Business version pricing shown

[netuser]

It looks like the Commercial version for the Surface 3 with 8.1 Pro will cost $50 more than the consumer version.
So, it will be cheaper to buy the business edition than to buy the standard model and then pay to upgrade it Windows to 8.1 Pro separately.
I see CDW is selling the 64GB commercial business version without keyboard for $549. So, that is $50 more than the $499 for the regular version you get from Best Buy or the Microsoft Store.
http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/Surface-3-64GB-tablet/3674365.aspx

Keyboards are listed for $114.99 so a usable minimum package is $664 plus the cost of a carrying case. They also list the 128GB model with 4GB RAM at $100 more.

Compared to the i3 Surface Pro that would be $928 with keyboard, you lose the i3's extra CPU power, ability to daisy chain displayport monitors, the more adjustable kickstand, larger screen with higher resolution and more screen real estate and 16x9 format that looks better for watching movies without letterboxing.
With the the Surface 3, you gain lower purchase cost, more compact size with less weight, no fans, longer battery life, lower resolution makes desktop more touch friendly and easier to read bigger icons and text, screen's more square shape is better for viewing documents and web pages than the more narrow 16x9 shape.

For people who have a desktop PC at their work desk for primary use and will use this device just for taking to conference rooms, travel and working from home, the Surface 3 seems like the better choice. With the Surface 3, workers should be able to charge it at home and bring the device to work for use for hours of back to back meetings without having to carry the charger around with them unless they are taxing the battery by doing presentations to external monitors and projectors.

For people who want to use it as their primary workstation and will connect to multiple monitors and do heavy processing that may be out of the scope of what the Atom can deliver, the Surface Pro will be the better choice. You should probably skip over the i3 and directly the to i5 version of the Pro if you have performance concerns at all because I don't know that the i3 in the base Surface Pro 3 is "that much" more powerful than the processor in the Surface 3.

 

[GreyFox7]

It looks like the Commercial version for the Surface 3 with 8.1 Pro will cost $50 more than the consumer version.
So, it will be cheaper to buy the business edition than to buy the standard model and then pay to upgrade it Windows to 8.1 Pro separately.
I see CDW is selling the 64GB commercial business version without keyboard for $549. So, that is $50 more than the $499 for the regular version you get from Best Buy or the Microsoft Store.
http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/Surface-3-64GB-tablet/3674365.aspx

Keyboards are listed for $114.99 so a usable minimum package is $664 plus the cost of a carrying case. They also list the 128GB model with 4GB RAM at $100 more.

Compared to the i3 Surface Pro that would be $928 with keyboard, you lose the i3's extra CPU power, ability to daisy chain displayport monitors, the more adjustable kickstand, larger screen with higher resolution and more screen real estate and 16x9 format that looks better for watching movies without letterboxing.
With the the Surface 3, you gain lower purchase cost, more compact size with less weight, no fans, longer battery life, lower resolution makes desktop more touch friendly and easier to read bigger icons and text, screen's more square shape is better for viewing documents and web pages than the more narrow 16x9 shape.

For people who have a desktop PC at their work desk for primary use and will use this device just for taking to conference rooms, travel and working from home, the Surface 3 seems like the better choice. With the Surface 3, workers should be able to charge it at home and bring the device to work for use for hours of back to back meetings without having to carry the charger around with them unless they are taxing the battery by doing presentations to external monitors and projectors.

For people who want to use it as their primary workstation and will connect to multiple monitors and do heavy processing that may be out of the scope of what the Atom can deliver, the Surface Pro will be the better choice. You should probably skip over the i3 and directly the to i5 version of the Pro if you have performance concerns at all because I don't know that the i3 in the base Surface Pro 3 is "that much" more powerful than the processor in the Surface 3.

Neither the Surface 3 or the Surface Pro 3 has 16 x 9 format and that's a good thing. However you can connect a 16x9 screen or project to a 16x9 screen if you want to.

You might need to check with them on the price ... maybe it includes the Pen although it didn't list it.
On the other hand it specifically states "no keyboard" but does not sate "no pen".

Costco has a bundle deal Surface 3, Black Keyboard and Black Pen for $100 over the base price. A savings of $80. i.e. 64GB Bundle 599, 128GB Bundle 699.

 

[malberttoo]

It looks like the Commercial version for the Surface 3 with 8.1 Pro will cost $50 more than the consumer version.
So, it will be cheaper to buy the business edition than to buy the standard model and then pay to upgrade it Windows to 8.1 Pro separately.
I see CDW is selling the 64GB commercial business version without keyboard for $549. So, that is $50 more than the $499 for the regular version you get from Best Buy or the Microsoft Store.
http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/Surface-3-64GB-tablet/3674365.aspx

Keyboards are listed for $114.99 so a usable minimum package is $664 plus the cost of a carrying case. They also list the 128GB model with 4GB RAM at $100 more.

Compared to the i3 Surface Pro that would be $928 with keyboard, you lose the i3's extra CPU power, ability to daisy chain displayport monitors, the more adjustable kickstand, larger screen with higher resolution and more screen real estate and 16x9 format that looks better for watching movies without letterboxing.
With the the Surface 3, you gain lower purchase cost, more compact size with less weight, no fans, longer battery life, lower resolution makes desktop more touch friendly and easier to read bigger icons and text, screen's more square shape is better for viewing documents and web pages than the more narrow 16x9 shape.

For people who have a desktop PC at their work desk for primary use and will use this device just for taking to conference rooms, travel and working from home, the Surface 3 seems like the better choice. With the Surface 3, workers should be able to charge it at home and bring the device to work for use for hours of back to back meetings without having to carry the charger around with them unless they are taxing the battery by doing presentations to external monitors and projectors.

For people who want to use it as their primary workstation and will connect to multiple monitors and do heavy processing that may be out of the scope of what the Atom can deliver, the Surface Pro will be the better choice. You should probably skip over the i3 and directly the to i5 version of the Pro if you have performance concerns at all because I don't know that the i3 in the base Surface Pro 3 is "that much" more powerful than the processor in the Surface 3.

FYI both S3 and SP3 are 3:2 displays. And you are correct, they are MUCH better than 16:9, which is IMHO worthless on a tablet.

I believe the 3:2 aspect ratio is one of the things that makes the latest Surface and Surface Pro devices awesome.

Good analysis.

 

[ptrkhh]

Is it possible to use the regular S3 for business use, as long as I don't use the 8.1 Pro capabilities? Or is it violating the T&C?

And yeah, as others mentioned, you haven't even out the comparison without adding the pen. And finally, the gap will be narrower in Canada and EU due to their S3 pricing strategy (which makes absolutely no sense to us Canadians and Europeans)

FYI both S3 and SP3 are 3:2 displays. And you are correct, they are MUCH better than 16:9, which is IMHO worthless on a tablet.

I believe the 3:2 aspect ratio is one of the things that makes the latest Surface and Surface Pro devices awesome.

I don't know why we got into the 16:9 craze in the first place. Its not good for practically...anything. Having used several 16:9 monitors and tablets, its not wide enough for watching movies, yet not tall enough for productivity. It might be the jack of all trades for casual users though. I myself don't have anything 16:9 now. My monitor is 21:9 ultrawide (like multi-monitor, but no bezel), and the SP3 is as you know, 3:2.

 

[netuser]

You can do business with any model you want. If you don't get the business model, it doesn't come with 8.1 Pro, so the computer can't join an active directory domain and you can't Remote Desktop into it from another computer etc..

 

[malberttoo]

I don't know why we got into the 16:9 craze in the first place. Its not good for practically...anything. Having used several 16:9 monitors and tablets, its not wide enough for watching movies, yet not tall enough for productivity. It might be the jack of all trades for casual users though. I myself don't have anything 16:9 now. My monitor is 21:9 ultrawide (like multi-monitor, but no bezel), and the SP3 is as you know, 3:2.

Yeah I use 16:10 monitors for my workstation at work. It may not seem like much compared to 16:9, but it is about the sweet spot for me. I will never go back to 16:9.