14 DAY TRIAL // It’s a well-known fact that Microsoft is working to expand its Surface product lineup, and a smaller tablet was also said to be included in the company’s plans until recently.
The so-called Surface Mini was a key product for Microsoft, but the company’s new CEO Satya Nadella and the head of the devices unit Stephen Elop decided to pull the plug on the project only a few days before the public launch on May 20.
Not many people actually got the chance to try out the device, but Brad Sams of Neowin claims that he played with the Surface Mini before it was discontinued.
Just as expected, no photos with the Surface Mini have ever reached the web, as Microsoft wanted to keep this project a secret, and Sams writes that the company didn’t allow him to take any pictures with the device.
A smaller Surface Pro 3
The Surface Mini had an 8-inch screen, a Qualcomm processor, 1 GB of RAM, and Windows RT 8.1. Just like the other Surface tablets on the market, it had support for microSD cards and came with a digital pen, which more or less made it a note-taking device.
That was actually Microsoft’s plan in the first place: to market the Surface Mini as a note-taking unit which could replace the traditional notebook and help students and teachers take notes and draw with ease.
Sams says that the Surface Mini was a smaller Surface Pro 3, as many of the features available on Microsoft’s flagship tablet were also implemented in this smaller model as well.
Type Covers were also developed to make typing easier and faster, as is the case with all the other Surface models on the market.
"Still enough room for a Windows button"
Despite the smaller design, the Surface Mini still had enough room for a Windows button which helped users go directly to the Start screen when needed.
"The bezel size is large enough to have a full size Windows button, exactly like the Pro 3 at the bottom; at the top, there is a front facing camera with roughly the same size bezel," he wrote.
"It does make the device look a bit odd since the bezel is so large but it does make sense if you are holding the device so your thumbs don't cover the screen."
Unfortunately, the Surface Mini never came to be, but people close to the matter now suggest that there still are some chances to see it going live in the coming months. Microsoft, obviously, refuses to talk about such a project.