The Surface Pro is a first generation 2-in-1 detachable of the

Microsoft Surface Microsoft Surface is a series of touchscreen-based personal computers, tablets and interactive whiteboards designed and developed by Microsoft, running the Microsoft Windows operating system, apart from the Surface Duo, which runs on Andro ...

series, designed and manufactured by

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation, multinational technology company, technology corporation producing Software, computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at th ...

. The device ran a

64-bit In computer architecture, 64-bit integers, memory addresses, or other data units are those that are 64 bits wide. Also, 64-bit CPUs and ALUs are those that are based on processor registers, address buses, or data buses of that size. A comp ...

version of Windows 8 Pro operating system with a free upgrade possibility to Windows 8.1 Pro, and eventually also Windows 10. Initially announced as Surface for Windows 8 Pro on June 18, 2012, at a

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

event, Microsoft later renamed the device to Surface Pro, and launched it on February 9, 2013.

History

Microsoft did not take pre-orders for the Surface Pro. It was available for a purchase on February 9, 2013, in the United States, Canada and China, and was released on 23 May 2013, in the United Kingdom and a number of other countries.

Features

Hardware

The Surface Pro shares a lot of its design traits with its lower cost counterpart, the original Surface

hybrid tablet A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being compu ...

, announced on the same day. Both have the dark ''VaporMg'' coating over the same magnesium body and a 10-point multi-touch enabled screen with crack resistant

Gorilla Glass Gorilla Glass is a brand of chemically strengthened glass developed and manufactured by Corning, now in its seventh generation. Designed to be thin, light and damage-resistant, the glass gains its surface strength, ability to contain flaws, and ...

. The Wifi is 802.11 a/b/g/n. However, the resolution on the Surface Pro is higher and is 1920x1080, and the screen has a Wacom digitizer for pen input. Surface Pro runs a

dual-core A multi-core processor is a microprocessor on a single integrated circuit with two or more separate processing units, called cores, each of which reads and executes program instructions. The instructions are ordinary CPU instructions (such ...

1.7 GHz

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 ...

i5-3317U CPU, with a

Turbo Boost Intel Turbo Boost is Intel's trade name for central processing units (CPUs) dynamic frequency scaling feature that automatically raises certain versions of its operating frequency when demanding tasks are running, thus enabling a higher resulting ...

frequency of up to 2.6 GHz with a built-in Intel HD Graphics 4000. It has 4 GB of memory and a 64 or 128 GB

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 i ...

. Unique to the Surface and Surface Pro is the kickstand which can be flipped out from the back, propping the device up. The kickstand comes out of the devices at a 22 degree angle, the same angle the edges of the device are angled at. Along the right side of the device, the Surface Pro has a micro-SD card slot on top (with support for cards up to 200 GB), followed by the power port, and near the bottom, a

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 DisplayPor ...

to connect a number of external displays. The bottom of the device (dubbed the "accessory spine") contains the cover port to attach a Touch Cover or Type Cover. In addition to the magnetic attachments, the cover port on the Surface Pro contains a

pogo pin A pogo pin or spring-loaded pin is a type of electrical connector mechanism that is used in many modern electronic applications and in the electronics testing industry. They are used for their improved durability over other electrical contacts, a ...

connector. Unique to the Surface Pro, compared to the Surface tablet, is the addition of power connectors for compatibility with the Surface Power Cover. The left side of the 2-in-1 contains a full-sized

USB 3 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 '' ...

port, the volume rocker, and the audio jack. The power button is on the top of the device. On the front and back of the device are two 720p Lifecam cameras, and inside is a 42 Watt-hour battery. Other sensors include an

ambient light sensor An ambient light sensor is a component in smartphones, notebooks, other mobile devices, automotive displays and LCD TVs. It is a photodetector that is used to sense the amount of ambient light present, and appropriately dim the device's scre ...

accelerometer An accelerometer is a tool that measures proper acceleration. Proper acceleration is the acceleration (the rate of change of velocity) of a body in its own instantaneous rest frame; this is different from coordinate acceleration, which is acce ...

, gyroscope, and

compass A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with ...

Software

Surface Pro originally shipped with Windows 8 Pro, but was upgradeable to Windows 8.1 Pro. The Surface Pro is further capable of upgrading to Windows 10 Pro, which became a free upgrade for users since July 29, 2015.

Accessories

The 2-in-1 features two types of detachable keyboards: Type Cover and Touch Cover, both with an integrated

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. Touch ...

. The former is thick and has moving keys for a more traditional typing feel, while the latter is thin and its keys do not move. Both accessories additionally act as a protective screen cover and are sold separately. Later Microsoft introduced the Power Cover (with the Surface Pro 2), which is backwards compatible with the Surface Pro. Surface Pro is the first device in the Surface family to feature a stylus pen input. ''Pro Pen'' is based on Wacom

digitizer DigitizationTech Target. (2011, April). Definition: digitization. ''WhatIs.com''. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/digitization is the process of converting information into a digital (i.e. computer-r ...

technology. It is integrated with OneNote software which is also included with the Surface Pro and used for note taking and sketches. The Surface Pro includes a 48-

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...

power supply with additional 5 W USB port for charging other devices. In early 2016, Microsoft issued a recall for the cable used to connect Surface Pro, Surface Pro 2 and Surface Pro 3 chargers, but not the charger itself, sold before the 15th of July, 2015 due to the risk of electrical fire.

Reception

Surface Pro received mixed reviews from the computer hardware critics. While most praised the convertible nature of the device, which can be used both as a tablet and a laptop, its design and a precise pressure-sensitive pen, the typical complaints were a short battery life, bulkiness compared to traditional ARM-based tablets and excessive heat and fan noise during periods of heavy load. Other complaints included long response times when the computer was asleep, and even sudden shut downs in the middle of usage. With the release of the Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book, cooling issues were resolved. Microsoft engineered the computers to dissipate 60% of their heat through the metal body using a combination of heat pipes and copper sinks. The fans only activate under load, allowing the computer to run cold and silent.

Timeline

References

External links

* {{Microsoft Microsoft Surface Tablet computers introduced in 2013 2-in-1 PCs Sealed computers