The Internet is on fire right now with the recent announcement of the Microsoft Surface tablet device. Surface is the company's answer to the new iPad from Apple; and the device is expected to be available by the end of the year in two flavors, one running ARM, the other Intel x86. The big question many have on their mind is how does the Surface compare to the new iPad when it comes down to the raw numbers. We'll be taking a keen look at that.

Apple New iPad Wi-Fi Model

Apple's new tablet is a thing of beauty. This beast of a tablet packs a 9.7-inch Retina display with 2048x1536 pixel resolution, 42.5-watt hour battery for up to 10 hours listening to music, playing videos and browsing the Web. When it comes down to storage, the new iPad is configurable for 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB of storage, weight is around 652 grams, thickness 9.4 millimeters, and on the outside lies a 30-pin dock Apple connector port, along with a headphone jack.

Apple New iPad 3G/4G LTE Model

This version is very similar to the WiFi model, the only difference is the weight that is bumped up to 662 grams, this is mainly due to the inbuilt 4G LTE radio.

Microsoft Surface, Windows RT Edition

Microsoft's first tablet device, Surface, packs quite a punch, and should be more than capable of competing with the new iPad ten times more over. The Windows RT version, which runs on ARM, weighs in at 676 grams, thickness at 9.3 millimeters, and a ClearType HD display that is 10.6-inches big. When it comes down to battery, there's a 31.5-watt battery inside, however Microsoft did not made it known how many hours future users should expect. On the side of storage, there will be two versions, one a 32GB, the other a 64GB, which should be more than enough for most tablet users. On the outside, you will find microSD, USB 2.0, Micro HD Video, 2x2 MIMO antenna.

Microsoft Surface, Windows 8 Pro Edition

The next version of the Microsoft Surface tablet runs on x86 Intel i5 Ivy Bridge processor. What does this mean? It will be faster, you will be able to use this version of the tablet the way you would do a PC, and it is bigger than the Windows RT version.

While the design is same, the weight of this thing has gone up quite a bit to 903 grams, the thickness took a bump as well from 9.3 millimeters to 13.5mm. The display is the same - 10.6-inches. However, the technology behind it is better with ClearType Full HD Display, awesome or what? Because Intel x86 processors are not as power efficient when compared to ARM, this tablet requires a 42-watt battery to keep it going. When it comes down to storage, there are two versions, one at 64GB and the other at a whopping 128GB. We think you should start saving because cheap this will not be. Finally, on the outside, there will be a microSDXC, USB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort Video, and 2x2 MIMO antennae.

Wrap Up

Not very easy to formulate a winner out of this, but one thing is certain, the new iPad has the Surface beat when it comes down to size, weight, and thickness. Consumers prefer when their tablets are not too heavy to lug around, and this might be one of the top reasons why the new iPad might hold its own against the Surface. In contrast, the Windows RT version of the Surface with ARM inside is thinner than the new iPad, but just a little bit heavier. However, time will tell if that will deter Windows users from picking up the bigger and heavier Windows 8 Pro version with Intel i5 Ivy Bridge inside.