Surface 3 announced

[lopri]

It's bad enough to differentiate SKUs by incremental storage capacities, but with Intel on board, expect to see a lot more.

Atom X3/X5/X7 - (I thought this was a joke)
2GB/4GB - (Sigh)

Sooner or later there will be $100 increase per every 100 MHz higher CPU frequency.
Perhaps L2/L3 Cache amount might factor into the pricing as well.
Oh and Hyperthreading.

They have not learned the lesson that mobile is about user experiences and having the same experiences under a same SKU matters.

 

[Ravynmagi]

It's bad enough to differentiate SKUs by incremental storage capacities, but with Intel on board, expect to see a lot more.

Atom X3/X5/X7 - (I thought this was a joke)
2GB/4GB - (Sigh)

Sooner or later there will be $100 increase per every 100 MHz higher CPU frequency.
Perhaps L2/L3 Cache amount might factor into the pricing as well.
Oh and Hyperthreading.

They have not learned the lesson that mobile is about user experiences and having the same experiences under a same SKU matters.

Well faster CPUs do cost more money and its not uncommon for PC/tablet manufactures to offer different CPU options at different price points.

I'm very pleased with the two SKUs. I think doubling the RAM and storage to 128GB for only $100 more is pretty nice. We still have other tablet manufactures charging $100 for a 32GB storage only bump.

 

[Raduque]

I'm highly interested in this. I'll sell/trade both my Venue 8 Pro and my Surface 2 64 w/TypeCover for one.

Edit: Any whiffs of the price for the 128gb/4gb/LTE version? I'm in if it's not too unreasonable (~750).

 

[biostud]

I'm highly interested in this. I'll sell/trade both my Venue 8 Pro and my Surface 2 64 w/TypeCover for one.

Edit: Any whiffs of the price for the 128gb/4gb/LTE version? I'm in if it's not too unreasonable (~750).

$699

 

[Kaido]

I had an ASUS X205 which has a 1.33 GHz quad-core Atom. It was a lag fest, and all I tried to do was MS Office work while playing YouTube in the background.

Not very optimistic about the Surface 3's 1.6 GHz Atom, and I hope you guys know what you're getting into.

I'm curious about the GPU performance...it has four times the execution units on the video card of your X205. On the current Baytrail-T models, I've found that a surprising number of things are affected by the GPU performance, so I'm curious if that's the root of the lag issue (for some reason, Office tends to be GPU-based as well...some people have lag issues in there separately & have to turn off Hardware Acceleration in the Office settings).

 

[bearxor]

Yes, the SP2 is thicker and heavier, but none of the Surface devices (pro or non-pro) are tablets. That is a bold faced lie from Microsoft imo.

Well, it's a good thing it's your opinion.

I use my surface as a tablet, with the keyboard folded back well over 90% of the time. That's one of the reasons I prefer the type cover. Slimmer and no moving parts so when I flip it back I don't press keys on the back of my tablet. Then, on those occasions I do need to do typing, the Type Cover 2 is great. If you still have a first-gen Type Cover, I could understand the frustration.

You just need to keep in mind that "power users" such as yourself are far in to the minority and the Surface makes a great complete replacement. It's essentially my only machine right now.

 

[zerogear]

Well, it's a good thing it's your opinion.

I use my surface as a tablet, with the keyboard folded back well over 90% of the time. That's one of the reasons I prefer the type cover. Slimmer and no moving parts so when I flip it back I don't press keys on the back of my tablet. Then, on those occasions I do need to do typing, the Type Cover 2 is great. If you still have a first-gen Type Cover, I could understand the frustration.

You just need to keep in mind that "power users" such as yourself are far in to the minority and the Surface makes a great complete replacement. It's essentially my only machine right now.

Pretty much this for me. Used to have Ultra-portable Notebook plus Tablet, now I only have a Surface Pro device. And I do use it in tablet mode just as much as I did when I used an iPad. Heck, I would argue it's "cheaper" than an iPad simply because it doubles as a Ultrabook/computer when I want it to be, and I don't have to buy multiple devices.

 

[bearxor]

Pretty much this for me. Used to have Ultra-portable Notebook plus Tablet, now I only have a Surface Pro device. And I do use it in tablet mode just as much as I did when I used an iPad. Heck, I would argue it's "cheaper" than an iPad simply because it doubles as a Ultrabook/computer when I want it to be, and I don't have to buy multiple devices.

Then one thing I haven't quite gotten to grips with is the scaling on the Surface. I have a 17" laptop that's pretty nice that I've started using on a more regular basis that has a 1920x1200 screen. Literally the only thing I do with this laptop is sign in and start RDP and connect to mY VM machine to work on my labs. The only reason I don't use the Surface for this is that the 150% scaling makes the VM windows too big to fit on the screen. I've been think about dropping the scaling back to 100% but I was kind of waiting on Win10.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Yeah add me to the very interested group, although since a big reason for that is wanting to use it as a digital sketch/art pad, and so the lack of an integrated stylus is disappointing, with having to spend another $50 to get the stylus at all is an extra sting. Also will be interested to see how the GPU performs (and overall performance, and definitely battery life with the move to 14nm Atom). I'm also worried that for digital image work it'll need 4GB RAM, which means it'd end up at $650 and then you have to think you might as well jump to the Pro for the extra power.

Plus the Pro will probably get an upgrade in less than 6 months to coincide with Win10.

 

[Red Storm]

Hmm, still way too thick for me to consider it a tablet. I have Surface Pro 3 from work and I'd say it's an ultrabook/laptop replacement, but it doesn't replace a tablet for me. Physically it's too big and thick, and OS-wise I don't like Windows for things I use a tablet for.

 

[Ns1]

Hmm, still way too thick for me to consider it a tablet. I have Surface Pro 3 from work and I'd say it's an ultrabook/laptop replacement, but it doesn't replace a tablet for me. Physically it's too big and thick, and OS-wise I don't like Windows for things I use a tablet for.

1) it's a laptop with a tablet option
2) it's a far superior porn viewer than any other tablet out there. what else would you want a tablet for?

 

[tsupersonic]

Or you could forgo the cover and just consume content. Kind of like every other tablet in the world...

That's exactly my point - it's too heavy and big for tablet use. I much prefer my iPad Air for that.

Well, it's a good thing it's your opinion.

I use my surface as a tablet, with the keyboard folded back well over 90% of the time. That's one of the reasons I prefer the type cover. Slimmer and no moving parts so when I flip it back I don't press keys on the back of my tablet. Then, on those occasions I do need to do typing, the Type Cover 2 is great. If you still have a first-gen Type Cover, I could understand the frustration.

You just need to keep in mind that "power users" such as yourself are far in to the minority and the Surface makes a great complete replacement. It's essentially my only machine right now.

Nice, different use case, but I feel lost without a proper keyboard & mouse. I did grab an official MS docking station for my SP2, so I can use it w/ a proper keyboard & mouse, as well as a second monitor. It's nice to have a portable machine with power, when I'm on-call. I just toss the machine in my glove box.

I'll hope they improve the type cover and "touchpad"

 

[TwiceOver]

Hoping they'll allow some pre release reviews. I'm really interested in a 128gb model with dark blue cover.

 

[Roland00Address]

It is not worth it for that price. I am going to pretend the $499 model does not exist for 2 gbs of ram is not enough for a premium device that cost that much.

So $650 for a 10.8" cherry trail computer with 4gb and pen. I am including the pen for if you are going to be spending that much for a windows tablet you want a pen or else you will buy some other OEM brand for a lot cheaper.

The i3 4010y model is $800

Advantages of Surface 3

Lighter by a 180 grams, 6.3 grams
Fanless
1 extra hour of battery

Surface Pro 3
24% bigger screen
Better kickstand
Faster single thread probably similar multi thread and similar graphics (20 eus gen 7.5 vs 16 gen 8 EU)

Downside of Pro 3, only 64 GB storage for the $800 SKU then again it has a microSD so more storage is cheap and easy or just use the cloud.

If you do not care about the pen then get the asus t300 which is a 12.5" 1080p core m tablet plus keyboard dock for $699 vs $599+129. You get a faster CPU, bigger screen and usable keyboard that or get a normal ultrabook.

I have no doubt this is a great product but it should have been 4gb with 64 storage for $499. I say wait for core m, a cheaper price, or broxton with goldmont 14nm CPU (new architecture for atom probably 2016 originally promised mid 2015)

 

[Ravynmagi]

I think the S3 and SP3 are two different classes of devices.

First the $500 S3 can't be excluded, just because it has only 2GB of RAM. Windows 8 runs great with 2GB of RAM and apps function very well. For a light user or someone using the tablet mostly for consumption and light desktop work, the 2GB/64GB option isn't a bad choice and provides a lot more flexibility and storage than a similarly priced iPad with only 16GB of storage.

And for only $100 more you can double the RAM and storage. This is great for many of us that want a hybrid that can be both a good tablet and still have enough power to be a decent laptop replacement. With a 10 inch display, it'll be light and convenient enough to be a good tablet for consumption and apps. But it'll be a bit cramped for a laptop.

The SP3 option provides more performance and a bigger screen that makes it a more suitable laptop replacement, that is still compact enough to be an okay tablet. However the $800 64GB model is a bit awkward (more so than the $500 S3 in my opinion) because the SP3 is more a laptop replacement and 64GB is pretty limited for such a thing, even with microSD, that OS volume will fill up and require some juggling.

Either way, I think the different SKUs have a place and market.

I picked the $600 4GB/128GB S3 because I don't need that much performance and I want something that is more tablet and occasional laptop. I skipped the pen because there are cheap pen options I may try first.

The ASUS T300 Chi is pretty cool. But that's more a cheap SP3 competitor with the 12.5 inch screen. I'd rather have a smaller 10'ish inch display.

Also the Surface 3 and Pro 3 have the 3:2 aspect ratio that I think is great for these hybrid devices.

 

[notposting]

Shouldn't be married to the "Surface" keyboards either. Guessing there will be some sort of cases available to wrap around the edge and allow you to cover the front, but still allow the kickstand to work.

Then add any number of bluetooth keyboards/mouse/trackball/pad accessories and probably for far less than the official offering. Just picked up the MS Universal Mobile Keyboard and a couple of their mice off Amazon on sale a week or two ago. Would totally use those.

 

[Ns1]

Shouldn't be married to the "Surface" keyboards either. Guessing there will be some sort of cases available to wrap around the edge and allow you to cover the front, but still allow the kickstand to work.

Then add any number of bluetooth keyboards/mouse/trackball/pad accessories and probably for far less than the official offering. Just picked up the MS Universal Mobile Keyboard and a couple of their mice off Amazon on sale a week or two ago. Would totally use those.

not mutually exclusive. I use the ms typecover when I'm out and about, switch to traditional KBM at home for gaming.

 

[Raduque]

It is not worth it for that price. I am going to pretend the $499 model does not exist for 2 gbs of ram is not enough for a premium device that cost that much.

So $650 for a 10.8" cherry trail computer with 4gb and pen. I am including the pen for if you are going to be spending that much for a windows tablet you want a pen or else you will buy some other OEM brand for a lot cheaper.

The i3 4010y model is $800

Advantages of Surface 3

Lighter by a 180 grams, 6.3 grams
Fanless
1 extra hour of battery

Surface Pro 3
24% bigger screen
Better kickstand
Faster single thread probably similar multi thread and similar graphics (20 eus gen 7.5 vs 16 gen 8 EU)

Downside of Pro 3, only 64 GB storage for the $800 SKU then again it has a microSD so more storage is cheap and easy or just use the cloud.

If you do not care about the pen then get the asus t300 which is a 12.5" 1080p core m tablet plus keyboard dock for $699 vs $599+129. You get a faster CPU, bigger screen and usable keyboard that or get a normal ultrabook.

I have no doubt this is a great product but it should have been 4gb with 64 storage for $499. I say wait for core m, a cheaper price, or broxton with goldmont 14nm CPU (new architecture for atom probably 2016 originally promised mid 2015)

A Surface 3 will be the perfect tablet for me. I currently own an Asus TF101, Surface 2, and Dell Venue 8 Pro. Windows 8.1 works perfectly with the 2gb of ram in the V8P, and I wish my S2 ran full windows. An S3 will replace both my Windows tablets perfectly.

I plan on getting the 128gb storage version with LTE, TypeCover and pen. I only wish the pen had a slot in the body of the tablet, like the Samsung Note devices.

 

[mohit9206]

So this tablet can play PC games too right? Since its an x86 Windows tablet?

 

[Kaido]

So this tablet can play PC games too right? Since its an x86 Windows tablet?

Light gaming. It uses a pared-down Broadwell GPU with 16 execution units. Not great, but better than the integrated stuff that came before, possibly by 50%.

 

[the DRIZZLE]

Costco has bundles up for preorder that include the Surface 3, the typecover, and the pen. It's $599 for the 64gb bundle and $699 for the 128gb bundle.

 

[core2slow]

A bit OT, but does the surface 3 supports 4G/LTE? How many other surface models out there have mobile broadband support? Microsoft is making it tough digging around for such info.

 

[Ravynmagi]

A bit OT, but does the surface 3 supports 4G/LTE? How many other surface models out there have mobile broadband support? Microsoft is making it tough digging around for such info.

There will be an LTE models coming out later this year.

 

[core2slow]

There will be an LTE models coming out later this year.

thanks Rav. Traditionally, does the pro comes in a 4G/LTE model or is that only for the regular surface?

 

[mmntech]

Well, Microsoft should have been using x86 chips from day one. Finally puts it on a level playing field with desktop, Surface Pro, and Xbox One. The less fragmented you can make your devices, the better. ARM was just an unnecessary wrench in the works.

Early performance benchmarks still put it quite a bit behind the iPad Air 2. Where it wins though is that it has a full OS (no walled garden) and the fact that it has a full size USB 3.0 Type-A port and expandable storage. Makes for a very attractive laptop replacement. Though I'd think I'd still spring for the Pro if I was doing any serious work.

Be nice if it had a QXGA display though like the iPad and Galaxy Tab S. I know that's a bit nitpicky but it'd be nice to see the specs match up with the competition in its price bracket.