Microsoft eventually released a budget version of its Surface tablets. The new 10-inch Microsoft Surface Go is available for pre-order at Microsoft’s store, Noel Leeming and JB Hifi. It costs $699 inclusive of GST and will start shipping on August 28th.
The Surface and Surface Pro tablets have been criticised for being too expensive for the average consumer. The lower-priced Surface Go opens up an entirely new market for Microsoft. The company will now be able to directly compete with Android-based tablets like Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 and Huawei MediaPad.
Surface Go resembles the Pro version externally even though it’s smaller in size. It sports the Surface stand and the popular Surface port for desktop docking and charging. There’s now also a USB-C 3.1 port. Furthermore, the camera supports face recognition for a seamless login.
A down-scaled version of Windows 10 called S-mode is the default mode for the operating system. However, it’s possible to run the full version of Windows 10 if required.
Hardware specs
Surface Go is powered by the Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y processor. There are two memory and storage configurations to choose from:
- 4 GB RAM with 64 GB storage
- 8 GB RAM with 128 GB storage
The screen features an aspect ratio of 3:2 and has a resolution of 1,800 x 1,200 px.
Discount for students
It’s worth noting that students and parents receive a discount of $35 when purchasing Surface Go.
