NEW YORK (CNNMoney) – Microsoft has released the Surface 3, a thinner, smaller and less expensive version of its tablet-PC Surface Pro 3.
The Surface fills a gap between laptops and tablets. The tablets today are great for portability, reading and viewing videos, but are not ideal for work. Instead laptops are designed for work, but are not comfortable to read a book in them. The Surface is a link: a laptop that looks and acts like a tablet.
However, the Surface Pro 3 costs $ 799, not including keyboard. If you add Bluetooth keyboard and stylus, the bill rises to $ 1,000.
So with three Microsoft Surface intends to make a similar tablet with a price attractive to students, parents and professionals moving.
Here’s what you need to know about the new Surface 3:
1. It costs $ 499
It’s a good price for a PC that comes with 2 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. But that does not include the $ 129 keyboard (unless you already have a Surface keyboard, the total price is $ 628).
“The Surface Pro 3 is a product that people know and love,” said Panos Panay, team leader at Microsoft Surface. “When we developed the Surface 3 The question was’ How continue to offer this but get closer to the people? ‘”
A Surface 3 highest range is available for $ 599, with twice the RAM and storage. You can also add 4G-LTE wireless connectivity for $ 100 extra.
The Surface 3 is now available for pre-order and will go on sale on May 5.
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2. The keyboards are brightly colored
True to target Microsoft student audience, keyboards come in fashionable colors and bright aimed at a younger generation. The device is available in a bright red tomato, a dark burgundy, light blue and purple. In addition to the gray and dark blue preferring professionals.
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3. Heavier than an iPad Air but unless the new MacBook
The Surface 3 weighs 1.4 pounds. Even with the cover with keyboard, the new Surface weighs less than two pounds.
It is also super thin: only 0.34 inches, slightly thicker than an iPad Air.
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4. Executes a “full” version of Windows 8.1, and is upgradeable to Windows 10
Unlike previous versions of the Surface that are not “pro”, the Surface 3 executes a full version of Windows, which means that you can run all the software you get used to using a PC.
“You need to run everything, even iTunes or Chrome,” Panay said. “You’ll feel good because nothing is left out when you purchase this product.”
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5. It has a processor designed for mobile devices
The Original Surface RT and Surface 2 processors wore smartphones made by Nvidia. That made them a little slower, but more important is that they had the power to run a full version of Windows.
The Surface 3 comes with an Intel processor designed for high-end tablets called Atom x7. The advantages that brings this change are twofold: Full Windows and a combination of fuel efficiency and battery one would expect of a mobile processor.
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6. It has a 10.8 inch screen
Similar to the Surface Pro 3 (but unlike other previous versions of the Surface) Screen Surface 3 has a ratio of 3: 2. That makes it a little less perfect for watching HD video, but much better to read and write when you place it upright.
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7. Use the same cable to charge your smartphone. (Well, unless you have an iPhone)
The Surface 3 is not carrying the magnetic charger with other Surface, changed it to a micro-USB port using all mobile devices to load (except Apple).
Panay said the micro-USB connector was one of the features most requested by customers.
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8. It has three different positions easel
The support of the Surface line is its salient features, and improves with each release. The Surface 3 expands the number of positions to three desk, lap and sofa.
It is not as useful as the support of “continuous hinge” of the Pro 3 supports any angle, but is more versatile than one or two positions that allowed the previous Surface.
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9. Have a pen
The Surface Pen works on both the Surface Pro 3 and the Surface 3. It has a comfortable weight and thickness, and although you can not keep it inside the device, the advantage it is much more useful than a stylus.
The pen can be used to write, make screenshot, highlight text and activate One Note among other tasks.
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10. It has two HD cameras
The rear 8MP camera and front camera of 3.5 are capable of recording 1080p HD video.
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11. Its battery lasts 10 hours
The battery life is difficult to measure, but Microsoft says the battery of Surface must put up for a day of normal use. Microsoft claims that the battery is powerful enough to let you watch 10 hours of video on a single charge.
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