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Can Surface 2 replace a laptop?
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I still disagree, having windows IS a great blessing. But of course it depends on how you use your tablet. One thing the OP says piques my interest. He says: "I could remote desktop a computer with a full OS for any more intensive tasks." With a full windows tablet you don't have to remote in, you already have windows. I would think that makes a convincing argument for the OP to consider in how he uses his "laptop" soon to be a tablet, it's certainly a solution for a potential headache the OP may encounter, that is setting up remote desktop, finding a PC that is on or that has LAN wake, connecting to it, worrying about bandwidth, lag, transferring files, etc etc.
Plus the whole "bloat" thing with windows is way overblown. Windows 8.1 is quite lean to run, it's smooth, lag free, and is quite powerful. I agree that dumb tablets are gaining traction, but I've always said the choice to have a full OS on your tablet for the SAME or less cost, same thinness, weight, battery life, etc is a powerful option. Now it ain't my fault that Microsoft totally botched it's windows release and it's hardware strategy. IMO they should be so much farther ahead than they are, and a major part of the issue is that complete and utter garbage they call RT.
Surface 2 owners, do you think it's powerful enough to run an external monitor, keyboard, mouse and other small accessories while having multiple tabs opened on Safari and a few Office documents (Word, Powerpoint and Excel) opened at the same time?
There's no Safari on Surface 2
Yes it can dock to external monitor while playing games with xbox controller while using usb hub with keyboard mouse just fine. In fact this video from a surface 2 user shows just what you can do
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG1b0yBJHLM
There's no Safari on Surface 2
Yes it can dock to external monitor while playing games with xbox controller while using usb hub with keyboard mouse just fine. In fact this video from a surface 2 user shows just what you can do
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG1b0yBJHLM
Do you happen to know whether the video out port still supports up to 1920x1080 or has it been upped this generation to 1440p or even 4K?
Metro is getting better, but I still can't see myself using it as a standalone OS. Nor can I see it rivaling iOS or Android. So RT is not for me at all.
Uh ios offers zero functionality compared to RT, it's just an app launcher and is completely useless for productivity.
Apps can't share files, attaching documents to email is a nightmare, the browser sucks compared to RT, iwork is a joke compared to office, the iPad inexplicably lacks mouse support, can't upload or download files without using a third party app, horrible peripheral support, can't use USB thumb drives without an adapter and jailbreak, no multitasking etc. Basically, ios is nothing more than a light Web browsing, YouTube, and angry birds machine.
I don't think it's fair to compare the surface pro to an iPad. When Microsoft decided to run full windows/charing ~$900 for the Surface pro, I think that's when you should draw the line.
Don't get me wrong, I like the surface pro 2 and I'm seriously considering getting one. But I'm getting it for the only purpose that it is currently the best hardware with a "Wacom screen" + "One note" implementation. As a huge Apple fan, I will admit that when it comes to taking notes iPad or any external connected Wacom pad to any Mac simply don't do the trick. They feel disconnected and the whole experience is just horrible.
Now, do I think the surface pro 2 can replace a laptop? I think so. But in terms of general laptop/tablet (if you still want to compare), if it wasn't for that Wacom screen/pen experience I could have easily gone for something else.
In that case, sorry about that. I never give much thought about the non-pro version of the Surface. I guess to me once you take away that Wacom screen, they are more or less the same (surface vs. iPad), it really just depend on what you need at the end of the day then.
No they're not, the Surface replaced my laptop for school, work and play. It can do everything that my Lenovo laptop can sans legacy x86 apps, but since it comes with full office I really don't care. I can run team viewer, Skype, webex and full Outlook. Meanwhile attempting to get any work done on the iPad caused me to pull my hair out. Perhaps Tim Cook can send me some rogaine if I ask nicely.
Good point. Personally, I feel better off using desktop apps vs any Metro/RT app with only a few exceptions. Email is one the those exceptions I like. Mostly all other apps seem unnecessary when desktop version is quicker, less buggy, and more robust.
In one word, yes. I actually have done so with my Surface 2. IE is the only browser on Windows 8.1 RT right now (so no Safari or Chrome), but I actually really enjoy using the browser which is very fast and enabled with flash.
I only came across this thread on a general Google search because it is a slow work day, and frankly I love my Surface 2 experience to the extent that I am willing to write reviews on the device.
I am a mobile professional, and I now literally let my personal laptop collect dust on my past couple trips. For people who need workstations for heavy photo and video editing or engineering programs, Surface 2 is obviously not going to work. However, I am guessing most peoples' use of their laptops do not go much beyond the Internet and a little bit of Office. My parents, for instance, do not need a traditional laptop. Surface 2 is actually perfect for them, and I bought them one because of my experience with the device.
In my opinion, Windows 8.1 RT is a better tablet OS than iOS 7. And yes, I have owned iPads and Android tablets. I also used to be an all-Apple person until a couple of years ago so I don't have any particular animus towards Apple. I just prefer alternatives now.
Anyways, I don't plan on visiting Mac Rumors again. I don't enjoy getting into stupid arguments over gadget superiority. I just wanted to share my personal experiences with my new favorite gadget.
My guess would be that they are doing about as well as RT.... which is to say pathetically.... but I would choose ChromeOS over RT in a heartbeat.
There is still absolutely no reason to get RT over full Windows... it is an absolutely rubbish product and I agree with everything spinedoc has said.
Suppose the OP realises later he does need some legacy software, by getting full Windows he will be able to use this with no penalty - it hasn't hurt him to keep his options open. If he just gets RT this won't be possible - he is stuck with a hobbled OS with minimal software available and a questionable future.
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And yet Android tablets dont suffer from a single one of those issues that iOS has and they have many more times the amount of applications that RT has.
Typing this reply on my Surface 2. A Surface 2 cannot replace a laptop because it does not run the full version of Windows 8.1, but Windows 8.1 RT. A Surface Pro 2 could replace a laptop. The biggest thing for most people I'm guessing would be the inability to run apps like iTunes on a Surface 2. For the purposed you listed, I guess a Surface 2 would suffice though. For the Surface 2, the Type cover 2, a cool polka dot case, a screen protector and the complete two year warranty (which even covers negligent damage) I paid just under $700 on the day it came out at the MS Store in San Diego. An official Google Music app would make this thing complete for me.
Then your guess would be wrong.
http://www.winbeta.org/news/googles...units-2-years-surface-rt-sold-many-few-months
http://bgr.com/2013/04/17/chromebook-low-use-windows-rt-445577/
http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/report-chromebook-use-on-par-with-windows-rt-devices/
As in ... over the course of its entire lifespan, it has just as much use as something that was released a year ago. But, hey, RT is doing poorly. Guess that means companies should really be pulling away from the Chromebook.
Ok my guess is wrong. But considering the marketing clout of Microsoft and the Windows brand, it still doesn't change the fact that RT is an absolutely abysmal failure and will likely remain that way for a long time to come.
I consider Windows phone to be a pathetic failure as well, but at least that has somewhere around 5% of its respective market
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Guess that means companies should really be pulling away from the Chromebook.
Well surprisingly they aren't. The same can't be said of Microsoft who lost their last Windows RT hardware OEM a few months ago so now, not only does RT have no software, it also has no third party hardware support either.
http://bgr.com/2013/09/26/microsoft-windows-rt-market-share/
Ok my guess is wrong. But considering the marketing clout of Microsoft and the Windows brand, it still doesn't change the fact that RT is an absolutely abysmal failure and will likely remain that way for a long time to come.
I consider Windows phone to be a pathetic failure as well, but at least that has somewhere around 5% of its respective market
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Well surprisingly they aren't. The same can't be said of Microsoft who lost their last Windows RT hardware OEM a few months ago so now, not only does RT have no software, it also has no third party hardware support either.
http://bgr.com/2013/09/26/microsoft-windows-rt-market-share/
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Seriously, one manufacturer is selling just about as many RT tablets as a plethora of companies are selling Chromebooks. If this "doesn't change the fact that RT is an abysmal failure", what does it say about Chromebooks?
I love it how RT users always mention this part as almost an aside or afterthought. Legacy x86 applications are the only reason a lot of people would even use Windows. Its the single biggest advantage Microsoft have over ChromeOS, Linux and OS X in the desktop/laptop space.
That, and IE 11 is better than Chrome. That helps a lot as well. Well, that helps against ChromeOS. Seriously, even RT can do more than ChromeOS can even without the better browser. I can't really compare it to Linux or OS X all that well, sadly, because Linux is just a kernel and OS X is the greatest desktop OS I have ever used.
Well it isn't a case of "one manufacturer is selling just about as many RT tablets as a plethora of companies are selling Chromebooks". Microsoft had many OEMs on board until August but it really didn't take long for the rats to leave the sinking ship.
Anyone with common sense can see RT is in big trouble.
Besides all this you're completely missing the point. The direct competitors of Windows RT in usage, functionality and form is not ChromeOS, it is Android on tablets and iOS on iPads and in this market, Windows RT doesn't even register as a blip.
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Sorry Stallman, let me fix that for you GNU/Linux.
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Well it isn't a case of "one manufacturer is selling just about as many RT tablets as a plethora of companies are selling Chromebooks". Microsoft had many OEMs on board until August but it really didn't take long for the rats to leave the sinking ship.
Anyone with common sense can see RT is in big trouble.
Besides all this you're completely missing the point. The direct competitors of Windows RT in usage, functionality and form is not ChromeOS, it is Android on tablets and iOS on iPads and in this market, Windows RT doesn't even register as a blip.
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Sorry Stallman, let me fix that for you GNU/Linux.
Microsoft sold a majority of the RT tablets.
Also, I was trying to point out that comparing anything to Linux is impossible because that's a kernel. It doesn't have anything to do with any other part. Some Linux distributions do amazing things, others are fairly basic. If you wanted to compare it to... Ubuntu? Fedora? Debian? openSUSE? Which one are you comparing RT to, then we can compare functionality?
Hehe, it's is kind of hilarious to read "It can do everything Windows can, except running legacy Windows programs" type of statements. It's like saying my car can do everything other cars can do, except drive on the freeway.
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It's a weird place to be, owning a RT device.
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I have no idea how MS thought it could out ipad the ipad, morons. Throwing away their BIGGEST advantage in legacy programs was just such a moronic move you can't put a price on, oh wait you can, $900 million.