Fast, quiet, powerful, and elegant, were the first four words that came to mind after my first encounter with the Surface Windows 8 Pro. A new paradigm, that’s the fifth, sixth, and seventh word that came to mind.
Let me begin by first thanking Russ, the manager of the Microsoft store at the Domain, in Austin, Texas, and his assistant Meg who were very gracious today in allowing me to spend some time examining the new Surface Windows 8 Pro tablet. They were both very informative, and Meg, a self-described “motorcycle person”, took the time to introduce me to some of the other products and services the store had to offer. Thanks again!
This is not an in depth review of the Surface Windows 8 Pro, but a quick first look at a device that I think is the beginning of a new way to look at tablets and other small form factor devices. The tablet, which is powered by an Intel Core i5 processor, weighs approximately 2lbs, which, is slightly heavier than the Surface RT. But, holding the tablet, I hardly noticed the difference. It is equipped with a USB 3.0 port, a microSDXC card slot, a mini DisplayPort, and comes with 64GB or 128GB of storage. It does not, however, come pre-installed with Microsoft Office 2013, which, has to be purchased separately as a standalone program or an Office 365 subscription.
The display is very sharp and clear, and words and colors appear crisp and vibrant. The tablet runs very quiet, and the heat vent, which borders the device, is not uncomfortable to the touch. Meg told me that the tablet I was using had been running “all day”, so even with prolonged use; heat dissemination should not be a problem.
Applications and web pages loaded quickly, and scrolling revealed no discernible lag. I wasn’t able to download or upload programs (Russ wasn’t that gracious) so I can’t comment on download or upload times. But having the ability to fully use Windows 8 Pro is a tremendous plus.
I’ll wait until after I’ve had more hands on time with the Windows Surface 8 Pro before I make a determination as to whether its performance justifies its price; but my first impression, is that it’s going to be worth every penny.
Further reading: Microsoft, Microsoft Store, Surface, Windows 8
