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Microsoft's home-built ultrabook called Surface for Windows 8 Pro goes on sale Saturday and may be the Windows 8 device that best meets a wide range of corporate needs from tablet to desktop.
The device is built around an Intel i5 processor that gives it plenty of power to run intensive CAD-CAM applications, but it also has the capability and portability to perform as a tablet and notebook. At 2 pounds, it's light enough to carry around all day for workers whose jobs demand mobility. (Watch a slideshow of Surface's features.)
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Plus the device runs Windows 8, giving it the inherent security advantages the operating system has over Windows 7. And for those who don't like Windows 8, the 128GB version of the device has enough SSD space to run Windows 7 in its own partition.
There has been a good deal of complaining about the characterization of SSD storage capacity in Surface Pro. The models come with 64GB or 128GB drives, but significant chunks of those drives are unavailable as user space. Microsoft says only 23GB is available with the 64GB SSD and the 128GB version has only 83GB available. (The 128GB test loaner we had said 84.5GB was available.)
Microsoft says various external USB drives, cloud...