Pictures of Microsoft's cancelled Surface Mini tablet surface online

But while we've heard official confirmation of the device's existence, we've never actually seen a prototype in action — until now, that is. Pictures obtained by Windows Central show us what the device could have been, and it's fair to say its design hasn't aged that well.

That is to say, The entirety of the Surface Mini's body is covered in a felt-like material, similar to the one found in the recently released Surface Laptop. And while that is good in theory, the material doesn't seem to have stood the test of time, with its edges being visibly worn down. The device has a built-in kickstand, just like its bigger brother, the Surface Pro 3, but also features huge bezels which make it a bit unsightly even by 2014 standards.

It also supported the Surface Pen as an input method, which would have been a nice addition to the smaller form factor of tablet. Its screen was an 8-inch panel which sported a 1440 x 1080 resolution. Inside, you would find a Snapdragon 800 SoC with 1 GB of RAM; and if a Windows machine running on an ARM processor raises a few eyebrows, it's worth mentioning that the now-dead Windows RT was designed specifically for ARM devices. Also, that it was terrible.

Really, with the tablet market being the way it currently is, it's easy to see why Microsoft wouldn't be doubling down on its involvement — sure, the Surface Pro still exists, but a second line of tablets would have been extremely unlikely to succeed. Still, it's fun looking at pictures of old devices and fantasizing about what could have been, right?

source: Windows Central