The hardware is only half of the story when it comes to Microsoft's new Surface range of tablets, because the crew at Redmond have conjured up a pair of ingenious accessories. First up is the Touch Cover, which is a mere 3 mm thick and attaches to the side of the device magnetically. However, flipping it out reveals a full multitouch keyboard along with a touchpad area which is designed for touch-typists. Microsoft claims there will be dramatic improvements in typing ability compared to using the software keyboard.

However, a flat matter keyboard may not be enough for the road warriors out there who may want to replace their laptop with this. That's why Microsoft introduced another accessory: the Type Cover. It's slightly thicker at 5 mm, but the keyboard adds moving keys for a more "traditional typing experience". Of course the Surface will be thicker too whenever you close the cover, but at a total of 14.3 mm it's still a more than reasonable portable machine.

Source: Microsoft