Microsoft Takes on Apple with Hybrid Tablet/Laptop

Microsoft's Surface Book laptop and Surface Pro 4 tablet went on sale today, but you might have trouble finding the former. The 13-inch Surface Book sold out within five days during a pre-sale period earlier this month, and only limited quantities are available for today's retail launch.

The Surface Book is Microsoft's first-ever laptop, and the company envisions it as a direct competitor to Apple's 13-inch MacBook Pro. In fact, Microsoft called the Surface Book the fastest 13-inch laptop ever made during a live event earlier this month, and pitted it against the MacBook Pro in a speed test.

The most notable difference between the two computers is the Surface Book's hybrid design. The Surface can function both as a laptop and a touch-screen tablet, a convenient combination for real estate professionals who use tablets for limited, on-the-go tasks and a separate laptop or desktop computer for more involved tasks.

So how do the two machines really compare? We broke down the specs of each in the table below:

To learn more about Microsoft's Surface Book, watch the video below:

Wondering how the Surface 4 tablet stacks up to Apple's upcoming iPad Pro? Stay tuned—we'll be comparing the two in the weeks ahead!