The differences between the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3 and the Surface Pro 2

Whenever apple releases the new version of an existing product, the Internet abounds with comparisons of every square millimeter of the old iProduct against its new replacement; it's a kind of "spot the changes" challenge for the technophiles of the world. Microsoft doesn't have the same caliber of crazed and introspective fans, but come June 20, 2014, the Surface Pro 3 tablet will arrive with both guns blazing and the changes are noteworthy. Here are all of the differences between the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3 and the outgoing Surface Pro 2:

How much bigger is the Surface Pro 3 than the Surface Pro 2?
The most easily discernible difference between the Surface Pro 3 and the Surface Pro 2 is the overall size - the new Surface is much larger, yet it's thinner and actually lighter. The aspect ratio of the new Surface Pro 3 is also more square, matching more the aspect ratio of your typical laptop or computer monitor. That squished 16:9 aspect ratio of the Surface 2 has been nicely rounded out; while you'll now start to see black bands above and below 16:9 movies and videos, it's certainly nice to have the extra real estate.

Surface Pro 2 dimensions: 10.81" x 6.81" x 0.53"
Surface Pro 3 dimensions: 11.5” x 7.93” x 0.3”

Surface Pro 2 weight: 2 lbs
Surface Pro 3 weight: 1.76 lbs

Horsepower & Storage: RAM and storage memory remain unchanged at:

64GB or 128GB storage with 4GB RAM
256GB or 512GB storage with 8GB RAM

However, the new Surface Pro 3 is available with a wider array of processors. The old Surface Pro 2 only had the option of the 4th generation Intel® Core™ i5 Processor, while the new Surface Pro 3 offers an i3, i5, and an i7.

Input/Output: The new unit remains unchanged, the Surface Pro 3 has the same full-sized USB 3.0 port, microSD card reader, Headset jack, Mini DisplayPort, and Cover port as the Surface Pro 2.

Display resolution: The maximum resolution of the Surface Pro 2 is 1920x1080 while the new Surface Pro 3's screen has 2160x1440 pixels.

Surface Pro 2 pen using Wacom Touch Feel technology (top) compared with
the new Surface Pro 3 pen (bottom) which uses N-trig technology.

Interface: The Surface 2 used a combination of capacitive touch screen and Wacom Touch Feel-compatible screen and stylus, the new Surface 3 has moved to N-trig technology. The Wacom stylus had 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity while the N-trig only has 256. My experience using both technologies would give the edge in responsiveness, accuracy, and performance to the Wacom device... in essence, the older Surface 2 has (had) a better stylus technology.

Both devices also have (presumably the equivalent) an Ambient light sensor, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, and Magnetometer.


Peripherals: The click-in connectors on all of the Surface Pro tablets are identical, making covers interchangeable... so yeah, your Remix cover is still compatible...

True die-hards type entire essays using only this keyboard.

... but the new Surface Pro 3 is larger, remember? So the old covers (sized for a 10-inch display) work just fine as keyboards, but there's almost a 1"gap all around the edge, not protecting your screen.

The increased dimensions of the new Surface Pro 3 also means that the Surface Pro 3 docking stations are incompatible. The old dock had a single USB 3 and three USB 2 ports. The new one has two USB 2 ports and three USB 3 ports, a 4K mini-DisplayPort connector, and a Gigabit Ethernet port instead of the 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet wired connection of the Surface Pro 2.

If you have any extra Surface power adapters or wish to just use your old one in a pinch, well, that's one of those few areas where the Surface Pro 3 is completely different and you will not be able to recharge or power your new tablet with the old charger. Apple did this with the Lightning connector, so chalk it up to the cost of owning a next-gen tablet.


How good are the cameras?
The Surface Pro 2 had limited cameras of around 1 megapixel resolution, front and back, but the Surface Pro 3 has been beefed up in the photography/videography department and both cameras are now 5 Megapixel units. The Surface 2 was only capable of 720P video resolution, the Surface 3 will now record video at 1080p. The monophonic microphone on the Surface Pro 2 has been upgraded to two microphones recording in stereo.

Price comparison:Both the Surface Pro 2 and a comparably-equipped Surface Pro 3 start at essentially the same price (although the 64GB version of the Surface Pro 3 has the i3 processor while the older Surface Pro 2 has an i5) and since the Surface Pro 2 is no longer available on the Microsoft store (the lineup has changed), price comparisons are moot and frankly you're probably going to see some great bargains on leftover stock of the older tablet.

But for a nice price baseline, the fastest i7 processor, 512GB of ram, Office 365 Home, Microsoft Complete for Surface Pro, Surface Pro Type Cover, Touch Mouse Surface Edition, and Tablet Sleeve, comes to about $2,300 before taxes...