Microsoft's Surface family of devices is growing again.
The Surface Go is now official, and it's got a focus on portability and affordability. The new device features a 10-inch display, measures 8.3mm thick, and weighs 1.15 pounds. It'll be available for pre-order beginning July 10th at a starting price of $399 and will launch on August 10th.
Like the more powerful Surface Pro, the Surface Go starts out as a tablet. It's got a 10-inch 1800x1200 display with a 3:2 aspect ratio and a built-in adjustable kickstand. It's powered by an Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y with 4GB or 8GB of RAM and 64GB or 128GB of built-in storage. There's a microSD card slot included, too, in case those storage options aren't enough for you.
The Surface Go has a front-facing camera that you can use for Windows Hello facial recognition and a USB-C 3.1 port for charging as well as for data and video, and there's a 3.5mm headphone jack in there, too.
On the software side, the Surface Go runs Windows 10. The device comes with Windows 10 S mode enabled out of the gate, which means you can only use the Microsoft Edge browser and you only have access to the Microsoft Store for apps. You can flip over to the full version of Windows 10 for free if you'd like, though.
Microsoft plans to sell a Type Cover for the Surface Go if you'd prefer to type on your tablet with a physical keyboard. The Type Cover will start at $99 for the black version and will go up to $129 for the Alcantara, red, blue, or silver models. Other accessories will include a Surface Mobile Mouse for $34.99 and a Surface Pen stylus for $99.
Pricing for the Surface Go with Wi-Fi starts at $399 for the model with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of built-in storage and goes up to $549 for the 8GB/128GB version. Microsoft plans to offer a version of the Surface Go with LTE later this year, but there's no word yet on how much that model will cost.
The Surface Go looks to be Microsoft's latest attempt at the affordable, student device market, which has fierce competition in the form of Chromebooks and Apple's latest iPad. The fact that the Surface Go can run full Windows 10 and all of the apps that come with it make it an attractive little device, but we'll have to see what its performance is like before we get too excited about it.
What do you think about Microsoft's Surface Go? Does this little Windows device have your interest?
