iPad Air 2 vs Surface 3: better specs in the budget device from Microsoft

(Apple/Microsoft)iPad Air 2 (left) vs Surface 3 (right)

With the budget laptop/tablet hybrid device the Surface 3 Microsoft hopes to take on premium tablets like the iPad Air 2, here is how the two compare.

Design

When it comes to comparing the build of the two devices both are equal, as the iPad Air 2 comes with an aluminum unibody while the Surface 3 opts to use magnesium. As for size the Surface 3 is taller, broader and thicker than its competitor. It is also much heavier weighing in at 622 grams compared to the 423 grams of the iPad Air 2. However, where the Surface 3 lags is that it does not have a fingerprint sensor like its competitor but instead comes with a dedicated pen which has to be purchased separately. The Type cover of the Surface 3 is also much better than the keyboard cases available for the iPad Air 2.

Display

The display of the Surface 3 is bigger, it measures 10.8 inches and has a resolution of 1920 x 1280 pixels and a density of 213 pixels per inch. Compared to this, the display on the iPad Air 2 measures 9.7 inches and has a resolution of 1536 x 2048 pixels and density of 264 pixels per inch.

Specs

In terms of specs, the iPad Air 2 lags behind it competitor. The iPad Air 2 comes with an Apple A8X chipset and a CPU with three cores clocked at 1.5 GHz. On the Surface 2 is an Intel Atom x7-Z8700 processor with four cores clocked at 1.6 GHz and it also has Intel Burst technology which can take it up to 2.4 GHz.

Memory

The Surface 3 either has 2GB or 4GB of RAM and it has a microSD slot which can be used to add external storage. As for internal storage 64 GB or 128 GB models are available. Compared to this the iPad Air 2 has 2 GB of RAM and does not have a microSD slot. When it comes to onboard storage, it ranges from 16 GB to 128 GB.

Software

Here the Surface 3 has a major advantage as it comes with Windows 8.1 while the iPad Air 2 comes with iOS 8.

Price

The 16 GB iPad Air 2 costs $500 while the 64 GB Surface 3 costs $500 and along with a Type Cover keyboard it comes to $630.

 

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