Microsoft certainly made a poor marketing effort (as usual) for its new Surface tablet that left a lot of people confused about whether the tablet is actually worth the cash or not. It seems as if though the firm has been releasing failed device after failed device, always entering late in the game. Is Microsoft too late with the Surface? Nobody really knows how to answer this question. A lot of people are speculating and saying mixed things about this tablet ever since it came out on October 26th. What are you supposed to believe? Today, we’ll discuss on whether your next purchase should be a Surface or something else.
The Price
As far as the price is concerned, a Windows RT tablet will cost you $499 for the 32 GB version without its special keyboard touch cover. This is the same price as the new Apple iPad 4’s 16 GB version. The 64 GB version with a touch cover will cost you $699. The cover, by itself, costs around $130, but only adds $100 to the price of the tablet when bought as a bundle along with the device. A 32 GB version with a touch cover, for example, costs $599.
Construction
The Windows Surface RT tablet is about as thick as the iPad, and only about 20 grams heavier due to the extra hardware it packs in.
We’ll get to the hardware a little later. The construction of the tablet itself shows clear signs of a device that’s definitely built to last. Like the Zune, a lot of time was invested into making sure that the Surface has a solid construction that can withstand pretty tough conditions. Its exterior is made of “VaporMg,” an alloy of magnesium that’s molten into shape. It’s three times lighter than aluminum and has a very high degree of durability in comparison. The 10.6-inch screen is made of gorilla glass, and the entire tablet has an anti-fingerprint coating.
Specs
With 2 GB RAM, a quad-core nVidia Tegra 3 CPU, and support for 802.11n (up to 150 Mbits/sec), you can’t go wrong! Many people reported slightly sluggish graphics when interacting with the operating system, so this probably isn’t the best gaming machine you’ll find. Also, its display is nothing extraordinary compared to Apple’s Retina display. Its support for a wide variety of memory cards and 5-point multi-touch would make up for these shortcomings. The audio on it isn’t very powerful, but provides a vibrant stereo output that will likely catch the attention of all the music lovers out there. Battery life is 8 hours with consistent use, and 360 hours (unconfirmed) on standby. The expansion card slot supports cards with up to 64 GB of storage capacity, adding a whole bunch of memory to your otherwise small tablet.
Available Apps
Unlike Windows Phone 8, which will contain a ton of applications upon its release, Windows RT (the operating system that Surface runs on) has a very limited number of choices so far. There’ll probably be more apps in the future, but it’s a complete waste of time to check out the Windows Store at this moment.
Prognosis
Is the Windows Surface tablet worth it? Perhaps not right now, but it might be worth the wad of cash in the near future. If you really like Windows 8, get it now and wait for new apps to come out. They’ll come pouring once the tablet gains traction. The slower graphics and regular display might make it rather dull, but it’s still got some strong points with its expandable memory capabilities, USB slots, and sturdy construction. You also have to understand that Windows RT is not the same as Windows Pro, and you can’t install desktop applications on it. If you are looking to run the full fledge Windows experience on the tablet, then the current version of Surface (running Windows RT) is not for you.
Opinions?
If you have an opinion on the Microsoft Surface RT, please leave a comment below. We’d love to hear what you think.
Miguel has been a business growth and technology expert for more than a decade and has written software for even longer. From his little castle in Romania, he presents cold and analytical perspectives to things that affect the tech world.
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