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QOTW: Apple iPad Air 2 or Microsoft Surface 3?

by Parm Mann on 12 June 2015, 16:31

Tags: Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)

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Following several years of massive growth, tablet sales are beginning to slow as smartphones get bigger and laptops get thinner. You could argue that the lines between such devices are blurring at a rapid rate, but tablets are still practical computing devices for a wide range of consumers, and with over 200 million units expected to ship this year, the industry's biggest names are battling for their slice of the lucrative tablet pie.

Two of the most prominent competitors are Apple and Microsoft, whose latest models - the iPad Air 2 and Surface 3 - go head-to-head with prices starting at £399 and £419, respectively.

 
Apple iPad Air 2
Microsoft Surface 3
Display Size
9.7in
10.8in
Resolution
2,048x1,536
1,920x1,280
Pixels Per Inch
264
227
Dimensions
240mm x 170mm x 6.1mm
267mm x 187mm x 8.7mm
Weight
437g
622g
Processor
Apple A8X
Intel Atom x7-Z8700
Memory
2GB
2GB
Storage
16GB
64GB
Front Camera
1.2 megapixel
3.5 megapixel
Rear Camera
8.0 megapixel
8.0 megapixel
Ports
Lightning connector
Headphone jack
USB 3.0
Mini-DisplayPort
MicroSD card slot
Micro-USB charging port
Headphone jack
Wi-Fi
802.11ac
802.11ac
Cellular
Yes, optional
Yes, optional
Battery Life
Up to 10 hours
Up to 10 hours
Operating System
iOS 8
Windows 8.1
Price
£399
£419

Both are impressive machines in their own right, yet while the base specifications appear similar, there are unique perks to each device.

Apple's iPad Air 2 is backed by an extensive app store, it has a fingerprint sensor, and as with most Apple products, there's a wide range of accessories readily available. With the Surface 3, Microsoft offers a built-in kickstand, a one-year subscription to Office 365, and if you're eyeing up a laptop replacement, there's the option of a Surface Pen or a backlit keyboard dubbed the Type Cover.

Plenty of food for thought, so let's hear it from you, the consumers. Given the choice, would you opt for an iPad Air 2 or a Surface 3? Let us know your pick, and your reasons for or against, in the comments section below.



HEXUS Forums :: 43 Comments

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Where's the slew of Android options that are better than both of them?
Toshiba Satellite Click Mini and a stack of £20s?
shaithis
Where's the slew of Android options that are better than both of them?

The Surface beats both Android an the iPad as it's a real PC with a proper operating system.
shaithis: exactly. Laptop does my mobile computing (Dell XPS 13 and is wonderful and light), tablet is for holiday media consumption (books, magazines & films) , quick browsing and phone does the phone calls. Give me 8" android tablet with Full HD screen and micro-sd slot and that is all I need.

The problem is that android has been limited on capacity of micro-sd (not sure if still true).

Plus with android I get to play with cyanogenmod - thereby satisfying my inner geek.
cjs150
shaithis: exactly. Laptop does my mobile computing (Dell XPS 13 and is wonderful and light), tablet is for holiday media consumption (books, magazines & films) , quick browsing and phone does the phone calls. Give me 8" android tablet with Full HD screen and micro-sd slot and that is all I need.

The problem is that android has been limited on capacity of micro-sd (not sure if still true).

Plus with android I get to play with cyanogenmod - thereby satisfying my inner geek.
Cyanogenmod has been pants for the past year or so. When I used to put Cyanogenmod on my S2, it felt like a new OS by Samsung. New ones are really quite buggy from experience.

I'd personally go surface, since the pen is super handy as a student for doing work on PDF versions of textbooks on the go, without having to carry around loads of paper.