The Surface Book screen is gorgeous, no doubt about that. Its been a great computer for me, I've been traveling with it, since I got it, and the battery has been good, and overall, performance has been great
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I bought a SurfaceBook
- Thread starter maflynn
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That's the plan here: it's the new rumoured Samsung Chromebook Pro for me!
I was forced to use Windows way back when it seemed like I was the only one buying TabletPCs because no one else had the pen technology. Went (back) to Mac laptops since 2007 but never did like any iOS devices. Since the first Galaxy Note phone came out, I've been juggling Mac OS with Android, and now my very old Note 10 tablet needs upgrading but Samsung still won't put out a new, high end stylus tablet. I'm all-in on stylus devices, but just can't go back to Windows. (Tried someone's Surface recently and didn't like it compared to the Samsung Note experience.) Considered a "ModBook" for years, but the stylus was never well-integrated and Apple just didn't seem to care about quality pen input.
I know there will be some kinks, but there's not much tying me to Mac. They just killed any hope of an upgrade for my 2012 11" MBA which I use for constant travel. I don't have any iOS devices and I don't use any Apple software or iCloud, only 3rd-party alternatives. Since I'm already well-versed in Android, I'm now trying to use phone and tablet for as much as I can, even if it's a little more inconvenient at first, to prepare for unfortunately losing some high-quality Mac apps.
The switch has already started, here...
This is almost exactly what I said the other day about Apple and their feelings toward touch screen laptops. It's a stupid argument saying people's arms will get tired when they sell an iPad Pro with a keyboard where the primary mode of interaction is via a touch screen that you have to raise your arm to.
Once again, Apple marketing hard at work. This is what I've called disingenuous for years (again, the prime example being iOS being the world's most advanced mobile operating system that still can't do some of the simplest stuff).
http://thenextweb.com/apple/2016/10...touchscreen-macs-wouldnt-useful-hypocritical/
Apple’s Jony Ive says touchscreen Macs wouldn’t be useful, but it’s hypocritical
Once again, Apple marketing hard at work. This is what I've called disingenuous for years (again, the prime example being iOS being the world's most advanced mobile operating system that still can't do some of the simplest stuff).
http://thenextweb.com/apple/2016/10...touchscreen-macs-wouldnt-useful-hypocritical/
Apple’s Jony Ive says touchscreen Macs wouldn’t be useful, but it’s hypocritical
Joined the club; update of my 2014 13" rMBP is resolved, replaced this afternoon by Microsoft`s i7 Surface Book, bring added functionality & utility.
Personally I never thought that I would opt for a Windows system as my primary portable, let alone one produced by Microsoft, I find it all most ironic. Bottom line my is hardware used in a professional environment therefore I choose the best tools for the job...
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Personally I never thought that I would opt for a Windows system as my primary portable, let alone one produced by Microsoft, I find it all most ironic. Bottom line my is hardware used in a professional environment therefore I choose the best tools for the job...
Q-6
Awesome! I switched to Surface Book and am loving it. Still keeping my 15 Inch MacBook Pro 2013 (which runs Windows 90% of the time anyway) for Final Cut Pro and have no desire to get the new Macbook Pros. I'll probably wait till they do a Kaby Lake refresh if I decide to pick one up.
I'm very interested in the Surface Book. I really enjoyed my Surface 3 when I had one, just thought it was a bit under powered for my needs. I think I will wait next year and see what Microsoft will do with the Surface Book 2. I have a feeling they will be able to squeeze in an Nvidia GTX 1050 or hopefully 1060 in the base.
I've been really impressed with Microsoft lately. Their keynote introducing the Surface Studio and Surface Book i7 were very focused on professionals and showed they listened to their customers needs. They are also showing a lot of innovation in their hardware that is lacking with other PC manufacturers, unfortunately this includes Apple as well.
If it wasn't for Swift/Xcode and FCP X I would make the switch indefinitely. I don't mind Windows 10 at all. I'm actually quite impressed with it. My PC I built mostly for gaming is now my main machine that satisfies all my game development, 3D modeling/animation and Adobe CC needs.
I've been really impressed with Microsoft lately. Their keynote introducing the Surface Studio and Surface Book i7 were very focused on professionals and showed they listened to their customers needs. They are also showing a lot of innovation in their hardware that is lacking with other PC manufacturers, unfortunately this includes Apple as well.
If it wasn't for Swift/Xcode and FCP X I would make the switch indefinitely. I don't mind Windows 10 at all. I'm actually quite impressed with it. My PC I built mostly for gaming is now my main machine that satisfies all my game development, 3D modeling/animation and Adobe CC needs.
Same here!
If they refine the design even further, remove the "gap" (though I personally don't mind it), and add another killer feature, then I think Microsoft could knock it out of the park with the Surface Book 2. Super excited for it!
Am I the only one that wished they would make a 15" Surface Book? Granted, that would mean a 15" touch screen as well, which would be a bit unwieldy.
I agree with you wholeheartedly....I mean it is the same motion to reachout and interact with the new touchbar as it is to touch the screen. For me I would get more benefit from a touch screen than a smaller touchbar with less features.
I think they are more afraid of hurting iPad Pro sales than anything else.
So far really enjoying the Surface Book, I only held off to see what Apple would release for 2016. I can see the Surface Book adding a new dimension to my workflow in the 13" class of notebook. I opted for the i7 as it offers 12% - 13% more computationally over the i5. As I am moving from a 2014 Haswell i5 2.8GHz rMBP to the Surface Book with Skylake i7 2.6GHz there is no diminishment in performance on dropping down to the 15W CPU, adding the significant benefit of the dGPU.
I did consider holding off and waiting for the new i7 with Performance Base (Nvidia 965M), however it adds up the cost of the 256 model significantly, oddly not so much with 16Gb RAM & 512 model. My rational being; that SB2 will launch in 2017 with Kaby Lake and numerous other improvements, possibly Nvidia`s 10 series dGPU, as Microsoft are now aggressive in this area, listening and working to meet their customers needs. Therefore I didn't want to invest in the current model too heavily; I will plan to keep it for a year then look at the 512 SB2 with Power Base, passing my original on to my daughter.
All in all a very nice notebook if not one of the best I have owned/used, and who would have thought of such a paradigm working; listening to your customers
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What a great post! Thank you for sharing. I'm truly looking forward to getting a Surface Book of my own next year (probably the SB2, as you mentioned). To hear such positive feedback validates even more the quality of the laptop.So far really enjoying the Surface Book, I only held off to see what Apple would release for 2016. I can see the Surface Book adding a new dimension to my workflow in the 13" class of notebook. I opted for the i7 as it offers 12% - 13% more computationally over the i5. As I am moving from a 2014 Haswell i5 2.8GHz rMBP to the Surface Book with Skylake i7 2.6GHz there is no diminishment in performance on dropping down to the 15W CPU, adding the significant benefit of the dGPU.
I did consider holding off and waiting for the new i7 with Performance Base (Nvidia 965M), however it adds up the cost of the 256 model significantly, oddly not so much with 16Gb RAM & 512 model. My rational being; that SB2 will launch in 2017 with Kaby Lake and numerous other improvements, possibly Nvidia`s 10 series aGPU, as Microsoft are now aggressive in this area, listening and working to meet their customers needs. Therefore I didn't want to invest in the current model too heavily; I will plan to keep it for a year then look at the 512 SB2 with Power Base, passing my original on to my daughter.
All in all a very nice notebook if not one of the best I have owned/used, and who would have thought of such a paradigm working; listening to your customers
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Besides, it's like two purchases in one! It's like updating your iPad and your laptop all in one go!
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Edit: What are your thoughts about docking your Surface Book to an external monitor versus doing the same for your MacBook? In particular, mouse behavior. I myself much prefer the mouse behavior of Windows versus Mac. Microsoft has it down to a tee. Mac has the best trackpad experience out there, but unfortunately Macs' cursor movement does not yield well to mice. It feels very sluggish and it feels like I just can't get the cursor to go where I want it to when using a mouse.
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They seem to recommend the Surface instead.
The Entry-Level MacBook Pro Proves Apple Has Fallen Behind
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/12806966
Conclusion
There is just simply no way the entry-level 2016 MacBook Pro can be recommended over higher-end versions of the Surface Pro 4 and Dell XPS 13, both which not only have touch screens (the Pro 4 has a digitizer for inking), but have better processors, better graphics chips, and higher resolution screens.
Apple is, once again, making the presumption that Apple fans will still pay an extra couple hundred dollars for their products. That may have been true in the past, but with competing companies coming out with better hardware and software options, Apple may find its profits continuing to decline with the release of the new MacBook Pro.
The Entry-Level MacBook Pro Proves Apple Has Fallen Behind
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/12806966
Conclusion
There is just simply no way the entry-level 2016 MacBook Pro can be recommended over higher-end versions of the Surface Pro 4 and Dell XPS 13, both which not only have touch screens (the Pro 4 has a digitizer for inking), but have better processors, better graphics chips, and higher resolution screens.
Apple is, once again, making the presumption that Apple fans will still pay an extra couple hundred dollars for their products. That may have been true in the past, but with competing companies coming out with better hardware and software options, Apple may find its profits continuing to decline with the release of the new MacBook Pro.
What a great post! Thank you for sharing. I'm truly looking forward to getting a Surface Book of my own next year (probably the SB2, as you mentioned). To hear such positive feedback validates even more the quality of the laptop.
Besides, it's like two purchases in one! It's like updating your iPad and your laptop all in one go!
--
Edit: What are your thoughts about docking your Surface Book to an external monitor versus doing the same for your MacBook? In particular, mouse behavior. I myself much prefer the mouse behavior of Windows versus Mac. Microsoft has it down to a tee. Mac has the best trackpad experience out there, but unfortunately Macs' cursor movement does not yield well to mice. It feels very sluggish and it feels like I just can't get the cursor to go where I want it to when using a mouse.
So far I have yet to use a Mouse with my Surface Book as I find the track pad being near identical to my Mac`s, I would say Apple may have the edge on gestures, equally I have not looked at the Surface Book trackpad settings in detail. To date the Surface Book`s trackpad has been excellent and with the added layer of input via "Touch" I have a Lenovo Bluetooth mouse for detail work once I have the need and a SwiftPointGT which very well suited to long sessions and allows access to touch centric commands via mousing input, takes a little getting used to. I fully expect the Surface Book mousing experience to be fluid same as any other well specified Windows 10 system.
Wifi is solid, being significantly faster than any of my current Mac`s used professionally; 2015 rMB, 2014 13" rMBP & 2012 15" rMBP. Mac`s have and continue to be problematic regarding WiFi connectivity. As I work and travel globally it`s physically impossible for me to control the WiFi environment my systems connect to. At the extreme end of the spectrum is the flat inability to connect to a known network, requiring need to use a portable router as a repeater, or resort to a wired solution. In general a slower than the norm experience is my expectation on a Mac. Surface Book streams 4K video effortlessly over my VPN, none of my Mac`s can achieve anything close to this wireless performance, same applies to large file downloads, the Mac`s will be slower and more prone to disconnections.
So far I have been using the Surface Book in isolation, more focusing on setting it up and absorbing the details. I don't anticipate any issue with an external display, at most I may need to adjust the individual display scaling. My current external is also due for replacement, so I will be looking at one to complement the Surface Book shortly.
I am keenly interested to see what Microsoft does with the Surface Book, the new Surface Dial is something I can also take advantage of, so will be getting the Surface Dial on release. Surface Book 2 will likely address the gap on the hinge etc. upgraded CPU/dGPU, some talk of Quad Core CPU option, USB C/TB-3. Given the recent release of the Performance Base it`s very clear that Microsoft is listening to it`s customers and not solely chasing thin for the sake of being thinner; doubling graphic performance and significantly extending battery runtime at the cost of some increase in thickness & weight in the base.
Surface Book`s additional vertical display real estate is noticeable and very welcome, being vastly more practical than the far more common 16:9 aspect rations, Pixel Sense display is superb; Some very slight light bleed at the top of the display, at maximum brightness with a solid black background, both points are equidistant so very likely the light source. Difficult split between the rMb & Surface Book for the best display, both are extremely competent; Surface Book deals with black levels & white saturation better when direct compared on lagom.nl/lcd-test, colour is a wash pardon the pun, Surface Book overall has the edge.
Newer Mac`s win outright on the speaker side, the Surface Book`s audio is crisp & clear, may distort at maximum volume (not tried). The rMB has a more full bodied sound field, with the rMB being the winner. For my needs the Surface Book is adequate and much better than one would expect given such a thin device, besting many others; when working I always travel with a B&O A1 or A2 so the built in speakers are less of a consideration.
Is the Surface Book perfect? No, no portable is, as by very nature compromises must be made, however the Surface Book brings a great deal of usability, utility & flexibility to the table, for my needs far less compromised than the 2016 MBP`s, which in reality offer some nice touches over the 2015 MBP`s, however coupled with the diminishment in OS stability and general lack of focus on productivity in macOS, switching to the Surface Book was an easy decision.
I depend on my hardware for my living, therefore it "must" be relevant & current, in many serious engineering streams Apple`s Wireless & USB C only world is little more than a pipe dream. As for, comparing a touch enabled dynamic hot key bar to displays that are fully Touch & Pen enabled, no just no, even Steve Job`s famous Reality Distortion Field fails miserably to generate one iota of the suspension of disbelief required to think this paradigm is remotely believable...
Dongles requiring "logic""are the very last thing you want, as people are already finding that "all dongles are not equal"; with absolute certainty my 2015 rMB & 2016 Samsung TabPro s muti-port adaptors are not interchangeable, yet both are USB C. This now represents a nightmare for the consumer with the only certain path being to buy directly from the manufacturer of the device, at whatever the price. Dongles & adaptors are little more than another revenue stream for Apple; being now near mandatory, lost requiring replacement, coupled with very significant margins and we will be stuck with them for years to come, unless you have the luxury of 100% control of your computing environment.
What Apple doesn't get is that frequently the professional user is a catalyst for many other sales; bottom line is if I don't "buy" into the Mac, nor will my business, family & some friends. I was recently speaking to a friend of mine who is a professional designer, her first words were expressing interest in the upcoming Studio and she has used Mac`s exclusively for years, and so it spreads Core Rot...
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So someone bought my old 2012 Macbook Pro for about $500, and I went the Microsoft Store and picked up a surface and all I can say is wow. This my first Non-Apple Laptop in quite some time. Honestly its blown me away like my MacBook did when I first got it.
Just the versatility of this product. The ability to remove the screen and use it like a tablet when I'm watching a movie. Then flip back to full mouse and keyboard and use it like a laptop when I need to do serious work. Its perfect, when I am in tablet mode the UI switches to what's optimal for a tablet.
When I am in laptop mode it switches to what's optimal for a Laptop. Can I say the pen, the writing recognition is amazing, I can't believe how accurate it is. Even with my messy hand writing it can detect what I am writing and quickly jot it down. Its a lot of little things they got right.
This is what Apple used to be, at least Microsoft seems to get it.
Just the versatility of this product. The ability to remove the screen and use it like a tablet when I'm watching a movie. Then flip back to full mouse and keyboard and use it like a laptop when I need to do serious work. Its perfect, when I am in tablet mode the UI switches to what's optimal for a tablet.
When I am in laptop mode it switches to what's optimal for a Laptop. Can I say the pen, the writing recognition is amazing, I can't believe how accurate it is. Even with my messy hand writing it can detect what I am writing and quickly jot it down. Its a lot of little things they got right.
This is what Apple used to be, at least Microsoft seems to get it.
I picked up a Yoga 910 earlier today and really like it as well.. Windows 10 has come a long ways and so far, I am not regretting my decision...
I actually had better experiences with Windows 10 at launch than I have recently. The anniversary update killed webcams and for some reason, on SEVERAL COMPUTERS, the start menu fails to open. I am not liking Windows 10 lately. I was all for it at launch, making everyone I know upgrade since it was free.
Reads a lot like a Microsoft PR guy wrote it. Hit all the points on the checklist.
Why attack the OP and call him . her a liar just because they found something else? Some people here should be, but I imagine are not, ashamed of themselves...
You comment is offensive and it was not even directed at me...
Again, I didn't say he was lying. Just that his review sounded like Microsoft pr. Sounds like he finds it to meet Microsoft's claims.