The Surface Pro 3 is the third-generation

Surface A surface, as the term is most generally used, is the outermost or uppermost layer of a physical object or space. It is the portion or region of the object that can first be perceived by an observer using the senses of sight and touch, and is ...

-series

2-in-1 detachable A 2-in-1 PC, also known as convertible laptop, 2-in-1 tablet, 2-in-1 laptop, 2-in-1 detachable, laplet, tabtop, laptop tablet, or simply 2-in-1, is a portable computer that has features of both tablets and laptops. Before the emergence of ''2 ...

, designed, developed, marketed, and produced by

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

. It originally ran the Windows 8.1 Pro

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...

(OS), but the optional upgrade to

Windows 10 Pro Windows 10 has several editions, all with varying feature sets, use cases, or intended devices. Certain editions are distributed only on devices directly from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), while editions such as ''Enterprise'' and ''E ...

(OS)

was later added.

History

The older, original

and

Surface 2 Surface 2 is a Surface-series Windows RT hybrid tablet computer created by Microsoft. It was unveiled on September 23, 2013, and released on October 22, 2013 and is the successor to the original Surface. As of January 2015, Microsoft no lon ...

, with their

ARM In human anatomy, the arm refers to the upper limb in common usage, although academically the term specifically means the upper arm between the glenohumeral joint (shoulder joint) and the elbow joint. The distal part of the upper limb between th ...

-based processors and

Windows RT Windows RT is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft. It is a version of Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 built for the 32-bit ARM architecture (ARMv7). First unveiled in January 2011 at Consumer Electronics Show, the Windows RT 8 operat ...

operating system, are pitched against the

iPad The iPad is a brand of iOS and iPadOS-based tablet computers that are developed by Apple Inc. The iPad was conceived before the related iPhone but the iPhone was developed and released first. Speculation about the development, operating s ...

and other tablets. The Surface Pro 3 (like the preceding Surface Pro and

Surface Pro 2 The Surface Pro 2 is a Surface-series 2-in-1 detachable produced by Microsoft. Unveiled at an event in New York City on September 23, 2013 and released on October 22, 2013, it succeeds the Surface Pro released in February 2013. While maintaini ...

), with its x64 Intel CPU and Windows 8 OS, is a full-fledged PC that competes against

Ultrabook Ultrabook is a marketing term, originated and trademarked by Intel, for a category of high-end laptop computers. They were originally marketed as featuring ultra thin form factor and light weight design without compromising battery life or per ...

s (particularly those

convertible laptops A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...

with touchscreens for a tablet functionality, flexible hinges, detachable keyboards, or sliders) and other high-end sub notebooks such as the

MacBook Air The MacBook Air is a line of ultrabook computers developed and manufactured by Apple Inc. It consists of a full-size keyboard, a machined aluminum case, and, in the more modern versions, a thin light structure. The Air was originally position ...

. The Surface Pro 3 was announced on May 20, 2014, at a

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

event, pre-orders were opened on May 21, 2014, and the first models were released on June 20, 2014 in the U.S. and Canada, with the Intel Core i3 and Intel Core i7 models released on August 1, 2014. The Surface Pro 3 was launched in 25 additional markets on August 28. On October 6, 2015, Microsoft released its successor, the Surface Pro 4 with a bigger screen with a higher resolution and reduced bezels, faster CPU options, a thinner body and improved cooling system.

Features

Hardware

The Surface Pro 3 has a body made of

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...

alloy giving a gray matted finish to the back of the device. The charging port is magnetized and connects securely to the charger. It comes with an improved kickstand, allowing the device to be set at any angle between 22 and 150 degrees. The kickstand has a high resistance which provides firmness and prevents accidental sliding. The Surface Pro 3 features a larger (screen display area 25.4 cm x 16.9 cm) display over its predecessor. The screen has a 3:2 aspect ratio which Microsoft claims allow the device to be used more comfortably in the portrait orientation. Because the touch screen digitizer and the pen digitizer are combined into a single layer, the screen is physically thinner than that of its predecessors, which improves viewing angle. Although the Surface Pro 3 has a larger screen than its predecessor, it is both thinner and lighter, weighing less. Microsoft claims the Surface Pro 3 is capable of up to 9 hours of web browsing. The Surface Pro 3 is built on the 4th generation

Intel Core Intel Core is a line of streamlined midrange consumer, workstation and enthusiast computer central processing units (CPUs) marketed by Intel Corporation. These processors displaced the existing mid- to high-end Pentium processors at the time ...

processor with TPM chip for enterprise security. It includes a USB 3.0 port and a Mini DisplayPort on the right, an audio jack on the left, and a

hot swap Hot swapping is the replacement or addition of components to a computer system without stopping, shutting down, or rebooting the system; hot plugging describes the addition of components only. Components which have such functionality are sai ...

microSD Secure Digital, officially abbreviated as SD, is a proprietary non-volatile flash memory card format developed by the SD Association (SDA) for use in portable devices. The standard was introduced in August 1999 by joint efforts between SanDis ...

slot on the back of the device. The microSD slot supports memory cards up to 200 GB. The internal

solid-state drive A solid-state drive (SSD) is a solid-state storage device that uses integrated circuit assemblies to store data persistently, typically using flash memory, and functioning as secondary storage in the hierarchy of computer storage. It is ...

and system memory are not user upgradeable.

External display connectivity

Like its predecessor, the Surface Pro 3 is capable of connecting up to three external displays. To connect a third display the 2-in-1's own screen should be turned off. The device itself has a single

Mini DisplayPort The Mini DisplayPort (MiniDP or mDP) is a miniaturized and less common version of the DisplayPort audio-visual digital interface. It was announced by Apple in October 2008, and by early 2013 all new Apple Macintosh computers had Mini DisplayP ...

output and in order to connect two external displays one can additionally use a secondary Mini DisplayPort on a docking station accessory (sold separately). To attach three (or fewer) displays, an aftermarket DisplayPort

Multi-Stream Transport DisplayPort (DP) is a digital display interface developed by a consortium of PC and chip manufacturers and standardized by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA). It is primarily used to connect a video source to a display device su ...

hub can be used or a daisy chaining feature of compatible displays. One of external displays can be attached over-the-air utilizing

Intel Wireless Display Wireless Display (WiDi) is technology developed by Intel that enables users to stream music, movies, photos, videos and apps without wires from a compatible computer to a compatible HDTV or through the use of an adapter with other HDTVs or monito ...

(WiDi) technology. In a single external display mode over DisplayPort, the i5 and i7-based models also support a resolution of 3840x2160 at 60 Hz, known as 4K Ultra HD.

Software

The Surface Pro 3 initially shipped with Windows 8.1 Pro, but since the Windows 10 release on July 29, 2015, new devices come with the updated OS pre-installed, eliminating the need to upgrade as is the case on existing devices. The Windows 10 upgrade, among other features, brings a ''Tablet mode'', which can be useful when device is used as a tablet, that is without a keyboard attached.

InstantGo

The Surface Pro 3 is one of the first 64-bit Windows devices that features

InstantGo InstantGo or Modern Standby (formerly Connected Standby) is a Microsoft specification for Windows 8 (and later) hardware and software that aims to bring smartphone-type power management capabilities to the PC platform, as well as increasing physic ...

(formerly ''Connected Standby''), allowing for smartphone-type power management capabilities. This allows for

Windows Store Microsoft Store (formerly known as Windows Store) is a digital distribution platform operated by Microsoft. It started as an app store for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 as the primary means of distributing Universal Windows Platform app ...

apps to update info (such as email) while the device appears off, and for the operating system to run automatic maintenance when connected to AC. The Surface will enter hibernation state after four hours of no activity, to further conserve battery power. With InstantGo active there is only one power plan available with a limited options. InstantGo is currently not supported when

Hyper-V Microsoft Hyper-V, codenamed Viridian, and briefly known before its release as Windows Server Virtualization, is a native hypervisor; it can create virtual machines on x86-64 systems running Windows. Starting with Windows 8, Hyper-V superseded W ...

is enabled, instead the device will enter hibernation each time it is put into

sleep mode Sleep mode (or suspend to RAM) is a low power mode for electronic devices such as computers, televisions, and remote controlled devices. These modes save significantly on electrical consumption compared to leaving a device fully on and, upon resu ...

Accessories

The Surface-series devices feature a ''Type Cover'' accessory, an attachable protective keyboard, which is sold separately, yet has continually appeared in every Surface ad since the launch of the original

. The Type Cover for Surface Pro 3 features backlit keys, is thinner and has an improved

touchpad A touchpad or trackpad is a pointing device featuring a tactile sensor, a specialized surface that can translate the motion and position of a user's fingers to a relative position on the operating system that is made output to the screen. Touchp ...

over its predecessors. It also has a magnetic strip which binds to the front bezel of the display for additional stability. The magnetic strip can also be used to elevate the position of the keyboard, which can help to comfortably use a Type Cover on a lap. The Surface Pro 3 is the first Surface device to feature an improved version of the Surface Pen, which is included with each device. In contrast to that from the earlier devices of the Pro line, which was based on

Wacom () is a Japanese company headquartered in Kazo, Saitama, Japan, that specializes in manufacturing graphics tablets and related products. Headquarters locations The main headquarters are located in Kazo, Saitama, Japan. Its office in the USA ...

technology, the Surface Pen of the Surface Pro 3 features N-trig DuoSense technology with 256 levels of pressure sensitivity. Microsoft also offers a

docking station In computing, a docking station or port replicator (hub) or dock provides a simplified way to ''plug-in'' a mobile device, such as a laptop, to common peripherals. Because a wide range of dockable devices—from mobile phones to wireless mou ...

, which adds five USB ports (including three

USB 3.0 USB 3.0, released in November 2008, is the third major version of the Universal Serial Bus (USB) standard for interfacing computers and electronic devices. Among other improvements, USB 3.0 adds the new transfer rate referred to as '' ...

), a

Gigabit Ethernet In computer networking, Gigabit Ethernet (GbE or 1 GigE) is the term applied to transmitting Ethernet frames at a rate of a gigabit per second. The most popular variant, 1000BASE-T, is defined by the IEEE 802.3ab standard. It came into use i ...

port, an additional

(which can be used simultaneously with the port on the Surface Pro 3) and a 3.5 mm audio socket for audio input/output. Some of Microsoft's wireless touch mice were restyled to match the Surface-series devices design, added where applicable a

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limi ...

connectivity and relaunched as ''Surface Edition'' series mice: Arc Touch Mouse Surface Edition and Wedge Touch Mouse Surface Edition.

Reception

The Surface Pro 3 has received positive reviews.

David Pogue David Welch Pogue (born March 9, 1963) is an American technology and science writer and TV presenter. He is an Emmy-winning correspondent for ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' and author of the "Crowdwise" column in ''The New York Times'' Smarter Livi ...

suggested "The upshot is that, with hardly any thickness or weight penalty, the kickstand and the Type Cover let you transform your 1.8-pound tablet into an actual, fast, luxury laptop". Pogue said that the Surface Pro 3's form factor works well as a tablet, in contrast to the Surface Pro 2, whose bulk and weight limited its appeal as a tablet. Pogue also stated that the new multi-stage kickstand, 3:2 screen aspect ratio, and new Type Cover 3 detachable keyboard made it a competent laptop. It has been suggested that the Surface Pro 3 comes closest to the

Microsoft Tablet PC Microsoft Tablet PC is a term coined by Microsoft for tablet computers conforming to a set of specifications announced in 2001 by Microsoft, for a pen-enabled personal computer, conforming to hardware specifications devised by Microsoft and runn ...

concept that company founder

Bill Gates William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American business magnate and philanthropist. He is a co-founder of Microsoft, along with his late childhood friend Paul Allen. During his career at Microsoft, Gates held the positions ...

announced in 2001, being the first Surface to become a credible laptop replacement. ''Time'' magazine included Microsoft Surface Pro 3 in the list of the 25 best inventions of 2014. The Surface Pro 3 received a repairability score of 1/10 from iFixit because of the use of a strong adhesive material throughout and the difficulty in removing the display.

Timeline

References

External links

Surface Pro 3 features

Surface Pro 3 update history
{{Microsoft Microsoft Surface Tablet computers introduced in 2014 2-in-1 PCs