Happy days for those of us who haven’t picked up the first, and fairly powerful Surface Pro 1 yet. Microsoft’s just announced that it’s slashing R1 000 (US$100) off the price of its 64, 128 and 256GB models. The sale pricing is available on the Microsoft Store, right now and the offer ends 31 December 2013.
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Currently, there are only two models available for purchase on the US Microsoft Store, the 64 and 128GB models, priced at R7 000 (US$699) and R8 000 (US$799) respectively. For your money, Microsoft is also throwing in a month of Office 365 which is a fair enough deal, as the “world’s favourite” productivity app starts from R1 000 (US$99) if brought new.
What you won’t get for your coin is the Touch or Type keyboard cover, which is a must-have if you’re going the Surface Pro route. The Windows 8 tablet is less interesting and usable without one. Touch covers start at R800 (US$79) so you can use the money you saved to purchase one. Trust us, you’ll need it.
It’s possible to get a Surface Pro for R3 000 less, if you trade in an old iPad or iPhone that is. Last month, Microsoft announced a gift card exchange program that offers a “minimum US$200 gift card” for trading in an iPhone 4S, 5 or an iPad 2,3 or 4.
The tech specs of the original Surface Pro is still pretty damn impressive. A 10.6″ full HD display, 4GB RAM, a Core i5 CPU, Windows 8 Pro, two 720p cameras and an optional Pen makes up a very impressive package. While the sales of the Surface are admittedly terrible, this price cut could see it landing in a few more hands before the Surface Pro 2 removes its predecessor from this mortal coil.
Be warned, this offer does not include the new Surface Pro 2 models. Microsoft points this out in fine print at the bottom of its offer. If this new offer is taken up in combination with the iDevice trade in, a 64GB Surface Pro would only cost R5 000 (US$499), or the price of the latest 16GB iPad Air. In that case, you’d be choosing power over prettiness. And that, is one hell of a hard choice to make.
