iPad Pro vs Microsoft Surface: Which Should You Get? [Specs, Features & Price]

The monstrous tablet called the iPad Pro is now out in the market and the folks who were planning to get the large-screened device can get one now starting at $799.

The iPad Pro is of course viewed as Apple’s ticket to compete against Microsoft’s highly touted Surface Book, a battle of two companies when it comes to new alternatives in the world of desktop computing. But is the iPad Pro really up to the task of competing with the Microsoft Surface?

The 12.9-inch iPad does come with decent specs, including the company’s touted A9X chip pegged to compete against portable PCs out in the market.

The device can be turned into a virtual desktop/laptop with the aid of two key Apple components – the Apple Pencil and the Smart Keyboard. The only hitch is that to do so, both fall as accessories meaning they will have to be bought separately.

The Apple Pencil will cost you an additional $99 while the Smart Keyboard costs an extra $169. Assuming that eventual iPad Pro owners want the whole bunch, you will end up paying $1,067 for the lot which is cheaper if you think about the Microsoft Surface Book whose prices start at $1,499.

Then there is the issue of the operating system.

The iPad Pro is seen as something that would someday replace Apple’s other product variant in the MacBook. But the difference lies in the operating system since the iPad Pro does run on iOS instead of the OS X, bringing up some concerns on whether iOS can deliver the same features of the MacBook’s OS X particularly in the area of interface.

For now, this is one angle that should be interesting to watch out for as Apple tries to tackle the minor issue.

While Apple CEO Tim Cook tries to figure that out, Microsoft continues to ride on the success of its Microsoft Surface.

The 13.5-inch device is a high-performance laptop that in all offers a tablet at the heart of it all. Its flexibility is something that endears it to users (the ability to shift from tablet to laptop and vice versa) not to mention that its OS was made for actual PC computing.

So which should you get in the end? Apparently pricing will play a vital role but it may also boil down to familiarization and purpose of getting one.

It picks off from the long-standing debate between Macs and PCs of yesteryears. But a lot hinges on how well the iOS can address computing needs from here on. Will it be suited to the actual daily productivity of the ones who need a handy and portable gadget in hand?