Microsoft Surface Studio is a new category of device, designed to put you at the center of the creative process. Turn your desk into a Studio
History
First announced on June 18, 2012 by the then CEO, Steve Ballmer at a Los Angeles event in Milk Studios, Surface was the first major initiative by Microsoft to integrate its Windows operating system with its own hardware, and is the first PC designed and distributed solely by Microsoft.[4]
The first-gen Surface launched alongside the general availability release of Windows 8 on October 26, 2012.[5] Surface Pro became available on February 9, 2013.[6] Surface devices were initially available only at Microsoft Stores and online, it was later expanded into other vendors.[7]
Steven Sinofsky, President of the Windows and Windows Live Division at the time, stated that pricing for the first Surface would be comparable to other ARM devices and pricing for Surface Pro would be comparable to current ultrabooks. According to then Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, the "sweet spot" for the bulk of the PC market was $300 to $800.[8] On October 16, the pricing was revealed for the Surface,[9] and pre-orders opened to ship, "for delivery by 10/26".[10]
In November 2012, Steve Ballmer described the distribution approach to Surface as "modest".[11] On November 29, 2012, Microsoft revealed the pricing for the two versions of Surface with Windows 8 Pro (64GB and 128GB).[12] The tablet would go on sale at February 9, 2013, in the United States and Canada.[13] A launch event was set to be held on February 8, 2013, but was cancelled at the last minute due to the February 2013 nor'easter.[14] The 128GB version of the tablet sold out on the same day as its release. There was less demand for the 64GB version, because of the much smaller available storage capacity, but supplies of the lower cost unit were almost as tight.[15]
On September 23, 2013, Microsoft announced the Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2, which feature hardware and software updates from the original. The Surface 2 launched October 22, 2013 alongside the Surface Pro 2, four days after the general availability of Windows 8.1. Later, Microsoft launched a variation of the Surface 2 with LTE connectivity for the AT&T network on March 18, 2014.
Microsoft then announced the redesigned Surface Pro 3 on May 20, 2014, which went on sale on June 20, 2014. The following year, on March 30, 2015, it announced the Surface 3, a more compact version of the Surface Pro 3.
On September 8, 2015, Microsoft announced the "Surface Enterprise Initiative", a partnership between Accenture, Avanade, Dell Inc., and HP, to "enable more customers to enjoy the benefits of Windows 10." As part of the partnership, Dell will resell Surface Pro products through its business and enterprise channels, and offer its existing enterprise services (including ProSupport, warranty, and Configuration and Deployment) for Surface Pro devices it sells.[16][17]
Microsoft announced the next generation Surface Pro 4 and the all new Surface Book, a hybrid laptop, at Microsoft October 2015 Event in New York on October 10, 2015.[18] Microsoft began shipping Surface Hub devices on March 25, 2016. [19]
In June 2016, Microsoft confirmed production of the Surface 3 would stop in December of that year.[20] No replacement product has been announced. Reports suggest this may be a consequence of Intel discontinuing the Broxton iteration of the Atom processor.[21]
