Microsoft Surface tablet to go on sale Oct. 26
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If you want to see firsthand what all the Microsoft Surface tablet hubbub is about, it's time to mark your calendars; you'll want to head down to your nearest Microsoft Store on October 26.
The Windows RT Surface tablet will officially hit the streets the same day as Windows 8 itself, as CNET discovered by digging into Microsoft's most recent SEC filing.
Found within the annual report was the following tasty tidbit:
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The next version of our operating system, Windows 8, will be generally available on October 26, 2012. At that time, we will begin selling the Surface, a series of Microsoft-designed and manufactured hardware devices.
That's in line with what Microsoft announced at the Surface's unveiling. Note that the Surface tablets available at launch will be running Windows RT, a version of Windows that's designed for ARM processors and isn't backwards compatible with current Windows programs; it's Metro apps only.
If you want legacy support for Windows 7/XP/Vista programs, you'll need a Surface with Windows 8 Pro tablet, which runs on Intel's x86-based CPU architecture. Pro-packing Surface tablets won't become available until around the end of January 2013, however, and Microsoft has yet to announce pricing for any of the various Surface configurations.
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Wondering what to buy? We've already measured how the specs of the Surface RT, Surface Pro and Apple iPad stack up.