The Surface Pro’s long awaited release will begin with an exclusive launch event on at the Best Buy in Union Square in Manhattan tonight, Friday, February 8 just before the official release at midnight.  This is an invitation only event and the lucky guests will have the first chance to purchase the Pro.  Following the launch event the Surface Pro will go on sale at all Microsoft, Best Buy, and Staples stores in the United States and at some stores in Canada.

The Surface Pro’s success with consumers should be greatly aided by its superior availability than that of the stripped down Surface RT.  Upon the RT’s initial commercial release back in October, the tablet was only offered from Microsoft on-line or at their retail stores.  It was not until the middle of December when Surface RT’s finally hit Best Buy and Staples stores which combine for over 3,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada. 

The limited availability of the RT for its first month and a half, proved consumers were not so willing to shell out $500 for a product sight unseen, contributing to the modest sales. That is a mistake Microsoft has apparently learned from, since the Surface Pro will be distributed immediately by both Best Buy and Staples, in addition to its own stores.

For those who were disappointed with RT, the Surface Pro is a step up.  The Pro comes with twice as much storage capacity and RAM than the RT, a higher screen resolution, and a faster processing Intel CPU.  Of course, as the old saying goes “you get what you pay for”.  With all these additional features the Pro sports a heftier price tag also, starting at $900. 

Is the Surface Pro worth the price tag?  Will it be better received than its little brother the RT?  Those are questions consumers will answer with their pocketbooks as usual.

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