Surface RT vs. Surface Go 2: Full specs comparison

The following is a comprehensive comparison of the Surface RT and Surface Go 2 specifications, including details on CPU, memory, storage, battery life, display quality, and other features.

Surface RT Pros

We couldn't find any advantages of Surface RT over Surface Go 2.

Surface Go 2 Pros

Reasons that Surface Go 2 is better than Surface RT.

Much newer manufacturing

2020 vs. 2012

Supports larger memory

Surface Go 2 supports a larger memory capacity than the Surface RT. It supports up to 8GB versus 2GB of system memory on the Surface RT.

Max system memory size
Surface Go 2
8 GB
Surface RT
2 GB
About 21% lighter

Surface Go 2 weighed 1.2 pounds, 21% lighter than the 1.5 pounds Surface RT.

WeightSurface RTSurface Go 2
Pound
1.5 lbs.
1.2 lbs.
Kilogram
0.68 kg
0.54 kg

Prices

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

Surface RT Price
Microsoft Surface RT 32GB (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface RT 32GB (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$99.00
Microsoft Surface RT (32GB)
Microsoft Surface RT (32GB)
By Microsoft
$210.00
Microsoft Surface RT 64GB
Microsoft Surface RT 64GB
By Microsoft
$319.99
Surface Go 2 Price
New Microsoft Surface Go 2 - 10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 4GB Memory - 64GB - Wifi - Platinum (Latest Model)
New Microsoft Surface Go 2 - 10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 4GB Memory - 64GB - Wifi - Platinum (Latest Model)
By Microsoft
$239.00
Microsoft Surface Go 2-10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - WiFi - Platinum (Latest Model) (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Go 2-10.5" Touch-Screen - Intel Pentium - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - WiFi - Platinum (Latest Model) (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$272.80
Microsoft Surface Go 2 10.5 inches Touch-Screen Intel Pentium 4GB RAM, 64gb STV-00001 (Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Go 2 10.5 inches Touch-Screen Intel Pentium 4GB RAM, 64gb STV-00001 (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$167.00

Availability

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Released20122020
Release Date
  • Introduced: June 18, 2012
  • Not available for pre-ordered
  • Released: October 26, 2012
  • Introduced: May 6, 2020
  • Pre-ordered: May 6, 2020
  • Released: May 12, 2020
PricingSurface 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 Go 2 for Consumer
  • $399 - Intel Pentium | 4 GB | 64 GB | WiFi
  • $549 - Intel Pentium | 8 GB | 128 GB | WiFi
  • $629 - Intel Core M3 | 8 GB | 128 GB | WiFi
  • $729 - Intel Core M3 | 8 GB | 128 GB | LTE
Surface Go 2 for Commercial
  • $449 - Intel Pentium | 4 GB | 64 GB | WiFi
  • $599 - Intel Pentium | 8 GB | 128 GB | WiFi
  • $679 - Intel Core M3 | 8 GB | 128 GB | WiFi
  • $779 - Intel Core M3 | 8 GB | 128 GB | LTE
Generations

Exterior

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Dimensions10.81” 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)
9.65” x 6.9” x 0.33” (245 mm x 175  mm x 8.3 mm)
Width: 9.65” (245 mm)
Height: 6.9” (175 mm)
Thickness: 0.33” (8.3 mm)
Weight1.5 lbs (680 g)
  • Surface Go 2: 1.2 lbs (544 g)
  • Surface Go 2 with LTE: 1.22 lbs. (553 g)
  • Surface Go 2 Keyboard: 0.55 lbs (249 g)
Colors
Dark Titanium
Platinum
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.
  • Trackpad:
    • Two-finger multitouch gesture trackpad.
  • Surface Go Type Cover
    • Not included
  • Keyboard:
    • Full-size mechanical backlit keyset with 1 mm of key travel.
  • Trackpad:
    • Precision glass trackpad.
    • Trackpad size: 101 mm x 56 mm
    • Supports a five-finger multitouch gesture.

Display

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Size10.6 Inches10.5 Inches
Info
  • Resolution: 1366 x 768 (1M Pixels)
  • Density: 148 PPI
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9
  • ClearType HD Display
  • Touch: 5 points multi-touch
  • Resolution: 1920 x 1280 (2.45M Pixels)
  • Density: 220 PPI
  • PixelSense™ Display
  • Contrast ratio: 1500:1
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Inking: designed together with Surface Pen
  • Touch: 10 points multi-touch
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3

Ports

Surface RTSurface Go 2
  • 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
Surface Go 2 Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
Right (3)
  • 1 x USB-C
    USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), DisplayPort, Power Delivery
  • 1 x Surface Connect
    Charging, Docking
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Bottom (1)
  • 1 x Surface Go Type Cover Connector
Under Kickstand (1)
  • 1 x microSD card slot

Internal Specs

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Processor
  1. NVIDIA Tegra 3
    4 cores, 1.30 → 1.40 GHz, 1MB Cache,
  1. 8th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 4425Y
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.70 GHz, 2MB, 6W
  2. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ M3-8100Y
    2 cores, 4 threads, 1.10 → 3.40 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 5W
Integrated Graphics
  1. NVIDIA Tegra 3
    NVIDIA GeForce ULP graphics
    12 Graphics Cores,
  1. 8th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 4425Y
    Intel® UHD Graphics 615
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 850 MHz
  2. 8th Gen Intel® Core™ M3-8100Y
    Intel® UHD Graphics 615
    24 Execution Units, 300 → 900 MHz
Memory2GB of RAM
4GB 8GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3 RAM
Storage
  • 32GB 64GB
    Storage
  • 64GB
    eMMC
  • 128GB 256GB
    SSD

Connectivity

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Wi-Fi
  • Wi-Fi 4: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n compatible.
  • Wi-Fi 6: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax compatible.
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth 4.0 low energy technology
  • Bluetooth Wireless 5.0 technology
More-Optional LTE
  • Nano SIM Tray
  • 4G LTE Advanced (22 Bands: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66)
  • GPS/GLONASS: Standalone and Assiste
  • GNSS, accuracy up to 3 meters

Battery

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Size31.5 Wh26.81 Wh
Battery LifeUp to 8 hours of video playback
  • WiFi: Up to 10 hours of typical device usage
  • LTE Advanced: Up to 10 hours of typical device usage
Power Supply
  • 24W proprietary power supply
  • 24W proprietary Surface Connect power supply

Software

Surface RTSurface Go 2
OS
  • Windows RT
  • Upgradeable to Windows RT 8.1 Update
  • For Consumer: Windows 10 Home in S-mode
  • For Commercial: Windows 10 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 11
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office Home and Student 2013 RT
  • For Consumer
    Microsoft 365 Family one month trial
  • For Commercial
    1 month trial for new Microsoft Office 365 customers

Camera & Audio

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Camera
  • 720p HD LifeCam front-facing camera with TrueColor Technology
  • 720p HD LifeCam rear-facing camera with TrueColor Technology
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video
  • 8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p full HD video
Audio
  • Dual microphones
  • Stereo speakers
  • Dual Studio Mics
  • 2W stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™

Misc

Surface RTSurface Go 2
Inking-Supports Surface Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
Paper feel
magnetic storage
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Compass
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Accelerometer
  • Gyroscope
  • Magnetometer
  • NFC
Security-
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
In the box
  • Surface RT
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
  • Surface Go 2
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
More
  • Casing: VaporMg
  • Kickstand: 1 position at 22°
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power
  • Mechanical features: Signature unibody magnesium design with hidden perimeter venting
  • Kickstand with a full-friction multiposition hinge to 165 degrees
  • Magnetic attach for keyboard fold stability
  • Physical buttons: volumes, power
  • Casing: Magnesium

Key Features

Surface RTSurface Go 2
At Glance
Released in Mid
2012
16:9 HD
10.6”
768p 60Hz
Weight
1.5 lb
0.68 kg
Powered By
NVIDIA Tegra 3
4C/1.30 → 1.40 GHz
With integrated
NVIDIA GeForce ULP graphics
12 Graphics Cores
2GB
DDR3 Memory
Released in Mid
2020
3:2 FHD+
10.5”
1280p 60Hz
Weight
1.2 lb
0.54 kg
Up to
Intel Core M3-8100Y
2C/4T, 1.10 → 3.40 GHz
Geekbench 5
660
Single Core
Geekbench 5
1,313
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® UHD Graphics 615
24 Execution Units, 300 → 900 MHz
Configurable up to
8GB
1866 MHz LPDDR3
Surface Go 2 Ports

Comments

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