Microsoft's highly anticipated
Surface RT has arrived. Thankfully, it's nothing like the dogs previous Windows
tablets have been
Windows RT, the version for ARM tablets of
Microsoft’s flagship OS, is finally available on a range of devices, including
its own Surface RT. The I0.6in screen provides a fraction more room in which to
maneuver than the iPad, but it’s just as thin as Apple’s tablet at 9.5mm. The
Surface is easy to squeeze into a bag, and it isn’t too heavy to carry, at
686g. An optional cover adds around 200g.
In contrast to the rounded iPad, the
Surface has a far more angular, businesslike yet sleek design. In portrait
mode, Windows 8’s tile-based interface looks odd, but held in its preferred
landscape mode the Surface promotes wrist strain. This tablet is very much
designed to be operated from a desk.
Microsoft
Surface RT
The kickstand is an important element. A
bracket flicks out at the tablet’s rear, in the process revealing a microSDXC slot,
which lets you add up to 64GB more storage, but the kickstand’s rake isn’t
adjustable.
Adding one of two keyboard covers creates
what feels like a pint-sized laptop. These keyboards are a genius invention.
The Touch Cover, just 3mm-thick with flat keys, initially feels strange in use,
although you quickly get used to it. Its pressure-sensitive touchpads are fine
for casual use, but serious typing demands the Type Cover. This is double the
thickness, but fitted with real keys.
Both keyboard covers click securely into
place, and you can even dangle the Surface from its cover without it hitting
the ground.
The Surface RT feels like a premium product
right out the box. We’d have been more impressed in this regard had it not been
for an unseemly gap on the rear, through which the internals are on display.
The VaporMG chassis, made from injection-molded
magnesium, makes the slab strong and nice to the touch; although, within
minutes, we’d tainted its absorbent finish with scores of fingerprints.
Performance
Windows RT can’t run regular x86 software,
making it all but useless when faced with legacy Windows programs. It’s
designed to run on ARM processors, and the Surface is fitted with a 1.3GHz
nVidia Tegra 3 quad-core chip and 2GB of memory.
There’s precious little software available
for Windows RT, which includes our usual benchmarking utility. Through Internet
Explorer 10.0 we were able to run SunSpider, in which the Surface recorded
1,024ms in the Desktop mode and 985ms in the Modern UI. Both scores trail the
iPad’s 854ms.
From the user’s perspective the interface
is extremely slick, just like Windows Phone 8. The interface animations are
smooth, and tasks such as pinch-zooming in Internet Explorer are responsive.
Apps don’t launch as quickly as we’d like,
though, and we were often left staring at Windows 8’s swirly dots for several
seconds upon first launch behavior we’ve previously noted in Windows Phone 8.
Windows
RT can’t run regular x86 software, making it all but useless when faced with
legacy Windows programs
At its comparable $638 price point, the
32GB Surface has twice the storage of the 16GB iPad 4. A microSDXC slot lets
you add up to 64GB more. There’s also a 64GB Surface RT, which costs $894
(including the Touch keyboard).
The 1366x768 pixel count is common on I5in
laptops, but on a I0.6in tablet it gives a higher I48ppi pixel density. The
screen looks good at a regular viewing distance, matching the Samsung Galaxy
Tab 2 10.1, but it’s no Retina iPad; look closer and fuzzy edges are noticeable
in reading type.
More than the usual Wi-Fi, the Surface has
two antennae for better wireless performance, plus Bluetooth. There’s also a
headphone jack, micro-HDMI, full-sized USB, and a keyboard dock and charging
port. The Surface won’t charge over USB, although this port accepts
peripherals.
Our experience of battery life bemused us.
We started the day with a full charge, and used the tablet for 90 mins while
shooting our video review, and 30 minutes browsing the web. The next day the
battery was flat. Microsoft touts a seven- to 15-day idle runtime.
More
than the usual Wi-Fi, the Surface has two antennae for better wireless
performance, plus Bluetooth. There’s also a headphone jack, micro-HDMI,
full-sized USB, and a keyboard dock and charging port
Softwhere?
Most interaction is via the touchy Modern
UI with its tiled design. Learn all the finger gestures and it’s a breeze to
navigate. One handy feature is the ability to configure multiple user accounts.
Logging into the tablet with our Windows Live account instantly populated the
tablet with our contacts, email and calendar. The Store lets you buy apps,
although many everyday utilities, including Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, Google
Maps and Dropbox, are missing.
The Surface includes a preview of Office
2013, which runs within the Desktop tile. This makes the Surface a great
portable productivity PC.
Bottom line
The Surface RT is a very well built and a
cleverly designed tablet. The hardware is mostly sound and Windows RT runs
smoothly, but lacks decent apps.
Specifications
General
·
2G Network: N/A
·
SIM: No
Body
·
Dimensions: 274.6 x 172 x 9.4 mm (10.81 x 6.77
x 0.37 in)
·
Weight: 680.4 g (1.50 lb) - Built-in kickstand
Display
·
Type: TFT capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
·
Size: 1366 x 768 pixels, 10.6 inches (~148 ppi
pixel density)
·
Multi-touch: Yes, up to 5 fingers - ClearType
technology
Sound
·
Alert types: Vibration, MP3 ringtones
·
Loudspeaker: Yes, with stereo speakers
·
3.5mm jack: Yes
Memory
·
Card slot: microSD, up to 64 GB
·
Internal: 32/64 GB storage, 2 GB RAM
Data
·
GPRS: No
·
EDGE: No
·
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct,
dual-band
·
Bluetooth: Yes, v4.0 with A2DP
·
USB: Yes, USB v2.0, USB Host support
Camera
·
Primary: 1.2 MP
·
Features: Geo-tagging
·
Video: Yes, 720p
·
Secondary: Yes, 1.2 MP, 720p@30fps
Features
·
OS: Microsoft Windows RT
·
Chipset: Nvidia Tegra 3 T30
·
CPU: Quad-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A9
·
GPU: ULP GeForce
·
Sensors: Accelerometer, gyro, compass
·
Messaging: Email, Push Email, IM
·
Browser: HTML5
·
Radio: No
·
GPS: Yes
·
Java
·
Colors: Dark Titanium
·
SNS integration
·
TV-out
·
Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
·
MP4/DivX/Xvid/H.264/H.263 player
·
MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player
·
Organizer
·
Image viewer/editor
·
Document editor/viewer
·
Bing Search, Maps, SkyDrive
·
Predictive text input
Battery
·
Non-removable Li-Ion battery (31.5 Wh)
·
Stand-by: Up to 360h
·
Talk time: Up to 8h
Tes
·
Display: Contrast ratio: 1324:1 (nominal)
·
Audio quality: Noise -82.6dB / Crosstalk
-81.7dB
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