On 18 June, Microsoft shocked the tech world by entering the tablet hardware market with the announcement of Microsoft “Surface”.

A week after Apple unveiled its new lineup of Mac books and its new iOS 6 updates, Microsoft stole their thunder with a surprising announcement; they are entering the tablet market. Many people are already saying that this will be the device which will finally compete with Apple's iPad; the product that currently has, by far, the largest market share of tablet ownership.

But not to be outdone, Google has joined the party too. During Google's I/O (Input/ Output) event on 27 June, they announced the Nexus 7 tablet.

Specifications

Surface for Windows RT Tablet

So let's breakdown what Microsoft is offering. Firstly, let’s look at their entry model. It's called the Surface for Windows RT tablet. Looking at the physical specifications, the tablet will be quite thin at 9.94mm and very light at 676g. The screen of the RT tablet will be a 10.6-inch ClearType HD capacitive touch panel. It has a built in kickstand in the back that will allow you to prop it up. Underneath the kickstand there is a microSD slot, (a hidden gift!). The RT tablet also comes equipped with a USB 2.0 port and a Micro HD video port. It comes with a screen cover which snaps into place and doubles as a full QWERTY keyboard and track-pad mouse. The keyboard is supposed to be extremely comfortable and productive. One Microsoft rep said that you can type more than 50 words per minute on it. Now, let’s change gear and talk about what's on the inside. The RT tablet uses an NVIDIA Tegra-based ARM chip for the processor. It comes loaded with Windows RT, Office Home, and Student 2013 RT. The RT tablet will be available with either 32 GB or 64 GB of hard drive space and should be available sometime this Autumn; around the same time as the Windows 8 launch.

Surface for Windows 8 Pro Tablet

Now let’s look at the Surface for Windows 8 Pro tablet. Because the pro tablet has a bigger battery and hard drive, the Pro tablet is heavier (903 grams) and thicker (13.5 cm). It will have the same size screen as the RT tablet. However, the pro model will support full HD (1080p). The pro model also comes with the kick stand and QWERTY keyboard/track pad case. The pro tablet will come equipped with a microSDXC, USB 3.0, and a Mini Display Port. Inside the pro is an Intel Core i5 processor. For software, the pro will come loaded with.... Windows 8 Pro! That's right. You will actually be able to use the full Windows operating system on the tablet and not just a mobile version. The hard drive will be available in 64 GB and 128 GB. The pro model won't hit the shelves until 3 months after the Windows 8 launch (Q1 2013).

Information regarding the amount of memory and the processor speed haven't yet been released by Microsoft. Pricing information has also not yet been made available thus far. The RT model is likely to compete in the tablet market alongside Apple's iPad, Amazon's Kindle Fire, and Android tablets. The pro version will be more pricy and will most likely compete in the ultrabook category.