When Microsoft introduced the Surface Pro 7+ for Business earlier this year, it was designed strictly for business customers. Powered by an 11th-gen Intel Tiger Lake processor, the tablet was a bit more powerful than other Surface Pro 7 models, which had 10th-gen chips. It was also the first Surface tablet with a replaceable SSD.
Unfortunately, as the name suggested, the Surface Pro 7+ for Business was only sold through business channels… until now. Best Buy has recently begun selling a non-business version of the Surface Pro 7+. And while they’re similar in a lot of ways to the newer Microsoft Surface Pro 8, the Surface Pro 7+ is currently a little cheaper.
Best Buy is offering two Surface Pro 7+ configurations:
- Surface Pro 7+ with Core i3-1115G4/8GB/128GB for $930
- Surface Pro 7+ with Core i5-1135G7/8GB/128GB for $1030Â
Both of those configurations come with a Black Type Cover keyboard, something which normally costs extra. And both versions of the tablet feature a 12.3 inch, 2736 x 1824 pixel 60 Hz display, Windows 11 Home software, support for WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0, and 5MP front and 8MP rear cameras plus 1.6 watt stereo speakers.
By comparison, prices for the Surface Pro 8 start at $1100 for a model with an Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage – and you’ll have to pay extra for a Type Cover if you want a keyboard case (those tend to sell for around $100 to $280).
The Surface Pro 8 also features 11th-gen Intel chips and an access slot that allows you to remove and replace the SSD. But on top of that, the newer tablets have slightly larger, higher-resolution 13 inch, 2880 x 1920 pixel displays with a 120 Hz refresh rate, upgraded cameras and speakers (there’s a 10MP rear camera with 4K video recording support and 2MP stereo speakers), support for Bluetooth 5.1, and two Thunderbolt 4 ports.
So you do get a bit more if you pay extra for the Surface Pro 8. But after existing only as a business solution for most of the year, I suppose it’s nice to at least have the option of saving a few bucks by picking up the Surface Pro 7+ instead.
via TabletMonkeys
Smells like a run-out sale of old stock.
I sell Surface products at a computer store. We cannot get Surface Pro 8, they are as much as 60+ days backordered. We can still get 7 and 7+ fairly regularly thought.