Microsoft did not immediately reply to questions about the pop-ups, including confirmation that they would sell the Surface RT.

Nor has the company spelled out whether the holiday stores will offer some of the services available in its permanent locations, such as the "Answer Desk," Microsoft's version of an Apple store's "Genius Bar," or personal training sessions.

When Microsoft unveiled the Surface tablets last summer, it said it would sell the devices only through its own retail stores and on its own website. The 32 pop-up stores more than doubles the number of physical outlets where the company can demonstrate and sell the new tablet.

The pop-up stores are:

In the U.S.: Atlanta (Perimeter Mall); Aventura, Fla. (Aventura Mall); Beachwood, Ohio (Beachwood Place); Bethesda, Md. (Montgomery Mall); Braintree, Mass. (South Shore Plaza); Charlotte, NC (Southpark Mall); Columbia, Md. (Mall in Columbia); Denver (Cherry Creek Shopping Center); Durham, NC (Streets at Southpoint); Frisco, Texas (Stonebriar Centre Mall); Garden, City, NY (Roosevelt Field Mall); Glendale, Calif. (Glendale Galleria); Indianapolis (Fashion Mall at Keystone); Las Vegas (Fashion Show Mall); Miami (Dadeland Mall); Nashville (Mall at Green Hills); Natick, Mass. (Natick Collection); New York City (Time Warner Center -- The Shops at Columbus Circle); Oklahoma City (Penn Square Mall); Paramus, NJ (Westfield Garden State Plaza); Pittsburgh (Ross Park Mall); Portland, Ore. (Washington Square); San Antonio (North Star Mall); San Francisco (San Francisco Centre); St. Louis (Saint Louis Galleria); Tulsa, Okla. (Woodland Hills Mall); West Hartford, Conn. (Westfarms Mall); Woodlands, Texas (Woodlands Mall)