Microsoft

Microsoft Surface

Source: Microsoft

At the moment, my tablet is the BlackBerry Playbook, which I have now had for six months. It was great for four of those months, but recently it hasn’t been able to cut it against my dad’s iPad 2. I’ve been thinking about what is next for me, what do I need to save up for next? I’m usually a Windows guy, and I will be studying Computer Science next year, meaning it will be compilers and IDE galore. So a MacBook Pro probably isn’t the best idea. Unfortunately all the PC competitors offer ugly computers, or they don’t pack the new Ivy Bridge processors. The New Vizio do, but I’m not sure I want MacBook Air lookalike (I’m super fussy about my computers). 

Source: Microsoft

Then came the announcement of the Microsoft Surface. I stayed up way too late to keep up with the announcement because I was so excited. It is beautiful, it really is. Apple got beat, bad. I usually consider Apple to focus on style of substance (not so much the case with the Retina MacBook Pro), but Microsoft have been able to pull this beautiful beast out of the bag. 

 

The Specs

Source: Microsoft

I want something to replace my PlayBook and make my dad’s iPad look like a toy. The people get to choose between nice and REALLY nice. The nice one has a dumbed down version of Microsoft 8 ( Windows RT) you won’t be able to run any of your normal programs on it, but you will be able to take advantage of the Windows Store and also the Office 15 Apps, which should offer a fully functioning office suite. A whopping 10.6” *as close to HD as possible but not really being HD* screen which should provide an amazing viewing experience. It has microSD, USB2.0, HD video and a mini HDMI out as standard, which is wonderful. It comes with either 32GB or 64GB internal storage. This brings it past a normal tablet. Being able to expand memory and connect to other devices on the go brings the Microsoft Surface into a league of its own. 

Source: Microsoft

Now for the REALLY nice Surface, it outweighs its younger brother by 227 grams weighing in at 903g and is slightly thicker at 13.5mm. It comes with Windows 8 Pro, a fully-fledged operating system. Which means it can run the normal Windows environments and programs. The expansion ports are similar, except that the USB 2.0 port gets switched out for a USB 3.0 and the mini HDMI is now a mini Display Port. A digitiser also comes along with it so that you can write on the screen. The pen is said to give a very realistic writing sensation. It comes in 64GB and 128GB models with an i5 Ivy Bridge processor, not only becoming competition for tablets but also for the UltraBooks. 

The Good

Source: Microsoft

I love it. It looks sexy, both of the models have great specs. Some new technologies have been developed for it which are awesome (Smart Covers) and the Windows 8 Environment looks brilliant. 

The Bad

We don’t know much about it. We know how it looks and what it does but we don’t know how it stacks up to the competition. Can it really blow laptops out of the water? We don’t even know what the battery life is going to be. If it’s any less than eight hours, it’s not going to cut it.

The Verdict

I WANT ONE, but I will need to try it out first!