Microsoft’s Surface 2 tablets look remarkably like the original Surface tablets
Microsoft’s updated Surface 2 and Surface 2 Pro models land in New Zealand and 22 other countries on October 22.The new models feature a slimmer case, better 1080p display and considerably more processing power from the*Nvidia Tegra 4. You can read more about the devices in my earlier Surface 2 post.
Local prices are very close to the US prices once GST is taken into account:
Surface2 32Gb $649
Surface2 64Gb $799
Surface Pro2 128Gb $1449
Surface Pro2 256Gb $1879
Touch Cover 2 $184.99
Type Cover 2 $199.99
Microsoft appears to have gone for aggressive pricing when pitching the Surface 2, which replaces the unpopular Surface RT, against Apple’s iPad.

At $649, the 32Gb Surface comes in at $228 less than the $879 iPad. There’s exactly the same price difference between the $1179 64Gb iPad and the $799 64GB Surface.
Remember the Surface models come with a cut down version of Microsoft Office while new iPads now come with Apple’s iWorks suite as standard – a rare acknowledgment of competitive pressure from Apple.
Of course many people don’t regard Surface and iPad as head to head competitors, but if you just need a tablet and are not madly in love with Apple, the Surface 2 might just tickle your fancy.