In August, Microsoft announced that they would be temporarily reducing the price of their Surface Pro tablet by $100, following reports of poor revenue generated by the Surface line. Now, as confirmed by ZDNet, Microsoft has permanently discounted the Surface Pro by $100, also cutting the price of accessories and Surface RT bundles.
The Surface Pro now starts at $799 for the 64 GB model, with all other SKUs including the 256 GB model receiving a $100 price cut. Touch Covers have also received a discount of $40, meaning they are now available for $79, or $89 for a Limited Edition Cover. The Type Cover price remains unchanged, at $129.
The price reductions for Touch Covers have affected all Surface RT bundles, with each bundle receiving a $50 discount. The 32 GB Touch Cover bundle now starts at $399, with the unbundled 32 GB Surface RT still available for $349.
Microsoft will reportedly be doing a "phased approach" to the pricing adjustments, meaning each Surface market worldwide will eventually, but not immediately, receive discounts similar to the United States. In an email sent to Neowin, Microsoft stated that people "who buy Surface love Surface, and we're eager for more people to get their hands on this incredible device".
Price cuts across the Surface line aren't too surprising, considering Microsoft is working on new devices for release later this year. A new Surface RT is allegedly being tested with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset inside and Windows 8.1 on-board, while Nvidia also claim they're working on a new Surface product. Microsoft is also expected to release a Surface Pro successor powered by an Intel 'Haswell' processor, to significantly improve the tablet's battery life.