Looking into buying a new Surface tablet? You've got two different devices to choose from now. There's the Surface Go, and the Surface Pro, which are very similar on the outside but rather different on the inside. Depending on what you're planning to use your Surface for, maybe you could save a few bucks on a Surface Go? Let's compare and contrast.
| Category | Surface Go | Surface Pro |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 Home in S mode | Windows 10 Pro |
| Display | 10-inch1800x1200216 ppi | 12.3-inch2736x1824267 ppi |
| Processor | Intel Pentium GOLD 4415Y | 7th Gen Intel Core m3 7Y307th Gen Intel Core i5-7300U7th Gen Intel Core i7-7660U |
| Storage | 64/256GB | 128GB/256GB/512GB |
| RAM | 4GB or 8GB | 4GB/8GB/16GB |
| Battery Life | 9 hours | 13.5 hours |
| Kickstand | Fully adjustable up to 165 degrees | Fully adjustable up to 165 degrees |
| LTE | Yes (coming) | Yes |
| microSD | Yes | Yes |
| Front camera | 5MP | 5MP |
| Rear camera | 8MP | 8MP |
| Windows Hello | Facial Recognition | Facial Recognition |
| Dimensions | 9.6 x 6.9 x 0.33 in(245 x 175 x 8.3 mm) | 11.50 x 7.9 x 0.33 in(292 x 201 x 8.5 mm) |
| Weight | 1.15 lbs (522 g) | 1.69 to 1.73 lbs (768g to 784g) |
| Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth | 4.1 | 4.1 |
| Speakers | Dual | Dual |
| Ports | USB-C 3.1, 3.5mm headset, Surface Connect | USB-A 3.0, Mini DP, Surface Connect, 3.5mm headset |
| Pen | Yes ($99 extra) | Yes ($99 extra) |
| Keyboard | Yes ($99-129 extra) | Yes ($129-149 extra) |
| Surface Dial support | Yes (off screen) | Yes (on screen) |
| Price | from $399 | from $799 |
By all accounts, the Surface Pro is the more powerful machine, but you're also paying a considerable amount more for it. If you don't need all the extra horsepower, and are comfortable using a small screen, you're likely better off with the Surface Go. The Surface Pro is great if you need a bigger screen and a little extra horsepower under the hood for creative or production purposes.
If you're a casual user that only ever uses their PC for light web browsing like Facebook and Twitter, streaming videos via Netflix, listening to music on Spotify, and occasionally editing a Word document in Office, the Surface Go is a great choice. If you're planning on doing anything more than that, including things like video editing, photoshop, or software development, with more than 20 tabs open in a web browser at one time, the Surface Pro is probably a better fit for you.
The Surface Pro is also a little more versatile when it comes to choice. While the Surface Go is only available in two configurations, the Surface Pro is available with three different processors, and three different RAM and storage options. The Surface Pro offers a low-powered Intel Core M3 processor with 4GB RAM, which isn't all that powerful but starts at $699. You could save yourself a few bucks by going for the slightly less powerful Surface Go instead, unless you prefer the bigger display.
