Microsoft announces Surface Pro 3

Microsoft announced a new addition to the Surface family, the Surface Pro 3 which features a larger screen and numerous other improvements.

At a press event in New York earlier today Microsoft announced a larger version of their Surface tablet, the 12 inch Surface Pro 3. The Surface Pro 3 comes with many other improvements to the kickstand, the type cover and the stylus. With the new Surface Microsoft is really trying to brand their Surface Pro line as laptops, not tablets. They're promoting the Surface Pro 3 as "the tablet that can replace your laptop". There was no mention of a smaller device, the often rumored 'Surface Mini', at the event.

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SurfacePro3While the Surface Pro 2 had a 10.6 inch 1920 x 1080 (16:9) screen, the Surface Pro 3 features a larger 12 inch 2160 x 1440 (that's 3:2) screen. Still, the Pro 3 is lighter than its predecessor, at 800g the Surface Pro 3 is 107 grams lighter than the Pro 2. It's also thinner, the new Surface Pro is just 9.1mm thin while the Surface Pro 2 was 13mm. While there will be a Surface Pro 3 model with an Intel i5 processor, just like on the Surface Pro 2, there will also be versions of the Pro 3 running Intel i3 and i5 processors.

surface-kickstand

The Surface Pro 3 features a completely redesigned kickstand, it's friction based and it enables you to use it in an unlimited number of angles, up to 150°.

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type-cover

The type cover has also been improved in a lot of different ways, it will now 'snap' on to the tablet as you can see in the image above, Microsoft claims this will make the tablet more stable when using it on your lap. It also slightly angles the keyboard which should make it easier to use. The new cover also features a 68% larger trackpad, Microsoft claims it has reduced friction by 78%.

Surface-Pen

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Another thing Microsoft focused on during the launch was the pen integration, it has been redesigned to be just that, a pen, not a stylus. The pen will feel more natural according to Microsoft and it will make note-taking easy and natural, "it feels just like writing on paper". The button on top of the pen allows you to open OneNote with one click of the button and it will sync your ink to OneDrive with 2 clicks.

The surface Pro 3 starts at $799 and will be available to preorder at the Microsoft Store website starting Wednesday at 12.01 am ET.  The tablet will also go on sale at Microsoft's retail stores across the U.S and Canada on June 20th and Microsoft plans to have it available in 26 other countries by the end of August.

Full pricing and specs:

  • Intel Core i3, 64 GB and 4 GB of RAM: $799
  • Intel Core i5, 128 GB and 4 GB of RAM: $999
  • Intel Core i5, 256 GB and 8 GB of RAM: $1,299
  • Intel Core i7, 256 GB and 8 GB of RAM: $1,549
  • Intel Core i7, 512 GB and 8 GB of RAM: $1,949
  • Type Cover: $129.99
  • Additional Surface Pen: $49.99
  • Additional Power Supply: $79.99
  • Additional Pen Loop: $4.99
  • Surface Pro 3 Docking Station: $199.99
  • Surface Ethernet Adapter: $39.99

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