Microsoft has started accepting pre-orders for its tablet Surface with Windows RT in 8 countries from October 16. While the official launch is on Oct. 26, 2012 i.e. the release date for Windows 8, customers in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and the United States can head over to the Surface website for a special limited-quantity pre-order for Surface with Windows RT. According to the Microsoft Store website the tablet will be available in 32 GB & 64GB variants. The innovative Touch Cover is by default available in Black colour, but users can opt for White, Cyan, Magenta, and Red. Below is the list of prices for Surface with Windows RT in the US market:

32 GB without Black Touch Cover: $499.00 (approx Rs 26,300)

32 GB with Black Touch Cover: $599.00 (approx Rs 31,500)

64 GB with Black Touch Cover: $699.00 (approx Rs 37,000)

The coloured Touch Covers will cost you $119.99 (approx 6,000 INR) and if you want Type Cover in Black, which includes moving keys for old school typing, it can set you back by $129.99 (approx. 6,800 INR). For customers interested to know more about this tablet, Microsoft has listed its tech specs in the official press release. Have a look at the specs below:

• Surface with Windows RT comes with Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 RT Preview (which includes Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote).
• NVIDIA T30 CPU with 2 GB of RAM
• 10.6" ClearType HD Display with resolution of 1366 x768 pixels and 5-point multi-touch
• 16 or 32 GB internal memory
• Two 720p HD cameras both front and rear-facing
• Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) & Bluetooth 4.0
• Full-size USB 2.0, microSDXC card slot, headset jack, HD video out port, cover port
• Ambient light sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, compass
• Up to 8 hours battery backup on average use and 7 to 15 days of standby
• Two microphones, stereo speakers
• Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 RT Preview (Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote), Windows Mail and Windows Messaging, SkyDrive, Windows Internet Explorer 10, Bing, Xbox Music, Xbox Video, and Xbox Games
• Measures 10.81 x 6.77 x 0.37 inches and weighs 1.5 pounds (approx .680 kgs)
• One-year limited hardware warranty

Previous rumours citing the prices to be around 600 dollars (Rs 34,000) have been finally confirmed but for the meanwhile we still remain unaware of the pricing and availability of Surface with Windows 8 Pro that has beefier specs and is capable of current Windows 7 desktop applications. 

TAGS: Microsoft, Windows, Surface, Swagatam