Microsoft to end production of Surface 3 tablets

NEW DELHI: Microsoft is officially pulling the plug on its Surface 3 tablet by the end of this year. The device was launched in March 2015. "Since launching Surface 3 over a year ago, we have seen strong demand and satisfaction amongst our customers," Microsoft spokesperson told ZDNet website.

"Inventory is now limited and by the end of December 2016, we will no longer manufacture Surface 3 devices."

The Redmond-based tech giant said that there is no Surface 3 successor in the works so far. However, as per the report, Microsoft might be planning to bring new 2-in-1 tablets along with the next big overhaul of Windows 10 [codenamed Redstone] expected to take place in 2017.


Microsoft launched its Surface 3 tablet at a price tag of $499. The tablet is the younger sibling of company's Surface Pro 3 that was launched in the year 2014. It was targeted at students and other budget-conscious users. The device sports 10.8-inch full-HD display and ran Windows 8.1 OS out-of-the-box. However, the OS was upgradable to Windows 10. The tablet was launched in two variants based on RAM and inbuilt storage.

Microsoft's decision to stop the production of Surface 3 tablets, is expected to help push sales of Surface Pro 3, Surface Pro 4 and the Surface Book in the market. The Redmond-based tech giant launched its Surface Pro 4 tablet in India in January this year at a starting price tag of Rs 89,990. The 2-in-1 tablet comes in three variants based on the processor, RAM, and inbuilt storage.

The company is also said to be working on a Surface-branded smartphone. According to the latest rumours, this device is likely to arrive in the second half of 2016, but latest rumours claim that this timeframe has been further pushed to early 2017.