Microsoft has recently come up with it third generation of surface tablet with the aim of replacing tablets and laptops by a single device. Their progress throughout each generation has been gradual but have they perfected their cause with their latest installment? Lets find out.
HARDWARE:
The Surface Pro 3 resembles Surface 2 rather than the previous surface pros which runs the Windows RT. The traditional carbon black casing by Microsoft has been ditched in favor of a more playful Silver, although the chassis is still made of Sturdy Magnesium alloy. The edges are smoothened in other to make the device easier to hold. Not just the Pro 3 looks like the Surface 2, it is just as light and as thin although Surface 2 is a traditional tablet where as a Surface Pro is a Ultrabook without a keyboard. This is remarkable. Microsoft has also claimed it is the thinnest device bearing a i7 processor. Most Ultrabooks in market weigh over 3pound where as the surface weighs no more than 1.76 pounds with a keyboard which i s even lesser than a 11 inch Macbook.
The Pro 3 is marginally bigger than its predecessors with a 12 inch screen. Despite the increase in size, the device comes with same selection of ports. A power button on on top of landscape edge, mini display port, USB 3.0 port, a volume rocker and a headphone jack. At the bottom is the magnetic port which connect it to a removable keyboard. There is also a micro Sd card slots which supports up to 128gb of memory. The Camera has been updated to 5 megapixels. The device would be powered by a 4th generation Intel® Core™i3, i5 or i7 and would give 9 hours of battery backup.
DISPLAY AND INPUT :
The pro 3 comes with both touch screen and keyboard inputs but this time Microsoft also introduced the surface pen ; an active digitizer made by N-trig. N-trig's pen is engineered to work like la proper ink-based pen and it does feel like it. The screen provides just enough friction that the pen really gives of a natural feel when writing or drawing which is excellent. The pen comes with some tricks up its sleeve and will power in the screen when you hover it over the device. You can also open a user friendly quick menu by pressing the button on top of the pen.
So far there is only one keyboard option for the Pro 3 and that is the back lit one. The Keyboard is rather flimsy and is nowhere near to sturdy or comfortable and does cause a lot of typos The keys are also merged together unlike the regular chiclet style and it's very easy to hit the wrong key. The Surface Pro 3's keyboard also bring a touch pad for mouse controls s the Windows 8.1 update made the OS very mouse friendly. The touch pad is very responsive although miles behind what we see on a premium Ultrabook or a Mac book..
The Surface tablets have always had jubilant displays, and so does the PRO 3. It features a 12 inch display with an amazing 2160*1440 IPS panel with such sharp texts that you cannot see a pixel. Colors are very well balanced and viewing angles are good. The visibility is sunlight is also great. IT comes with one of best display in market.
SPECIFICATIONS AND PRICING:
The Surface Pro 3's price really depends on your configurations. It can either cost a lot or not much at all. The least configuration you can get is a is processor with 64 gb of storage priced at $799. The next step up is a Core i5 configuration with 128GB of storage; that'll sell for $999. The premium models feature two Core i7 models: one with 256GB of storage and the other with 512GB. Those will cost you $1,549 and $1,949, respectively.
Whatever model you pick you would have to buy the essential keyboard separately and it would cost around $130. Without he keyboard you cannot substitute your ultra book with the PRO 3. This might be a huge disadvantage for the product in the market when compared to other products of the same category. The keyboard is too expensive for its flimsy structure.
CONCLUSION:
Microsoft is gradually learning its trade in mobile computing and tablet industry and this update is one of the best of recent years. However they have still not fulfilled their cause of substituting tablet and ultra book by a single device and their devices still has many usability flaws. For us Keyboard is the biggest problem. this time around. The optional key board provides a subpar typing experience and the track pad is very frustrating too. Moreover its not included in the box and has to be bought for a mighty $130 separately. However despite the increased size and proportions the Surface PRO 3 is great to use as a tablet. the thin and light design is very pleasing. If Microsoft just figures out the Keyboard problem this might become the best computing device available on market.
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