Microsoft has released the next generation Surface 4. It’s surrounded by mystery. The mystery is that nobody with a lick of common sense can figure out why anyone would buy one.
The entry model, with a puny 128GB of Solid State storage, an Intel I5 processor and 4GB of memory, sells for $999.00. The flagship Surface 4 Pro bundle with a decent Intel I7 processor, 16GB of memory, and 256GB of storage, lists for $1699.00, complete with a 30 day trial copy of Office that you also have to buy. Small discounts are currently available through Best Buy and Costco, among other vendors.
These are sealed units that cannot be upgraded with larger drives, additional memory, or even a new battery. What you order, you’re stuck with. Any new apps must be purchased directly from the Microsoft Store.
I’m sure there are those who will just rush right out there and buy the latest and greatest, but the question is this: Why would anyone want to do that?
You can buy yourself one hell of a laptop for half the money. A typical mainstream Intel I5/1 TB/8GB laptop goes for around $600.00, and you can usually get out the door with an I7/1TB/8GB laptop for around $1,000.00 or less, including some of the trendy skinny ones, if you shop with a purpose and a clear head.
Not recommended, unless you’re really hip.