Microsoft is geared towards pleasing the public with its new releases. From its HoloLens to Lumia phones to its Surface 3 and Surface 3 Pro notebooks, there is only one word to describe the company's technology: awesome.
The company gave the press a first glance on its soon to be released smart gadgets at this year's Build Conference. And one of these new releases is its laptop and tablet in one, the Surface Pro 3. The new release from Microsoft was created with students and artists in mind; so if you are one, you're likely to get impressed by the new gadget.
"Surface 3 may look like a tablet, but it's so much more. It's fast and responsive, so it won't slow you down when you're on the go. More importantly, when you need to run Windows desktop software like iTunes or Photoshop Essentials1, it just works. Click in a backlit keyboard2 to type faster than onscreen, and easily connect your accessories with the full-size USB 3.0 port," Microsoft describes its new gadget on its official website.
Display
The new Surface Pro boasts of a 2160 x 1440 multi-touch, 12-inch display, which has a 3:2 aspect ratio designed to look and feel like a piece of paper. Although this is already quite impressive for a notebook, it does not surpass Samsung Galaxy Note Pro's display, which is at 2560 x 1600.
It's also lightweight at 1.76 pounds and measures 7.93 x 11.5 x 0.36 inches (W x D x H).
Under the Hood
The new tablet and laptop uses Windows 8.1 Pro for its operating system. This can be a downside, especially to those who were not impressed with Windows 8. What is confusing with the updated version of Windows 8 is that the "Start menu" is only designed for touch.
Surface Pro 3 is powered by a 2.5GHx Intel Core i5-4300 processor (customers can opt for i3 or i7, too), and also boasts of a 256GB SSD and 8GB of DDR3 RAM.
Camera: 8MP rear-facing camera with autofocus and 3.5MP front-facing camera
Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4400
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11ac Wi-Fi
Ports: Mini-display port, One USB 3.0, microSDXC card reader (up to 128GB) and a mic/earphone jack
Battery life: up to 9 hours
The new addition to Microsoft's line of notebooks also comes with a stand for when it is being used as a tablet, and a Surface pen, which is designed for drawing.
Perhaps what's more amazing with the Surface Pro 3's specifications are the offers that come with it. When a customer buys one, he also gets a free one year subscription for the Office 365, which sells for $100 annually.
Microsoft also offers a trade-in option, where owners of the Surface RT or Surface 2 can get up to $150 by trading them in. The old Surface gadgets are still subject to checks to determine their trade in value.
The price of the Surface Pro 3 starts at $799, while Surface 3 is at $499.
