Microsoft Surface Pro tablet 'faster than iPad Air'

The iPad Air 2 may be one of the world’s best-selling tablets but, when it comes to speed, the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 is king.

The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 is 20 per cent faster than any of its rivals, beating the Apple iPad Air 2 and Google Nexus 9, according to new research by the consumer watchdog, Which?

Apple also lost out in the smaller tablet stakes, after the iPad Mini 3 (£319) was beaten by the more-affordable Tesco Hudl 2 (£99).

The tablets were tested using industry-recognised Geekbench software, which tests how quickly each tablet can complete simulations of real-world tasks such as downloading apps and running multiple programmes at the same time.

Each workload's performance is compared against a baseline to determine a score. These scores are then averaged together to determine an overall score for the system.

The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 achieved the highest score of 5,069, followed by the Apple iPad Air 2 with 4,046 and the Google Nexus 9 with 3,537.

Meanwhile, the Amazon Kindle Fire HDX was in fourth place with 3,060, followed by the Apple iPad Air with 2,687, the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro with 2,650 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab S with 2,594.

"Our tablet speed test is a great indication of how fast tablets can run when downloading apps or using multiple functions at once," said Which? editor Richard Headland.

"Nowadays we expect everything in a swipe or a click of the button, so understanding how quickly a tablet is able to process information is important to buyers.”

Analysts have predicted that the global tablet market will continue to grow slowly throughout 2015, as demand falls. Gartner expects sales to reach 233 million units in 2015, up from 216 million in 2014 – a rise of just 8 per cent.

The sharp decrease in demand for tablets can be attributed to a lack of innovation in hardware, and an extension in the lifetime of tablets, according to Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner.