You can get your hands on the most basic edition of Microsoft’s Surface 3 for $499 on the Microsoft Store website in the U.S. It comes with 64GB of storage and 2GB of RAM, but what if you want a little more? You could pay $100 more for the 4GB version on the Microsoft Store site, or you might want to pay just $50 more for a mid-range option via other retailers, according to Liliputing.com.
Websites including CDW, MacMall, and PC Connection are selling a $549 version of the Surface 3 with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. If you aren’t interested in paying $599 for the edition with 128GB of storage and 4GB of RAM, this may be perfect for you.
The mid-range version has the same 10 hours of battery life and has Windows 8.1 installed. It has a 10.8-inch 1,920-by-1,280 display, as well as Wi-Fi 802.11 a/ac/b/g/n connectivity and Bluetooth 4.0. In terms of connectivity, the edition has one USB 3.0 port, a Mini DisplayPort, a microUSB charging port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Its quad-core Intel processor has an average speed of 1.6GHz, with a maximum boost clock of 2.4GHz.
If you’re looking for an alternative to the 64GB and 128GB, this could be worth trying, and it’s arguably at a comfortable mid-range price (considering its $499 and $599 counterparts).
It’s also yet another option to consider if you aren’t interested in paying $799 for a Surface Pro 3, marketed toward professionals and designers who want a few more features on their new toy. The Surface Pro 3 can be purchased with either 4GB or 8GB of RAM, and models go up to $1,549 on the Microsoft Store site.
Because the Surface 3 comes with Windows 8.1 pre-installed, you’ll be eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 10 when it debuts this summer. Windows 10 is the latest (and “last”) operating system from Microsoft.
