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Surface 3 vs. Surface RT - Detailed Specs Comparison

Here's what you need to know what's different between Surface 3 and Surface RT specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

BY Evan Forrest November 15, 2023

Surface 3 vs. Surface RT

The 2015 Surface 3 features the 2W Intel Cherry Trail quad-core Intel Atom x7-Z8700 with the boost speed up to 2.40 GHz. While the 2012 Surface RT features the quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 with the boost speed up to 1.40 GHz.

If you are in the market looking for a laptop and don't know what's the difference between the 10.8″ Surface 3 (2015) and the 10.6″ Surface RT (2012), we have a detailed tech specs comparison between both devices for you to check out here.

Surface 3 vs. Surface RT: Specs Comparison

	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it Surface 3 See at Amazon	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it Surface RT See at Amazon
Key Features
What's new	New design It’s now thinner (8.7mm), new tablet-friendly 3:2 aspect-ratio form factor, and new Microsoft Logo on the kickstand. Full Windows 8.1 You can run all your desktop apps and upgradable to Windows 10. Better display New bigger and better 10.8” Full HD Plus display with 10 points multitouch. Inking supports It now supports a new Surface Pen with 256 pressure sensitivity, tail eraser, and remote Bluetooth activation. New CPU Architecture It’s now using the new quad-core Intel® Atom™ x7 processor for outstanding performance and long battery life. New kickstand Now in three angles. New Micro-USB port It can be charged with any mobile phone charger. More Better 8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera, new Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac), and optional 4G LTE.	Windows RT Microsoft's touch-centric OS is explicitly made for ARM-powered tablet devices. Free Microsoft Office 2013 RT It was shipped with the RT version of Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook 2013. Kickstand It comes with an integrated kickstand easy to switch between tablet and laptop mode. Detachable Touch & Type Cover Be more productive with a full-size keyboard doubling as a protective screen cover. More Magnet charging connector, Full-size USB 2.0 port, Bluetooth 4.0, HD front and rear camera.
What's missing	No magnet charging port replaced with the new Micro-USB port. Slower Charging The new Micro-USB has a limited power delivery (13W) compared to its older propriety 24W charger.	Can't run desktop apps You can't run desktop apps (x86 or x64) on this device. The only way to get apps is through the Windows Store. No Windows 10 The latest OS you can get is Windows RT 8.1 Update 3 Less multitouch support It supports only 5-points multitouch. More Only HD display and no USB 3.0 port.

Availability	Surface 3	Surface RT
Released	2015	2012
Release Info	Introduced: March 21, 2015 Pre-ordered: March 21, 2015 Released: May 5, 2015	Introduced: June 18, 2012 Not available for pre-ordered Released: October 26, 2012
Pricing	Surface 3 Wi-Fi $499 - 2 GB \| 64 GB $599 - 4 GB \| 128 GB Surface 3 4G LTE $599 - 2 GB \| 64 GB $699 - 4 GB \| 128 GB	Surface RT $499 - 2 GB \| 32 GB $599 - 2 GB \| 64 GB Surface RT with Black Touch Cover $599 - 2 GB \| 32 GB $699 - 2 GB \| 64 GB

Surface 3 Price
	Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5" Touch-Screen Intel Core i5-8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive (PKX-00003) Matte Black (Renewed) By Microsoft $297.00 $319.00 7% OFF	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface Pro 3 (128 GB, Intel Core i5) (Renewed) By Microsoft $192.00	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface 3 128GB WiFi Tablet 10.8" Intel Atom - Silver (Renewed) By Microsoft $185.06 $199.94 7% OFF	See at Amazon
Surface RT Price
	Microsoft Surface RT 32GB (Renewed) By Microsoft $99.00	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface RT (32GB) By Microsoft $210.00	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface RT 64GB By Microsoft $319.99	See at Amazon

Display	Surface 3	Surface RT
Size	10.8 Inches	10.6 Inches
Info	Resolution: 1920 x 1280 (2.4M Pixels) Density: 214 PPI Aspect ratio: 3:2 Inking: supports Surface Pen Touch: 10 points multi-touch	Resolution: 1366 x 768 (1M Pixels) Density: 148 PPI Aspect ratio: 16:9 ClearType HD Display Touch: 5 points multi-touch

Exterior	Surface 3	Surface RT
Size Comparison
Dimensions	10.52” x 7.36” x 0.34” (267 mm x 187 mm x 8.7 mm) Width: 10.52” (267 mm) Height: 7.36” (187 mm) Thickness: 0.34” (8.7 mm)	10.81” x 6.77” x 0.37” (275 mm x 172 mm x 9.4 mm) Width: 10.81” (275 mm) Height: 6.77” (172 mm) Thickness: 0.37” (9.4 mm)
Weight	Surface 3: 1.37 lbs (621 g) Surface 3 with Keyboard: 1.95 lbs (884 g)	1.5 lbs (680 g)
Colors	Silver	Dark Titanium
Keyboard and Trackpad	Surface Type Cover Not included Keyboard: Activation: Moving (mechanical) keys Layout: QWERTY, full row of function keys (F1-F12) 4 directional keys; Windows and Media Controls Keys; LED backlighting Trackpad: Precision glass trackpad. Supports up to three-finger multitouch gesture.	Surface Type Cover Not included Keyboard: Activation: Moving (mechanical) keys. Layout: QWERTY, full row of function keys (F1-F12). 4 directional keys; Windows and Media Controls Keys. Trackpad: Two-finger multitouch gesture trackpad.
Ports	1 x Full-size USB 3.0 1 x microSD™ card reader 1 x Micro USB charging port 1 x Headset jack 1 x Mini DisplayPort 1 x Cover port 1 x Nano SIM card slot (Surface 3 with LTE only)	1 x Full-size USB 2.0 1 x microSD™ card reader 1 x Surface Charging Port 1 x Headset jack 1 x Micro HDMI video out port 1 x Cover port

Internal Specs	Surface 3	Surface RT
Processor	Intel® Atom™ x7-Z8700 4 cores, 4 threads, 1.60 → 2.40 GHz, 2MB Cache, 2W	NVIDIA Tegra 3 4 cores, 1.30 → 1.40 GHz, 1MB Cache,
Integrated Graphics	Intel® Atom™ x7-Z8700 Intel® HD Graphics 16 Execution Units, 20 → 600 MHz	NVIDIA Tegra 3 NVIDIA GeForce ULP graphics 12 Graphics Cores,
Memory	2GB 4GB 1600 MHz DDR3 SDRAM.	2GB of RAM
Storage	64GB 128GB eMMC	32GB 64GB Storage

Connectivity	Surface 3	Surface RT
Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 5: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible.	Wi-Fi 4: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n compatible.
Bluetooth	Bluetooth Wireless 4.0 technology	Bluetooth 4.0 low energy technology
	Optional LTE Nano SIM Tray GPS Assisted GPS GLONASS

Battery	Surface 3	Surface RT
Size	27.5 Wh	31.5 Wh
Battery Life	Up to 10 hours of video playback	Up to 8 hours of video playback
Power Supply	13W Micro USB power supply	24W proprietary power supply

Software	Surface 3	Surface RT
OS	Windows 8.1 Pro Upgradable to Windows 10 Pro	Windows RT Upgradeable to Windows RT 8.1 Update
Built-in Apps	1-Year Microsoft Office 365 Personal	Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 RT

Camera & Audio	Surface 3	Surface RT
Camera	3.5MP front-facing camera with 1080p HD video 8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p HD video	720p HD LifeCam front-facing camera with TrueColor Technology 720p HD LifeCam rear-facing camera with TrueColor Technology
Audio	Single microphone Front-facing stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio enhanced sound	Dual microphones Stereo speakers

Misc	Surface 3	Surface RT
Inking	Supports Surface Pen 256 levels of pressure N-trig Active Pen technology
Sensors	Ambient light sensor Proximity sensor Accelerometer Gyroscope Magnetometer Digital compass	Ambient light sensor Accelerometer Gyroscope Compass
In the box	Surface 3 Power supply Quick Start Guide Safety and warranty documents	Surface RT Power supply Quick Start Guide Safety and warranty documents
Warranty	One-year limited hardware warranty
More	Casing: Magnesium Kickstand: 3 positions Physical buttons: volumes, power	Casing: VaporMg Kickstand: 1 position at 22° Physical buttons: volumes, power