Surface Pro 3 vs. Surface Pro 1: Full specs comparison

The following is a comprehensive comparison of the Surface Pro 3 and Surface Pro 1 specifications, including details on CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

Compare With
Please enter device name or part of it
Surface Pro 3 image

Surface Pro 3

See at Amazon
Compare With
Please enter device name or part of it
Surface Pro 1 image

Surface Pro 1

See at Amazon

Surface Pro 3 Pros

Reasons that Surface Pro 3 is better than Surface Pro 1.

Newer manufacturing

2014 vs. 2012

Significantly faster CPU performance

Intel Core i7-4650U inside Surface Pro 3 has a 21% better multi-core CPU performance score than the Intel Core i5-3317U inside Surface Pro 1.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i7-4650U
1,236
Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i5-4300U
1,234
Surface Pro 1 - Intel Core i5-3317U
1,017
Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i3-4020Y
782
Supports larger memory

Surface Pro 3 supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface Pro 1. It supports up to 8GB versus 4GB of system memory on the Surface Pro 1.

Max system memory size
Surface Pro 3
8 GB
Surface Pro 1
4 GB
13% larger display

Surface Pro 3 has a 12-inch screen size 13% larger than the 10.6-inch Surface Pro 1.

Display size
Surface Pro 3
12-inch
Surface Pro 1
10.6-inch
About 12% lighter

Surface Pro 3 weighed 1.76 pounds, 12% lighter than the 2 pounds Surface Pro 1.

WeightSurface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Pound
1.76 lbs.
2 lbs.
Kilogram
0.80 kg
0.91 kg
Has one more port and slot

Surface Pro 3 has more ports and slots count than the Surface Pro 1. It has six versus five amount of ports and slots on the Surface Pro 1.

PortsSurface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
headphone jackYesNo
microSD card slotYesYes
Mini DisplayPortYesYes
Surface Charging ConnectorNoYes
Surface ConnectYesNo
Surface Touch/Type Cover ConnectorNoYes
Type Cover portYesNo
USB-AYesYes
Total65
Slightly more versatile connectivity

Surface Pro 3 has better versatile I/O connectivity than the Surface Pro 1. It has four versus three commonly used ports and slots on the Surface Pro 1.

PortsSurface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
microSD card slotYesYes
Mini DisplayPortYesYes
USB-AYesYes
headphone jackYesNo

Surface Pro 1 Pros

We couldn't find any advantages of Surface Pro 1 over Surface Pro 3.

Prices

Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.

Surface Pro 3 Price
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 (256 GB, Intel Core i5)(Windows 10 Professional 64 bit) (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Pro 3 (256 GB, Intel Core i5)(Windows 10 Professional 64 bit) (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$274.99
See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablet (1631) Silver - 256GB, 12in, Windows 8, Intel Core i5 - Renewed
 Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablet (1631) Silver - 256GB, 12in, Windows 8, Intel Core i5 - Renewed
By Microsoft
$158.00
$238.00 34% OFF
See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Pentium® Gold - 4GB Memory - 64GB eMMC - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model)
 Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Pentium® Gold - 4GB Memory - 64GB eMMC - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model)
By Microsoft
$379.22
$399.99 5% OFF
See at Amazon
Surface Pro 1 Price
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (2022), 13" 2-in-1 Tablet & Laptop, Thin & Lightweight, Intel 12th Gen i5 Fast Processor for Multi-Tasking, 8GB RAM, 256GB Storage with Windows 11, Platinum Microsoft Copilot
 Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (2022), 13" 2-in-1 Tablet & Laptop, Thin & Lightweight, Intel 12th Gen i5 Fast Processor for Multi-Tasking, 8GB RAM, 256GB Storage with Windows 11, Platinum Microsoft Copilot
By Microsoft
$789.99
$1,099.99 28% OFF
See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Pro Intel Core i5 4GB RAM 128GB SSD Windows 10 Newest Version (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Pro Intel Core i5 4GB RAM 128GB SSD Windows 10 Newest Version (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$238.57
See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (2022), 13" 2-in-1 Tablet & Laptop, Thin & Lightweight, Intel 12th Gen i5 Fast Processor, 8GB RAM, 256GB Storage with Windows 11, Copilot, Graphite (Renewed)
 Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (2022), 13" 2-in-1 Tablet & Laptop, Thin & Lightweight, Intel 12th Gen i5 Fast Processor, 8GB RAM, 256GB Storage with Windows 11, Copilot, Graphite (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$673.99
$749.99 10% OFF
See at Amazon

Specs Comparison

Availability

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Released20142012
Release Date
  • Introduced: May 20, 2014
  • Pre-ordered: May 20, 2014
  • Released: June 20, 2014
  • Introduced: June 18, 2012
  • Not available for pre-ordered
  • Released: February 9, 2013
PricingStarting at 799$
  • Intel® Core™ i5
    • $899 - i5 | 4 GB | 64 GB
    • $999 - i5 | 4 GB | 128 GB
Generations

Exterior

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Dimensions11.50” x 7.93” x 0.36” (292 mm x 201.3 mm x 9.1 mm)
Width: 11.50” (292 mm)
Height: 7.93” (201.3 mm)
Thickness: 0.36” (9.1 mm)
10.81” x 6.81” x 0.53” (275 mm x 173 mm x 13.46 mm)
Width: 10.81” (275 mm)
Height: 6.81” (173 mm)
Thickness: 0.53” (13.46 mm)
Weight
  • 1.76 lbs (800 g)
  • 2 lbs (910 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.

Display

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Size12 Inches10.6 Inches
Info
  • Resolution: 2160 x 1440 (3.1M Pixels)
  • Density: 216 PPI
  • ClearType Display
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Touch: 10 point multi-touch
  • Surface Pen support
  • Resolution: 1920 x 1080 (2M Pixels)
  • Density: 208 PPI
  • ClearType Full HDDisplay
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9
  • Touch: 10 point multi-touch
  • Surface Pen support (1st Gen)

Ports

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Surface Pro 3 Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
Left (1)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Right (3)
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.0 (5 Gbps)
  • 1 x Surface Connect
    Charging, Docking Station
Bottom (1)
  • 1 x Type Cover port
Under Kickstand (1)
  • 1 x microSD card slot
Surface Pro 1 Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
Left (1)
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.0 (5 Gbps)
Right (3)
  • 1 x microSD card slot
  • 1 x Surface Charging Connector
  • 1 x Mini DisplayPort
Bottom (1)
  • 1 x Surface Touch/Type Cover Connector

Internal Specs

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Processor
  1. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-4020Y
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.50 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 11.5W
  2. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4300U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.90 → 2.90 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4650U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.70 → 3.30 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 15W
  1. Intel® Core™ i5-3317U
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.70 → 2.60 GHz, 3MB SmartCache, 17W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-4020Y
    Intel® HD Graphics 4200
    20 Execution Units, 200 → 850 MHz
  2. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-4300U
    Intel® HD Graphics 4200
    20 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz
  3. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4650U
    Intel® HD Graphics 5000
    40 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz
  1. Intel® Core™ i5-3317U
    Intel® HD Graphics 4000
    16 Execution Units, 350 → 1.05 MHz
Memory
4GB 8GB
1600 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
4GB
Dual Channel Memory
Storage
64 GB 128 GB 256 GB 512 GB
SSD
64 GB 128 GB
SSD

Connectivity

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
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 Wireless 4.0 technology

Battery

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Size42.2 Wh42 Wh
Battery LifeUp to 9 hours of web browsing7-15 days of idle life
Power Supply
  • 36W proprietary power supply
    • USB-A output: 5W
    • Surface Connect: 31W
  • 48W proprietary power supply
    • USB-A output: 5W
    • Surface Charger: 43W

Software

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
OSWindows 8.1 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 10
  • Windows 8 Pro
  • Upgradable Windows 10 Pro
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office 30-days trialMicrosoft Office 30-days trial

Camera & Audio

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
Camera
  • 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video
  • 5.0MP rear-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video
  • 720p HD LifeCam front-facing camera with TrueColor Technology
  • 720p HD LifeCam rear-facing camera with TrueColor Technology
Audio
  • Front and rear-facing microphones
  • Front-facing stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio enhanced sound
  • Single microphone
  • Stereo speakers

Misc

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
InkingSupports Surface Pen
256 levels of pressure
N-trig Active Pen technology
Supports Surface Pen
1,024 levels of pressure
Wacom Active Pen technology
Can be attached to charging port
Included with purchase
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
Security
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
-
In the box
  • Surface Pro 3
  • Surface Pen
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
  • Surface Pro (1st Gen)
  • Surface Pro Pen
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
More
  • Mechanical features: Signature unibody magnesium design with hidden perimeter venting
  • Kickstand with a full-friction multiposition hinge to 150 degrees
  • Magnetic attach for keyboard fold stability
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power
  • Casing: VaporMg
  • Kickstand: 1 position at 22°
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power

Key Features

Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 1
At Glance
Released in Mid
2014
3:2 2.1K
12”
1440p 60Hz
Weight
1.76 lb
0.80 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-4650U
2C/4T, 1.70 → 3.30 GHz
Geekbench 5
632
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,236
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 5000
40 Execution Units, 200 → 1100 MHz
Configurable up to
8GB
1600 MHz LPDDR3
Surface Pro 3 Ports
Released in Mid
2012
16:9 FHD
10.6”
1080p 60Hz
Weight
2 lb
0.91 kg
Powered By
Intel Core i5-3317U
2C/4T, 1.70 → 2.60 GHz
Geekbench 5
460
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,017
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® HD Graphics 4000
16 Execution Units, 350 → 1.05 MHz
4GB
1600 MHz DDR3
Surface Pro 1 Ports

Comments

Ask questions or share your thought and experience about the comparison between Surface Pro 3 and Surface Pro 1.

Loading Comments...