They cost from about $1000 to $2500, depending on internal memory, processors, etc.
It is Microsoft’s move to try and get some of Apple’s i-Pad business. In order to
introduced the tablet, Microsoft needed an operating system, so Windows 8 was developed
for the tablet and shoved down the throats of the computer users. Microsoft has just
released the 3rd version of the tablet, calling it Surface Pro 3.
Below is C/Net’s review of version 3, which is probably more than you care to know
about the tablet.
The Good
The Surface Pro 3 is thinner and lighter than the previous two versions, despite
having a larger 12-inch display and higher screen resolution. A new kickstand makes
it easier to set up and use, and the keyboard cover remains a best-in-class example.
The Surface Pro 3 is now optimized for a digital pen, which is included.
The Bad
That excellent keyboard cover is not included in the base price, and its improved
touchpad still doesn't measure up. The chassis lacks pen storage, and even with tweaked
kickstand and keyboard hinges, the Surface Pro 3 still doesn't fit perfectly on the
lap.
The Bottom Line
While the new Surface Pro 3 is Microsoft's best PC to date, it's more successful
as a tablet than a laptop replacement.
Tablets are great for consuming entertainment and media, while laptops and other
full PCs are required to actually create those works, or so the conventional wisdom
goes. Some substitute the charged word "productivity" for creation, but the pitch
is the same. You need one device for A, B, and C, and another for X, Y, and Z.
That means there's a sizable group of people out there spending at least part of
the time lugging around a laptop and a tablet simultaneously. I've been guilty of
that, usually packing a 13-inch ultrabook or
MacBook Air
and an
iPad
into my carry-on bag for airline flights.
With the new Surface Pro 3 from Microsoft, the software powerhouse (and sometimes
hardware maker) says it finally has the single grand unified device that will satisfy
both the creation and consumption instincts equally. You'll feel just as at home
watching a movie or reading a book as you will editing video footage or writing your
novel.
Of course, that's largely the same pitch we got for the
Surface Pro
and
Surface Pro 2
tablets
, which points to the difficulty in translating the full
Windows 8.1
experience freely between a laptop and tablet. Dozens of our hands-on reviews of
devices ranging from 8-inch slates to 13-inch two-in-one hybrids back this up, as
does the mixed reception to the first two generations of the Surface Pro.
Both of those devices, as well as the Surface Pro 3, at least begin with the right
idea and smartly lean toward the laptop side of the tablet spectrum, including Intel
Core i-series CPUs and keyboard covers designed to feel more like laptop keyboards.
With the Surface Pro 3, starting at $799 for an Intel Core i3 CPU and a 64GB SSD,
we can see the thinking at Microsoft start to lean even more toward the laptop side,
with a new kickstand and touch cover that allow you to work at almost any angle.
Our review configuration is upgraded to a Core i5 CPU and 256GB SSD, which costs
$1,299, while the type cover keyboard is an additional $129.
The new Surface Pro is thinner than its predecessors, with a larger, higher-resolution
screen. On that mark alone, it outshines the Pro and Pro 2. The internal specs and
performance are largely similar to the Pro 2, but that means it's still just as fast
as any current-gen premium laptop. With the generation-over-generation tweaks to
the design, especially the hinge and keyboard, you can see a dedicated push towards
advancing the cause of practical usability. It's not entirely there yet, and it's
still a bit of a leap to say this will be a true laptop replacement for most people,
but the Surface Pro 3 is the first Surface device I feel confident in saying I could
get away with using as a primary PC device.
Design and features
Despite the talk of this being the thinnest Intel Core i-series device to date, it
still doesn't feel quite as thin and ethereal as, for example, the iPad Air. But
its thinner body, coupled with a larger 12-inch screen, give it a more upscale feel
than either the Pro or Pro 2, which were criticized for a certain boxiness.
Both of the previous Surface Pro models had 10.6-inch screens and were 13mm thick,
with a footprint of 10.8 inches by 6.8 inches. This new 12-inch version is 11.5 inches
by 7.9 inches, but its thickness drops to an impressive 9.1mm. The Pro 3 is also
a tad lighter than its predecessor: 800 grams versus 900. Again, when you consider
the larger screen, that's a worthy achievement.
With a wink and a nod, Microsoft says this new Surface Pro design isn't exactly fanless,
but it might as well be. That's because the new system internals, designed in partnership
with Intel, allow the system run run not only ultra-low-voltage Core i3 or i5 CPUs,
but also Core i7 ones, with a slim, quiet fan moving air as needed, allegedly without
that telltale whirring sound, or a fan exhaust blowing on your hands. Our Surface
Pro 3, a midrange model with an Intel Core i5 CPU, certainly felt cool during our
hands-on testing, but an audible fan also kicked in at times. To call the experience
fanless-like would not be accurate.
One major difference in the new design is the kickstand, which can be adjusted to
nearly any angle between 22 degrees and 150 degrees. That's especially useful for
tilting the screen way back, as an artist using a drafting table might, but as the
owner of normal-size legs for a 6-foot-tall male, I still had a hard time getting
the Surface Pro 3 to sit comfortably on my lap. The kickstand either kept the screen
angle too severe to see clearly while seated, or else the end of the kickstand was
sliding off my knees when I tilted the screen further back.
Taking the type cover and kicking in its additional top-edge magnetic hinge, raising
the back edge of the keyboard to a better angle, helped a bit, as the raised angle
feels much more natural for typing (which is why nearly every PC keyboard has tiny
feet at the back edge). It's a small change, but one that says Microsoft is thinking
seriously about ergonomics.
Of portrait modes and pens
It may take a second to spot, but there's one major change to the Surface design
ID this time around. The capacitive touch button Windows logo -- which brings you
back to the
Windows 8
tile interface -- has shifted from the bottom long edge of the chassis to one of
the shorter edges.
There are two reasons for that, to my mind. First, the new keyboard covers cover
the area where the original Windows button was located when you use the second tilt-up
hinge. Second, moving the Windows logo button to the short edge points users toward
using the device in portrait mode. I've found that most Windows tablets and hybrids
are designed around use in a laptop-like landscape mode, which has the screen lying
against its longest side, while the all-popular Apple iPad is primarily understood
as a device to be held upright in portrait mode, much like a book or magazine.
This ties directly into Microsoft's strong pitch for the Surface Pro 3 as an educational
device for note-taking, annotation, drawing, and sketching. The included battery-powered
Bluetooth pen is metallic, and more substantial than versions I've tried with other
Windows 8 tablets, such as the 8-inch
Asus VivoTab 8
.
In the case of the Asus, the Wacom stylus was made of thin plastic, but at least
it slid right into an internal slot in the tablet body. For the Surface Pro 3, you'll
need to either keep in your pocket or bag, or perhaps slide it behind your ear, unless
you have a sold-separately type cover and its awkward stick-on stylus-holding loop.
While the Surface Pro pen (Microsoft would prefer you call it a pen rather than a
stylus) works in a variety of apps, including The New York Times crossword puzzle
app, OneNote is an easy example of how it works for drawing and taking notes. If
you have all your Microsoft cloud services properly set up, your OneNote files can
sync to other devices such as your phone (with cross-platform support on Android
and iOS devices) or laptop (Windows or Mac). Even better, just click once on the
Pen's top to open OneNote, even if your Surface is asleep, and notes are automatically
saved.
A great keyboard, for a tablet
The tragedy of the
Surface Pro
has always been that the single coolest thing about it doesn't actually come in the
box. The excellent
type cover
, which acts as a screen protector, full keyboard, and touchpad interface, stubbornly
remains a sold-separately accessory, despite the fact that I can't imagine (or recommend)
anyone ever buying a Surface without one. At $129, it's expensive for an add-on keyboard,
but it's also still the main wow factor of the Surface.
The new type cover for Surface Pro 3 is larger than its predecessors, although the
older versions will still work -- they just won't cover the entire screen when the
flap is closed. It feels like the best add-on
tablet
keyboard you can buy, while still falling short of a decent budget laptop keyboard.
The secondary hinge, really just a line near the top edge you can fold the cover
along, lifts the rear up and holds it against the body via a magnetic connection,
giving you a more natural typing angle. It's an excellent ergonomic improvement,
although it makes typing louder and clackier.
The touchpad built into the type cover is a bit better than the last version we tried,
made of what a Microsoft rep described as a "ceramic fabric" material. But despite
the improvements, it's still not responsive, or tap-sensitive, enough for fast-track
multitaskers, and the surface area is too shallow to easily navigate all around the
screen. You'll most likely develop a shorthand combination of touchscreen and touchpad,
plus pen, to get around.
The screen you'll spend a lot of time touching is a better-than-HD display, measuring
12 inches diagonally with a 2,160x1,440-pixel resolution. The IPS panel looks clear
and bright, has excellent off-axis viewing angles, and follows a growing trend toward
better-than-HD displays. Do you need more pixels on a 12-inch screen? That's debatable,
but some 13-inch models are already hitting 3,200x1,800 pixels.
Connections, performance, and battery life
Built into the thin body you'll find a full-size USB 3.0 port, microSD card reader,
and Mini DisplayPort, 5-megapixel and 1080p HD front- and rear-facing cameras, as
well as stereo speakers with Dolby Audio-enhanced sound. Other hardware specs include
SSD storage from 64GB to 512GB; 4GB or 8GB of memory; 802.11ac Wi-Fi; and TPM 2.0
for enterprise security.
There is also a $200 Docking Station for Surface Pro 3 with a Mini DisplayPort supporting
resolutions up to 3,840x2,600 pixels, five USB ports -- three USB 3.0 ports and two
USB 2.0 ports -- and a Gigabit Ethernet jack. There is a standalone Surface Ethernet
Adapter for $40, too.
No matter which configuration you order, you'll have to wait a while to get it (if
you're looking just after Microsoft's announcement, which came on May 21, 2014).
The two Intel Core i5 models, with 128GB ($999) or 256GB ($1,299) of SSD storage
are listed as shipping in late June. The Core i3/64GB version ($799) and the two
Core i7 versions with 256GB ($1,549) and 512GB ($1,949) of SSD storage are all listed
as shipping at the end of August.
Our fourth-gen Intel Core i5 CPU, coupled with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, matched
up well with other premium
laptops
that might be considered in the same breath as the Surface Pro 3. Application performance
was comparable with Apple's current 13-inch
MacBook Air
, the tablet-like
Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro
, and even last year's
Surface Pro 2
. For everyday Windows 8 tasks, from Photoshop to Web surfing, it's more than powerful
enough, and the higher screen resolution makes it easier to snap multiple apps open
at once on the screen.
Intel's basic built-in graphics still can't handle even mainstream games, so don't
think of this as a portable game machine. We gave
BioShock Infinite
a spin at high settings and our standard 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution, and got single-digit
frame rates. Running at the native resolution on low settings, the game still chugged
unacceptably.
The Surface Pro 3 did, however, best most of the competition in battery life, even
if only by a small margin. On our video playback battery drain test, it ran for 7
hours and 28 minutes, which is close to a full work day. The Yoga 2 Pro and
HP's 13-inch two-in-one X2 hybrid
fell only slightly behind, and last year's Surface Pro 2 ran for about 30 minutes
less. Of course, as the introductory press conference for the Surface Pro 3 was built
in part around comparisons to the MacBook Air, we should point out that the Air ran
for more than 6 additional hours on that test.
Conclusion
Does the Surface Pro 3 really do something so different than its predecessors that
it will replace the sea of glowing MacBook Airs seen in the audience during Microsoft's
NYC launch event? No, it's still the same basic concept: a Core i-series slate, coupled
with a very good keyboard accessory.
In the hand (or lap) shortcomings stood out, including some ergonomic difficulty
actually balancing the thing on your lap, and a touchpad that still doesn't work
effortlessly, but it's certainly different enough from the Surface Pro 2 that I can
call this a very substantial generation-over-generation leap.
Putting on-paper specs aside, it's already become my go-to coffee shop companion
over the past few days, and I'd feel confident taking it on a plane ride or day full
of on-the-go meetings. But I'm not quite ready to trade in my laptop just yet.
From:
Robert Ringwald
Sent: Tuesday, July 01, 2014 2:31 PM
To:
Hoss Gary
Subject: Fw: SumWhatOT,InterstingPostReSumNewBlindUsableTec,FromABlindUserIDontKnowButWhosePastPostsHaveRungTrue
Have you heard about this new MS product?
No, I am not thinking of getting one.
From:
Dan B Dyer Jr,/Danny
Sent: Tuesday, July 01, 2014 12:05 PM
To:
[log in to unmask]
Subject: SumWhatOT,InterstingPostReSumNewBlindUsableTec,FromABlindUserIDontKnowButWhosePastPostsHaveRungTrue
Our local WallyWorld doesn't yet have this, so not sure of price and
availability, but found this interesting, and I'm sure ham programs etc will
run on this, If any of you have occasion to play/work with this, Please let
us know.  Danny Dyer, Wb4idu.
Quoted text follows.
"Cheree Heppe here:
Yesterday, I stopped by the Microsoft Store because they have one of those
3D printers.  One of my colleagues asked me to see about getting an elephant
printed for him.  I forgot about the elephant once I saw one of the new
tablets.
Usually, Windows stuff doesn't wow me.  However, this newly released Surface
3 really seems to be a jump forward by Microsoft.  It acts and looks like a
cross between a PC notebook and an IOS device.
One of the supervisors, Nikki, demonstrated the device.  The Surface Pro 3
has a fold out kickstand for angled or vertical viewing and a mag strip
along the bottom edge holds a keyboard.  The keyboard is slim and types
okay, despite being so shallow.  It has a felt type backing that extends
past the hard edges of the board.  I found this the only design oddity.  The
Surface itself is slim and squarish and weighs more than an IPad Air.
But, to make the tablet talk, Nikki downloaded NVDA and the tablet started
voicing flawlessly.  Not only could the keyboard voice correctly, but if I
touched the Surface screen, there was no mistake or hesitation about what I
touched.  The gestures worked correctly as well, at least, those I was able
to test in my visit.
Being skeptical, I asked to try Word.  In the Home Screen, I think that's
what they're calling it, I could type the word "Word" and the app would be
right there to open with a press of the enter key.  Yes, Word worked on the
tablet.  My problem involved accidentally engaging the touchpad while typing
or spacing.
There is a free app from Microsoft that allows the touchpad to be shut off
and on.
This tablet seems to combine the best of both the IOS model and the PC
model, where one can spell check and edit effectively and connect a USB
port.
I think I might try for one of these tablets.
If you get the chance, it would be a good idea to check the Surface 3 out.
Regards,
Cheree Heppe