Microsoft’s 64GB Surface Pro will have only 23GB of usable storage space

Microsoft’s new Surface Pro tablet which is expected to be released on the 9th of February is set to have a very disappointing amount of storage space available out of the box. A spokesman for Microsoft has confirmed that the 64GB Surface Pro will only have 23GB of usable space left over for storage after the factory software has been installed. After mixed reviews of the Surface and many criticisms of Windows 8, it seems that Microsoft will be sticking with a bloated 41GB install which consists of the OS, built in apps and backup storage.

Many users will consider this unacceptable and makes the Surface Pro a less viable contented, especially considering the high price. It also bring into question once again the relevance of Windows 8 and what Windows are trying to do with tablets. It seems that Windows 8 is an OS filled with bloatware expected on a desktop with the UI of a tablet, “a jack of all trades, but a master of none”. I believe that Microsoft is trying to blur the distinct line between a desktop and a tablet, which may be appealing to some users, but most customers will want a tablet to function as a tablet, not a portable, touchscreen desktop.

Microsoft has suggested that to increase the available storage space from 36% of the advertised capacity, users could “create backup bootable USB and delete the recovery partition”, which is a logical solution, but not what many people want to do with their tablets, not to mention many tablet users would not be capable of doing this. Thankfully, due to the openness of Surface compared to other tablets such as the iPad, users will be able to extend their storage through a variety of methods such as external storage devices or memory cards.