Surface Pro 4 drought 'should be temporary' says Microsoft

Vendor says it is working with manufacturing and channel representatives as VARs report product shortages

Microsoft has pledged that a shortage of channel stock of its Surface Pro 4 tablet "should be temporary".

The fourth iteration of the vendor's enterprise-targeted tablet launched in the UK in November. Six versions of the product are available, priced from £749 to £1,799 and running variously on Intel Core m3, i5, and i7 processors.

CRN understands that while stock of the entry-level m3 model remains comparatively healthy, the vendor's Authorised Device Reseller (ADR) partners have, since the product's launch, encountered difficulties sourcing stock of the mid-range and high-end i5 and i7 versions.

As of yesterday both reportedly have very little or no stock currently available to VARs through the distribution channel. Although in each case ADRs are being provided with an expected delivery date in the next few days, partners indicate that these dates have been incrementally shifted back a number of times already.

In a statement sent to CRN, a Microsoft representative claimed that the vendor is working to ensure any supply problems currently being experienced are swiftly dealt with.

"Our primary goal is to get Surface and Surface accessories into the hands of our customers, and the public response to date has been exciting to see," said the representative.

"We are constantly working with our manufacturing team and reseller partners to ensure that customers who want to purchase Surface will find it in the commercial channel and will watch this closely on an ongoing basis. Any shortages in the commercial channel should be temporary as inventories are refreshed."