Microsoft Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air Comparison: Review of Specs, Price

While the MacBook Air reportedly left the market in awe when it was launched last April, it's going to have to face it's newly released competition, the Microsoft Surface Pro 3. Apparently, both devices share some features that leaves many tech consumers sitting the fence.

Therefore, both devices were compared after Microsoft released a number of advertisements matching the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 against the MacBook Air.

Design-wise, the Microsoft Surface Pro is slimmer at 0.55-inches thick and weighs 2.4 pounds while the MacBook Air is heavier and thicker at 0.68-inch thickness and 2.96 pounds.

In terms of price, there is only a $100 difference in price, as the MacBook Air costs $899 for the 11-inch model, while the Surface Pro 3 starts at $799.

However, the two devices are very different in processing power. The MacBook Air has an Intel Core i5 and i7 processor. On the other hand, the Microsoft Surface Pro has both and an added i3 processor.

In terms display and resolution, the MacBook Air has a larger display with 13.3-inches, but a lower resolution of 1440 x 900 megapixels, than the 12.1-inch Microsoft Surface Pro 3 which has 2160 x 1440 megapixels, offering sharper images, superior contrast, and vivid colors.

The MacBook Air wins in terms of connectivity as it has Thunderbolt 2.0 port, two USB ports and a full-size SD card slot compared to the single USB port and microSD card slot of the Microsoft Surface Pro 3.

Also, the MacBook Air reportedly has a longer battery life, with 12-hours of light use and browsing, the device can also be used for video viewing for up to 10 hours. On the other hand, the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 last a mediocre seven to nine hours with the same kind of use.

The stark difference between the two devices is their operating systems. The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 runs on Windows 8.1 while the MacBook Air runs on Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks.

However, the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 has some added features like the touch-screen capability, a detachable keyboard and an integrated pen.