Microsoft Surface Pro 8: A superior Windows 11 tablet

Microsoft's latest Surface ushers in Windows 11 with an outstanding new Surface tablet.

- MARK HACHMAN

Microsoft’s Surface Pro 8 tablet arrives as Windows 11 (see page 25) goes out the door. Microsoft has already shipped one tablet this year, the Surface Pro 7+ (fave.co/3C0zXPZ), which rose to the top of our roundup of the best Windows tablets of 2021 (fave.co/3FWsIuO). Can the Surface Pro 8 improve upon it?

Yes. The Surface Pro 8 boldly strides forward with a larger, higher-resolution, faster screen, a revamped inking experience spearheaded by the optional Surface Slim Pen 2, and a pair of Thunderbolt ports that supplement the legacy Surface Connect charger. It’s a dramatic reworking of the iconic Surface Pro tablet line, and that’s enough to grab your attention.

SPECIFICATIONS

For now, there’s one important change in configuration between the Surface Pro 7+ for Business and the latest Surface Pro 8: The Surface Pro 8 lacks an inexpensive Core i3 option, and thus its base price is $100 higher, at $1,099. The good news is that all of the Surface Pro 8 options Microsoft is selling should offer enough computational power and memory for any buyer. Our review unit also lacked cellular capabilities, so we didn’t test those.

Microsoft continues to sell the Surface’s companion keyboard and the pen separately, though there’s an explicit keyboard and pen bundle that Microsoft will sell for an additional $279.99. The Surface Pro 8 has been designed with the new Surface Slim Pen 2 (fave.co/3jfy6zC) in mind, however, and Microsoft says you’ll experience reduced e-ink latency and lag if you use it.

Display: 13-inch PixelSense Flow (2880×1920, 267 PPI)