Microsoft Surface Pro 3 doesn’t stand up to Apple’s MacBook Air and iPad

12 years ago

“Do you like your MacBook Air? How about your iPad? I ask because Microsoft is gunning for both of these devices with its new Surface Pro 3. Redmond’s idea is that you could replace both your MacBook Air (or other laptop) and your iPad (or other tablet) with this one thing,” Katherine Boehret writes for Re/code. “But I’m having a hard time going along with the plan — even after using the Surface Pro 3 for the past two weeks.”

“The Surface Pro 3 starts at $800. But like its predecessors, this Surface doesn’t ship with a keyboard, so you’ll have to shell out another $130 for its Type Cover keyboard. Grand total: $930,” Boehret writes. “The MacBook Air, which Microsoft insists on comparing to this Surface, starts at $900. It comes with a built-in keyboard that’s much sturdier than the magnetic clip-on accessory for the Surface Pro 3. While the cheapest MacBook Air’s display is 11.6 inches versus the 12-inch Surface display, it comes with 128 gigabytes of storage versus 64GB on the cheapest Surface Pro 3. It also has a faster processor (Intel Core i5 versus i3), and weighs slightly less (2.38 pounds versus 2.41 for the Surface with its keyboard).”

“folding the keyboard over and using this thing as a tablet is not an enjoyable experience. Its honking 12-inch screen feels big and bulky, and with the keyboard, it weighs more than twice as much as the one-pound iPad Air. Take off its keyboard, and the Surface still weighs more, at 1.76 pounds,” Boehret writes. “At its launch event, Microsoft continuously asked people to compare the MacBook Air to this Surface Pro 3. I’m sorry to say that I can’t recommend that comparison, nor can I recommend it as a replacement for your iPad or Android tablet.”

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MacDailyNews Take: If Microsoft’s latest debacle can’t even beat out an Android tablet, it’s as stillborn as its predecessors.