Clash of the Tablet Titans : Microsoft Surface Pro 3 vs Apple iPad Pro

A cartoon supposedly from 2012 caught my fancy while surfing the internet. Though not very appropriate, it shows a side of the technology industry we all know and choose to ignore. Having said that, it's time to get down and dirty now.

One is a full-fledged work machine while the other is a fully blown candy crush machine. One is a laptop wearing a tablet’s cloths, while the other is a tablet that want’s to evolve and be something more. Do I sound biased? Please let me elaborate.

Microsoft’s Surface Pro 3 is essentially a laptop replacement machine, packing high end processors, RAM and storage enabling it to run legacy x86 software, all complemented by a full blown Windows 10 pro operating system to cater to all your productivity and entertainment needs. On the other hand, the iPad Pro packs an ARM based processor designed to run mobile applications. It comes loaded with iOS 9, the latest “mobile” operating system from Apple. No matter how beautiful mobile applications are, they are no match for a full featured desktop application, and that is the biggest differentiator between the Surface Pro 3 and the iPad Pro. For a device aimed at the enterprise market, that’s a huge let down.

Side by side comparison of specifications;

	Microsoft Surface Pro 3	Apple iPad Pro
Screen Size	12”	12.9”
Display Resolution	2160 x 1440	2732 x 2048
Dimensions	11.5” x 7.93” x 0.36”	12” x 8.68” x 0.27”
Weight	800 grams	713 grams (WiFi Only) 723 grams (WiFi + Cellular)
Battery Life	Upto 9 hours	Upto 10 hours (WiFi Only) Upto 9 hours (WiFi + Cellular)
Storage	64 GB/128 GB/256 GB/512 GB	32 GB/128 GB
RAM	4 GB/8 GB	4 GB (rumoured)
Processor	Intel Core i3/i5/i7	A9X with M9 Motion Processor
WiFi	802.11a/b/g/n/ac	802.11a/b/g/n/ac with MIMO
Bluetooth	4.0 with Low Energy technology	4.2
Location	Digital Compass	Assisted GPS with GLONASS Digital Compass
Ports	Full-size USB 3.0 microSD card reader Headset jack Mini DisplayPort Cover port Charging port	Lightning Connector Smart Connector Headphone Jack
Operating System	Windows 10 pro	iOS 9
Camera	5 MP/5 MP	8 MP/1.2 MP
Microphones and Speakers	Stereo Microphones Stereo Speakers	Dual Microphones Stereo Speakers
Sensors	Ambient light sensor Accelerometer Gyroscope Magnetometer	Touch ID Three-axis gyro Accelerometer Barometer Ambient light sensor
Kickstand Positions	Multiple (built in)	Single (with keyboard accessory)
Accessories	Surface Pen (bundled) Surface Keyboard ($130)	Apple Pencil ($99) Apple Keyboard ($169)
Price	$799 - $1799	$799 - $1079

Yes, the iPad Pro offers a better camera, better resolution, cellular data, more sensors, etc. But we are talking about and comparing two products, one that was announced in May 2014 and launched the next month, whereas the other which was announced 2 days ago and is still not on shelves. The reported (leaked) specifications of the Surface Pro 4, the next iteration in series speculated to launch in the next 2-3 months, has an upper hand in all the areas mentioned above (sans cellular data, yes).

What caught me napping was that Apple actually brought a Microsoft employee, Kirk Koenigsbauer, to the launch event to show off Microsoft Office productivity suite running on the iPad Pro, while the event itself was being streamed live on Edge, the new browser in Windows 10. This is the first time in Apple’s history that something has happened where a non-Apple product/OS had access to live stream, but that’s a discussion for another day.

We do not even need a close look at the iPad Pro to see that it heavily “borrowed” features from the Surface Pro 3. Heck, it even borrowed the “Pro”! So, the new iPad has a bigger screen (all Apple devices seem to be growing up these days), a stylus (Apple Pencil for you, which clearly is not just any other stick to write on your screen with, but the best stick ever, because it’s Apple) and a magnetic keyboard, which doubles as a kickstand. Somewhere up in heaven, Steve is looking down upon us all and crying. It’s a pretty well-known fact that he repeatedly criticised styluses and keyboards, always stating that small screens with beautiful touch is what Apple stands for. Tim first launched the new, huge iPhone Plus series phablets 6+ and 6S+ (which undoubtedly was a successful business decision, albeit one Steve would have never taken) and now has launched the iPad Pro, which may as well be the final nail in Steve’s coffin.

I may sound one sided in my opinions right now, but I’m a person who has followed both the companies since a while now and was always eager for new product launches. Apple actually used to pioneer revolutionary pieces of technology that was ahead of their time. What I do not understand is, why turn into someone who always plays catch-up now? You did that with the iPhone 6+ (Phablet), again with the Apple Watch (Smartwatch) and you are doing it yet again with the iPad Pro (2-in-1). The key difference is that while the iPhone 6+, being a phablet, survived having an ARM architecture and a mobile OS, what remains to be seen is will Apple be able to replicate the success with iPad Pro? We all remember what happened to Surface RT, don’t we? But Microsoft and Apple are two very different companies and I really want iPad Pro to succeed (Surface Pro series needs competition in the elite tablet segment), bit can Apple really pull this one off needs to be seen.

Will the iPad Pro find takers? That’s a question we all know the answer to. “Why?” seems like the bigger question, but even that is pretty self-explanatory.