Is Microsoft cleaning house before the holiday season? The company seems to be in a giving mood, as it is currently knocking $100 off the price of its Surface 2 tablet, selling the 32 GB version for $349, the 64 GB version for $449, and the 64 GB model with 4G LTE support for $579. Not too shabby.
The Surface 2, which dropped the "RT" label in its name but still runs Windows RT, was launched on October 22, 2013. Unlike the "Pro" model, this tablet sports Nvidia's Tegra 4 quad-core SoC clocked at 1.7 GHz. There's also 2 GB of memory and a 10.6-inch ClearType screen with a Full HD resolution and 5-point touch input.
Those who purchase the 32 GB model will only have 18 GB of available space, and there's just 47 GB of usable space on the 64 GB model. A microSD card reader helps make up the difference by providing up to 32 GB of additional internal storage.
The Surface 2 also includes a 5MP camera on the back and a 3.5MP camera on the front, dual-band Wireless N and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity, two microphones, Dolby Digital Plus speakers, a full USB 3.0 port, a microHDMI port, and five sensors. This tablet also comes with Microsoft Office 2013 RT at no extra charge.
The Surface 2 battery purports to provide up to 10 hours of video playback. The 4G LTE version's battery also offers 10 hours of video playback on a Wi-Fi connection, the battery is only rated for 7 hours when browsing the web on a 4G LTE network.
Although we're speculating here, it's possible that Microsoft may be getting ready to introduce a new Surface RT tablet in the near future -- hence the $100 discount to move current models off the shelf.
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