I've been following Microsoft's Surface tablet since it was announced back in June 2012. I bought my first Surface product when it was announced and I ended up returning it. Why? Read Why did I returned Microsoft Surface Tablet. Then Surface 2 Pro, a much improved version came and I bought it and I still use it. It's OK but it is not my favorite. I love my Sony Vaio Pro 13. With Surface Pro 2, I had some personal issues. Check out Surface Pro 2 Review by Mahesh Chand.
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Figure 1. Surface Pro 2
Yesterday, Microsoft announced Surface Pro 3, the new addition to the product line that is a larger, lighter, thinner and more powerful device. Microsoft wants to replace your laptop and tablet with Surface Pro 3.
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Figure 2. Surface Pro 3
Personally, I love smaller, thinner and lighter yet powerful laptops. Currently, I own Apple iPad Air, iPad Mini, Surface Pro 2, a Lenovo touch screen all in one computer and 3 Sony Vaio laptops. My personal work machine is Vaio Pro 13, a less than 2 lbs, 8GB RAM fully loaded laptop.
When I purchased my Surface Pro 2, there were three main reasons I did not like Surface Pro 2. These three reasons were the screen size, the weight and the stand.
With the new Surface Pro 3, I noticed Microsoft has resolved all three (3) of my issues. The New Surface Pro 3 is a little larger screen, lighter, thinner and more powerful with higher resolution.
Larger screen
Surface Pro 3 has a larger screen with 12 inches (11.5 x 7.93) compared to the Surface Pro 2 screen size 10.6 inches (10.81 x 6.81)
Thinner and Lighter
Surface Pro 3 is only 0.35 inches thick compared to 0.53 inches of Surface Pro 2. The weight of Surface Pro 3 is just 1.76 pounds compared to the 2 pounds of Surface Pro 2.
Rigid stand
One of the features I wanted in Surface is to have more stand angles. The new stand of Surface Pro 3 has multiple angles. Great job, Surface team!
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Figure 3.
Surface Pro 3 also has improvements in other areas. Here is a list of a few key features
Screen Resolution
2160 x 1440 pixels compared to 1920 x 1080 pixels.
Processor
4th generation Intel Core i7 Processor is an option now in Surface Pro 3 that wasn't available with Surface Pro 2.
Battery Life
Has improved from 7 hours to 9 hours of web browsing.
Front-facing Camera
Surface Pro 3 has a 5MP HD front-facing camera compared to 3.5 MP front-facing camera in Surface Pro 2.
Conclusion
While the price still seems a little higher but with all the preceding features, Surface Pro 3 could replace your small-screen laptop.