Microsoft Surface Pro 3 announcement

So, who watched the event today and what do you think?

It will be available for sale tomorrow. The starting price is $799. Microsoft deems this device as the tablet that can replace your laptop.

It’s a 12.1-inch tablet, utilizing a 3:2 aspect ratio at 2160x1440 resolution screen, using 4[SUP]th[/SUP] Generation Intel Core CPU’s (i3, i5 and i7). Web browsing battery life is around 9 hours. It’s around 30% thinner than an 11-inch MacBook Air. The new kickstand is continuously adjustable. The device comes in at 1.7lbs. The stylus has been replaced now with a pen which provides a much improved drawing, writing and note-taking experience. If you have your device with you, and it’s off, a simple click on the end of the pen fires up the device into OneNote where you can jot down the thought that you just had.

The new type cover keyboard has a significantly larger and improved touchpad. The way the device clicks in and the new fold up edge hinge should alleviate a big problem I’ve always had with the Surface Pro and that’s the fact that it’s very hard to sit on your lap and work with. In the past, you really needed a flat table space area to use the device with.

The new pen and the extremely thin glass on the device should help greatly with writing. However, I’m still really bothered by the fact that the pen doesn’t seem to have a holder built into the surface pro itself…meaning it will be quite easy to set down somewhere and lose.

The device will have a microSD card reader and a USB 3.0 port.

A docking station will be available ($199) that includes the following
· 3 USB 3.0 ports
· 2 USB 2.0 ports
· Ethernet jack
· Audio outputs
· Mini Display port supporting 4k
· Charges the tablet.

Here is a link with a 5 minute video: Microsoft's Surface Pro 3 is designed to destroy the laptop | The Verge



So, pricing looks like the following;
Core i3, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage - $799
Core i5, 4GB RAM, 128GB storage - $999
Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage - $1,299
Core i7, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage - $1,549
Core i7, 8GB RAM, 512GB storage - $1,949

The pen is $49, the type cover keyboard is $130 and the docking station is $199. So a full loaded model is $2,128.

 

[pparks1]

i really like the 3:2 aspect ratio. Much better for productivity work and makes the tablet useful in portrait mode. These things are more than movie playback machines, fellas.

 

[snerd]

i really like the 3:2 aspect ratio. Much better for productivity work and makes the tablet useful in portrait mode. These things are more than movie playback machines, fellas.

I don't think it's registering with some about what you're saying! This thing isn't for me, but it's damn sure WAY more than just a silly tablet! Must be a mental block or something?!

 

[Rickkins]

It's not the interior hardware or the capabilities of the device, it's the physical dimensions that determine what it is.

It could launch every icbm in the US arsenal, it is still a tablet.

 

[mcnulty]

I've got a Nook HD+ that also uses 3:2 ratio. It's designed primarily for portrait use but it also works quite well for watching videos in landscape orientation. The 16:10 format that major Android manufacturers use is, simply put, retarded. The 16:9 on the original Surface is obviously worse. I'm hoping MS can start a trend here.

 

[pparks1]

It's not the interior hardware or the capabilities of the device, it's the physical dimensions that determine what it is.

It could launch every icbm in the US arsenal, it is still a tablet.

Yes, it does have the physical form factor of a tablet. Compared to a $149 Android tablet, it sure is a lot more capable with same hardware and performance of a laptop, ultrabook or desktop. Nobody here said that it's a laptop or desktop, but it's not remotely the same as the tablets people have used in the past.

 

[Rickkins]

Yes, it does have the physical form factor of a tablet.

Really, that's all I was saying.

 

[labeeman]

[h=1]Why the iPad is popular and Windows 'tablets' are not[/h]

It's amazing how stubbornly people will cling to the past, no matter what evidence is right in front of them. Case in point: the newest Microsoft Surface Pro "tablet," for which orders will start being taken next month. This time, it has a big screen -- with a 12-inch diameter and an old-school 4:3 aspect ratio -- and it's slimmer than the previous models. But it's not really a tablet the way the world uses that term.

Microsoft doesn't get what a tablet is, and neither do some IT shops. Of course, users know exactly what a tablet is: an iPad or one of the Android clones of it. Microsoft is under new, fresher-thinking leadership, so I'm hoping someone in Redmond reads this and gets off the dead-end tablet track it's on.

 

[Hopachi]

i really like the 3:2 aspect ratio. Much better for productivity work and makes the tablet useful in portrait mode. These things are more than movie playback machines, fellas.

I totally agree.
Don't know why I particularly took movies as an example, some of the movies are 2:1 aspect anyway.

But the 3:2 really blends in, in all modes and usage scenarios so you kinda feel that it was thoroughly chosen.

 

[Hopachi]

Surface 3:
What happened to the RT version? I see processors i3,i5 and i7...

 

[BlueMasterFX]

Why the iPad is popular and Windows 'tablets' are not

It's amazing how stubbornly people will cling to the past, no matter what evidence is right in front of them. Case in point: the newest Microsoft Surface Pro "tablet," for which orders will start being taken next month. This time, it has a big screen -- with a 12-inch diameter and an old-school 4:3 aspect ratio -- and it's slimmer than the previous models. But it's not really a tablet the way the world uses that term.

Microsoft doesn't get what a tablet is, and neither do some IT shops. Of course, users know exactly what a tablet is: an iPad or one of the Android clones of it. Microsoft is under new, fresher-thinking leadership, so I'm hoping someone in Redmond reads this and gets off the dead-end tablet track it's on.

I read one of the comments about how tablets might be on their way out and you would only have a phone and a laptop. I think that is really interesting. Why else are phones getting bigger? Why are tablets getting smaller? This is where the supposed "Surface Mini" might come into play. Though this thing might run Windows RT and replace Windows Phone all together.

 

[pparks1]

Surface 3:
What happened to the RT version? I see processors i3,i5 and i7...

Due to a lack of interest, I think they are scrapping it.

 

[Rickkins]

Surface 3:
What happened to the RT version? I see processors i3,i5 and i7...

Due to a lack of interest, I think they are scrapping it.

And yet the Surface, lives on....
Hehehe, sorry, but when fed straight lines I find it difficult to resist.

 

[pparks1]

Surface 3:
What happened to the RT version? I see processors i3,i5 and i7...

Due to a lack of interest, I think they are scrapping it.

And yet the Surface, lives on....
Hehehe, sorry, but when fed straight lines I find it difficult to resist.

It's because the surface pro has real processors and can run software people want which make it less like a tablet and more like a real computer.

 

[mdmd]

What are the specs on the advertised processors? i3, i5, i7

There are different levels of i7.




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[robinb9]

The rt version did not have the flexibility that the windows 8 or windows 8 pro has. You are stuck with the MS store. You cannot download anything that is not in the store. Microsoft could not compete with the ipad in this way. The surface rt cost them more money to make, and those who compared the ipad to the rt picked the ipad because at the time the games sucked on the RT where the ipad did not

 

[robinb9]

I like the surface pro 3 for the fact it is a tablet and a laptop. I do not like the pricetag. The 64 gig is a waste because you only get 35 usable. So one would want the 128 gig and up and the price is quite steep. I can get for my clients an asus ultra laptop for less and it has more memory and mor hd space. I just think MS priced it too high

 

[pparks1]

What are the specs on the advertised processors? i3, i5, i7

There are different levels of i7.

View attachment 43938

View attachment 43945
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View attachment 43946

The Core i3-4020Y
The Core i5-4300U
The Core i7-4650U

You wouldn't want that i7-4960X in a battery operated device even with it's 14,000+ CPU Marks.

 

[mcnulty]

I like the surface pro 3 for the fact it is a tablet and a laptop. I do not like the pricetag. The 64 gig is a waste because you only get 35 usable. So one would want the 128 gig and up and the price is quite steep. I can get for my clients an asus ultra laptop for less and it has more memory and mor hd space. I just think MS priced it too high

Agreed. I think the base price is actually quite attractive for such a device, but the ncreases in price for storage and memory upgrades are simply ridiculous.

 

[pparks1]

I like the surface pro 3 for the fact it is a tablet and a laptop. I do not like the pricetag. The 64 gig is a waste because you only get 35 usable. So one would want the 128 gig and up and the price is quite steep. I can get for my clients an asus ultra laptop for less and it has more memory and mor hd space. I just think MS priced it too high

I don't think price is that steep. A dell XPS 13 ultrabook is $1,749 for a 13" screen, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD with a Core i7. The Surface Pro Core i7, with 8GB of RAM, and 256GB SSD is $1,549. a 15" MacBook pro with 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD with a Core i7 is $1999...while the surface Core i7 with 8GB of RAM and 512GB SSD is $1,949.

The Asus ZenBook is just over $2,000 for a Core i7, with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. Amazon.com : ASUS Zenbook UX301LA-DH51T 13.3" Quad-HD Display Touchscreen Laptop with Gorilla Glass : Laptop Computers : Computers & Accessories

So to me, for 2lbs of portability, and a higher resolution screen, I don't see where the Surface Pro 3 is overpriced.

 

[Hopachi]

Surface 3:
What happened to the RT version? I see processors i3,i5 and i7...

Due to a lack of interest, I think they are scrapping it.

Thanks,

Makes sense after all...