This is a great ad campaign, more so than a contest that can actually be beaten. Sean Hollister has a good analogy:
In some ways, Microsoft’s challenge is like a carnival attraction, complete with an outlandish prize, a smooth operator, and a game that (only in hindsight) is deviously unfair. Watching Kyle’s hands move, like any good carny, I couldn’t help but grin at the speed with which he handled these tasks. The difference, and the real genius of the game, is that it’s not about the laptop prize at all: it’s about showing you how fast Windows Phone can be so you’ll want one yourself.