Jobs, while talking to Charlie Rose on CBS’s 60 minutes. Gates backtracked on his usual stance of Microsoft superiority and went on record to talk about how the Apple iPad managed to get the tablet equation in the market right.

This was a complete reversal from his earlier stance that most users should use the Microsoft Surface tablet, which integrates a bundled keypad and Microsoft Office, both of which are which iPad users seemed frustrated without. Avoiding the controversies between the companies, Gates reminisced about a meeting he had with his oft-time rival, before his passing.

Bill Gates does a flip-flop

Gates also showered admiration for the Apple co-founder’s sense of style and design. Speaking movingly about everything Jobs got to the table, Gates spoke about his (Jobs) excellent sense of design and a clear understanding of how to brand something. While talking about this, Gates said that “he (Jobs) had an intuitive sense of marketing that was wonderful."  

The interview, which was titled "Bill Gates 2.0", showed parts of an equation spanning years between the two giants, who were at loggerheads at some points in their career but also worked together at other times, leaving with a mutual admiration for the other's abilities and forte.

Gates spoke in detail about how the lack of a formal education never stopped Jobs from making some truly beautiful products. "Despite the lack of an engineering background, everything he designed had to fit a certain aesthetic. He showed that great design can lead to phenomenal products."

Most of the interview also had him talk at length about his philanthropy, where he went over the various initatives centered around his efforts to alleviate suffering worldwide as well as his take on how to eradicate polio by improving the distribution and delivery system of vaccines worldwide.