The much-anticipated Microsoft Surface RT tablet has finally surfaced in Malaysia (pun intended), with Microsoft Malaysia throwing a big launch party at Publika, Kuala Lumpur to celebrate its arrival. The iPad-killer aims to deliver a no -compromise computing experience for consumers — at work and at play.
Carlos Lacerda, Managing Director of Microsoft Malaysia surprised everyone at the event when he arrived for his opening keynote, riding on a custom-built Microsoft Surface device. He seemingly enjoyed himself too much the event emcee and popular radio announcer Ben Jern Loh aka DJ Ben, had to get him to stop, much to the crowd’s amusement.
Call it gimmickry, but it certainly demonstrated the build quality of the Surface RT, the only tablet in the market with a unique VaporMg casing that is ultra-light and durable. Lacerda went on to say, “We strongly believe that Surface will transform the way Malaysians live — bringing to life a seamless Windows experience for the on-the-go lifestyle.”
A few local early adopters include popular hip-hop singer-songwriter, Mizz Nina, better half of rock band Hujan front man Noh Salleh. The artiste professed her love for the Surface which she uses for social networking, designing fashion, writing songs and reviewing proposals and contracts. She went on the perform an energetic set of songs at the climax of the launch.
Talented dance crew Elecoldxhot performed a sizzling opening performance to get the crowd on its feet.
Surface RT is powered by a Quad-Core NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor with 2GB RAM, and features a unique VaporMg casing. The super bright 10.6″ ClearType HD display (1366×768 pixels) with 5-point Multi-touch is protected by Gorilla Glass 2. Available in 32GB and 64Gb configurations, the Surface RT also has two 720p HD cameras, full size USB 2.0 port, microSDXC card slot and HD video out port.
Choose between the sexy slim Touch Cover or tactile Type Cover.
Surface RT runs Windows RT and comes bundled with Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 RT (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote) as standard.
The Surface RT is available today online at http://www.surface.com/my and through participating retail partners Challenger Malaysia, Harvey Norman and Thunder Match Technology.
The tablet retails in several configurations:
- Surface RT 32GB standalone – RM1,549.00
- Surface RT 64GB standalone – RM1,849.00
- Surface RT 32 GB with Black Touch Cover – RM1,849.00
- Surface RT 64GB with Black Touch Cover – RM2,149.00
Accessories pricing:
- Touch Cover – RM379.00
- Type Cover – Black – RM409.00
- Surface Edition Wedge Touch Mouse – RM219.00
- 24W Power – RM149.00
- VGA Adapter – RM159.00
- HD Digital AV Adapter – RM159.00
The Touch Cover is a super-thin, spill resistant keyboard in a variety of colours — black, white and cyan.
Surface RT is covered by a one-year limited hardware warranty.
We got to play with the Surface RT hands-on at an exclusive media preview on Monday. Stay tuned for details.
For those seeking a full-fledged enterprise-grade tablet, Microsoft has officially announced that the Surface Pro will make a debut in Malaysia by end of June this year. Surface Pro runs Windows 8 Pro.
Photos of the Microsoft Surface RT Launch Party on Flickr.
