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MacBook vs. Surface Pro 3?
- Thread starter stanw
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Know a few who have the SP-3 and they speak highly of the device. At the end of the day the Surface does bring compromise, it also brings additional functionality, and MS has gone strength to strength on the Surface`s build quality. If I was to jump to a Windows machine I rather prefer the likes of Lenovo`s Yoga as I can see it fitting my needs better, than a Surface.
Q-6
I really struggle to believe tales like this. It's the same argument from the XP/Vista days, but things aren't like that anymore. Windows isn't perfect by any means, but it's very solid and reliable now. The only failures I see are due to very specific, proprietary apps. My Macs haven't been rock solid, either, and the past year or two have been particularly bad. Even the 1 year old MBA has had to be reimaged and some days it won't boot up at all for a few hours.
As for the MacBook vs SP3, I'd wager it's more fair to compare it with the new Surface 3. Its Atom X7 CPU is actually more powerful than the Core M in the MB, it has lots of ports, stylus digitizer, etc... but it costs roughly half.
That's a big difference in price (in Canada, it's $639 vs $1549). Adding the pen and stylus is then around $850 vs $1549, which is still a huge gap to overcome. It's thinner, lighter, more powerful, and way more practical. You do lose some screen space, though, as it's only 10.8" at 3:2.
I really want to like the MacBook, but there's no getting around the price tag, for what it is. Surface 3 would be my pick, while the Pro 3 would be more fairly compared with the other MacBooks (13" Pro and Air).
Also interested in the Surface 3 (not Pro)
I also had a look at the Surface 3 on the same day I tested a base rMB. I was quite impressed with the little Surface, and was surprised how snappy it felt with Windows 8.1.
However, I'm pretty sure that the Atom CPU is considerably weaker than the core-M (single core Geekbench is only about 40% of the Core-M, but it does have 4 of them! Multi-core is about 25% less IIRC).
That said, it is still quite a good user experience for light work, and the price is a lot better - here in Australia the price is about half as well (for the 4GB/128GB model). Sure, you get half the RAM and storage and a weaker processor, but as a secondary travel machine it might be sufficient. I do like the option of using it as a tablet and having stylus input.
I look forward to more extended user reviews of the Surface 3 to see whether it can really handle productivity work without choking.
I also had a look at the Surface 3 on the same day I tested a base rMB. I was quite impressed with the little Surface, and was surprised how snappy it felt with Windows 8.1.
However, I'm pretty sure that the Atom CPU is considerably weaker than the core-M (single core Geekbench is only about 40% of the Core-M, but it does have 4 of them! Multi-core is about 25% less IIRC).
That said, it is still quite a good user experience for light work, and the price is a lot better - here in Australia the price is about half as well (for the 4GB/128GB model). Sure, you get half the RAM and storage and a weaker processor, but as a secondary travel machine it might be sufficient. I do like the option of using it as a tablet and having stylus input.
I look forward to more extended user reviews of the Surface 3 to see whether it can really handle productivity work without choking.
I have one on the way after using the surface 3 at best buy. I'm hoping the atom can keep up for at least a few years. I won't be doing intense work, it will be used for school and for casual media consumption between classes. What really got me interested is the note taking capabilities with the stylus. First time back to windows since windows 7.
I am mistaken about the CPU power; you are correct, the Core M is indeed more powerful. It will be interesting to how they work out in the real world. I suspect that Windows 10 will run even better on it.
Still, it's half the price, and it isn't like the MacBook is very powerful either. It might be worth the CPU tradeoff for stylus input and ports (USB and monitor). Oh, and half the price.
It seems like the MacBook is geared towards a fairly specific type of purpose and user, and for those specific people and uses, I wonder if the Surface 3 is a better buy.
I had a Surface Pro 3 for a short while and thought it a great machine, very capable but at the end of the day and reason why I returned it, you could not use the typecover comfortably or securely on your lap and as soon as the rMB announced that was the final clincher. The other niggling thing was it kept losing connection to my printer which got irritating.
I agree with the Yoga. I have tried them out and they seem quite capable. I am just a little soured on Lenovo after having to return three of their W series for various faults. The Yoga get pretty good reviews.
Always had good experience with Lenovo. Have looked at the Yoga 3 Pro in some detail, now has the the upgraded Core M CPU ( M-5Y71) difficult to fault the Notebook given it`s intended user base. what helps a lot is Windows can run on far lesser hardware than OS X resulting in a very fluid user experience, whether you care for the current UI is another matter.
Am tempted give the current MacBook availability debacle. Having primary and secondary Notebook`s on differing OS`s does tend to bring a slightly higher overhead, equally it can also be advantageous in some usage scenarios.
Q-6
I have the SP3, and love the design, form factor and battery life.
I think the SP3 and rMB are very close in terms of target audience and features. The one thing I do love is the pen and touch screen. That will be hard to give up for me.
I think the rMB wins over the keyboard and touchpad, the SP3 type cover is decent for typing, but the touchpad is horrid. I take a portable mouse with me just to avoid the touchpad.
The SP3 has slightly more ports as well, charging, USB and MiniDisplay Port, and a microSD reader
Its the little things that I like the SP3, like being a tablet, I don't have to take it out for airport security, or that if the space is tight, I can use it in tablet mode. I'm impressed with Windows 10, and like where that is heading more so then where I think OS X may be heading.
Performance wise, I think the SP3 has a slight edge on some things, but MS does throttle the CPUs so the rMB is probably pretty close performance wise. I don't know about GPU, I haven't really measure or benchmarked the SP3's GPU.
The fans on the SP3 do kick in a fair amount of times, and while not obnoxiously loud, they are noticeable. If silence is your goal, then the rMB certainly as the edge in that department.
One final observation as well, the SP3 is a third generation product, where as the rMB is a first gen product. MS had worked on shaking out a lot of the bugs and short comings, its not a perfect device but it is a solid one. It's too soon to determine if the rMB will have some issues.
Overall, if I was buying something today (or the rMB was available when I was looking at the SP3), I'd probably still opt for the Surface Pro 3, because it offers more of what I want and better suits my needs.
I think the SP3 and rMB are very close in terms of target audience and features. The one thing I do love is the pen and touch screen. That will be hard to give up for me.
I think the rMB wins over the keyboard and touchpad, the SP3 type cover is decent for typing, but the touchpad is horrid. I take a portable mouse with me just to avoid the touchpad.
The SP3 has slightly more ports as well, charging, USB and MiniDisplay Port, and a microSD reader
Its the little things that I like the SP3, like being a tablet, I don't have to take it out for airport security, or that if the space is tight, I can use it in tablet mode. I'm impressed with Windows 10, and like where that is heading more so then where I think OS X may be heading.
Performance wise, I think the SP3 has a slight edge on some things, but MS does throttle the CPUs so the rMB is probably pretty close performance wise. I don't know about GPU, I haven't really measure or benchmarked the SP3's GPU.
The fans on the SP3 do kick in a fair amount of times, and while not obnoxiously loud, they are noticeable. If silence is your goal, then the rMB certainly as the edge in that department.
One final observation as well, the SP3 is a third generation product, where as the rMB is a first gen product. MS had worked on shaking out a lot of the bugs and short comings, its not a perfect device but it is a solid one. It's too soon to determine if the rMB will have some issues.
Overall, if I was buying something today (or the rMB was available when I was looking at the SP3), I'd probably still opt for the Surface Pro 3, because it offers more of what I want and better suits my needs.