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Microsoft Debuts $999 Surface Laptop, 'Streamlined' Windows 10 S, and More at Education Event
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Ben Thompson had the best take on the keynote today...
https://twitter.com/benthompson/status/859404806175170564
I think there is more than that, seems to be to be the first step in the right direction for what used to be Windows RT. I´m not sure about apps, only apps from the store or somehow run "approved" apps like Visual Studio?. If the wallpaper was the leading feature then that feature from Yosemite
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is that carpet on top of the laptop / keyboard area?
lol. I think it's the same/similar material to the type covers. I'm not a fan personally considering that it gets dirty.
I agree, they are taking the lead on innovation. Even in Web sites about "Macs" this is the the most interesting update in a while.
Exaggerating a little I think, yes it looks nice but did you see the part where the guy who was introducing it demoed writing on the screen with the Surface pen, that was a big fail moment!
Yea as soon as I saw that my heart kind of sank even as an Apple fan. It's just so awkward that it fails right away, which is dissapointing because it really does look good design wise.
Seems to be quite a bit of misinformation here. The display is high PPI, not 1080p. Check windows central for exact specs, or just use Google... And the OS can be updgraded to full Windows 10 within this year, for free. So this is a full Windows PC if you buy it any time soon or even later this year. I don't know if biased sites are just spreading incorrect info to hurt MS or if MS failed to get the right info out, probably the former.
Microsoft today unveiled an all-new "Surface Laptop," a student- and teacher-focused Windows 10 S, new features for Minecraft: Education Edition, a new Surface Arc Mouse, and more at an education-focused event in New York. The hardware reveal of the Surface Laptop marks the first major computer launch for the company since last year's debut of the Surface Book and Surface Studio, the former of which saw huge sales numbers thanks to churn from the "disappointment" of the 2016 MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, according to Microsoft.
When compared to the Surface Book's unique reversible hinge, the just-announced Surface Laptop is more traditionally built with a clamshell design and four color options: burgundy, platinum, cobalt blue, and graphite gold. Microsoft is aiming the Surface Laptop at the grade school and college education market, but the laptop will still be purchasable by all users on Microsoft's store, starting at $999 for the Intel Core i5 version with 4GB RAM and 128GB of SSD storage.
In terms of specs, the Surface Laptop includes a 1080p PixelSense Display touchscreen that measures 13.5 inches on the diagonal, made with edge-to-edge Corning Gorilla Glass 3. USB-C is not found on the Surface Laptop, but ports otherwise included are: USB, an SD card slot, mini DisplayPort, and a traditional charging port. The laptop will have a battery life that lasts for around 14.5 hours.
The Surface Laptop weighs 2.76 lbs and is 14.47mm at its thickest point, which Microsoft said is unmatched by any of its rivals' laptops. In comparison, the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar weighs 3 lbs and is 14.9mm thick. The keyboard section of the Surface Laptop is covered in the same Alcantara material used by the Surface Pro 4 keyboard, and resists spills and is easy to clean, according to the company.
Microsoft's new Windows 10 S operation system comes installed on the computer and is said to provide "superior performance" on laptops at the lower end of the hardware spectrum. Windows 10 S is a walled garden OS, allowing only approved applications from the Windows Store to be downloaded on the system while also cutting down on some Windows 10 features to provide streamlined security and performance.
Microsoft said that these features are expected to come in handy for teachers in classrooms who need regulations on the computers and applications with which their students interact. Windows 10 S will be making it onto a variety of hardware devices, not just the Surface Laptop, including laptops from HP, Dell and Acer. These devices will come in much cheaper than Microsoft's first-party laptop as well, expected to range from $189 to $300.
Microsoft's EDU event also saw the announcement of new features for Minecraft: Education Edition, which will be gaining a new "Code Builder" tool that will allow students to connect to popular learn-to-code platforms to build impressive structures within the game. During the presentation, Microsoft gave a few examples of projects that students have already begun working on using Code Builder in Minecraft, including a Liberal Arts teacher tasking her class with reconstructing Shakespeare's Globe Theater.
Other details of the event include Microsoft Teams, which will let students and teachers collaborate on projects in a chat room, new 3D and mixed reality initiatives, and updated device management software for teachers. A new $79.99 Surface Arc Mouse was also announced today, and is aimed to be a "travel companion" for any Surface device, including the Surface Laptop. The mouse supports Bluetooth 4.0, houses two buttons, and is designed with a travel-friendly, bendable tail.
Pre-orders for the Surface Laptop will begin today, and the device is said to begin shipping on June 15. Configurations on the laptop will go all the way up to an i7 processor with 16GB RAM and 512GB of SSD storage. For a recap of Microsoft's EDU event, check out a highlight video that the company posted to its YouTube channel, as well as a design-focused overview of how Microsoft engineers crafted the Surface Laptop.
Article Link: Microsoft Debuts $999 Surface Laptop, 'Streamlined' Windows 10 S, and More at Education Event
Morons, just absolute freakin morons. You guys all know I'm the local Microsoft fanboy, and even I'm shaking my head at Windows S. Jeez you would think they learned their lesson from Windows RT and the massive write down that incurred. And you're targeting that walled garden crap at students and teachers?!? Those are probably some of the most vulnerable consumers to needing x86 compatibility. Don't you get it MS? The reason the surface, surface pro and surface book were such great hits was because those consumers wanted a full OS. I'm not debating the merits of iOS/Android versus windows 10, that's a decision the consumer already made.
What amazes me is that MS is so close . Windows 10 is leaps and bounds a better OS than it was when WinRT was released, it's much more light weight and makes sense on a touch screen now. Not only that but MS is on the verge of announcing x86 compatibility on Snapdragon processors, giving them a truly low power but full Windows solution. But MS had the solution the whole time. The surface 3 had great battery life, and excellent performance. With how much Win10 has evolved a Surface 4 with a snapdragon CPU would be an instant hit I bet.
As for the laptop, it's decent enough but grossly overpriced for who they are competing with. Does it even have a touch screen? Hopefully it's not locked down and you can pay the extra money to put a full version of windows on there, but I'll bet you can get a much nicer full windows laptop for cheaper anyhow. Let's not even go to the app/ecosystem issue. I've long argued that windows can stand toe to toe with iOS and android in terms of apps available, but that's only including web apps and x86 programs. App market versus app market Microsoft is pitiful. Hell there aren't' even more than a handful of Edge extensions, Chrome crushes them in that regard. Years of MS neglecting windows mobile meant the app market continued to shrink until it's almost nothing, and now MS wants to tell all those cast aside developers that it suddenly loves them? Lol, yeah.
Lastly I'm very disappointed that loyal surface tablet/book consumers are being ignored. Come on, the SP4 came out 18 months ago and not even a peep on a refresh? Are we getting abandoned again? Will the next tablet be winRT, umm I mean WinS? Bleh... Can a mod please change my name to Nostradamus? I predicted RT would fail badly right when it was announced, I predict WinS will also fail badly.
That expectation is unrealistic. Laptops in general matured sometime ago - there's not much we can do to it except add some nuance features here or there. In addition, at the rate of inflation and along with globalization, we can't assume prices to stay the same forever.
Nope. 4GB of RAM, 128 GB SSD, a fabric keyboard, no USB-C, and a sizzling Core i5.
Fast? How fast is it?
The Mac book pro 13 inch is 1.49 CM thick and 3.02 pounds. That's the one this competes with.
I know the guy you replied to said "MacBook", and that implies Apple's 12 inch super light MacBook, but who really wants that core m processor? Yuck. There's no comparison there.
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It's missing the Apple logo.
As much as I prefer Mac OS over Windows, the same could be said about Mac OS; no games, no superior hardware support, no flexibility/customization, etc.
I'm not switching anytime soon to Windows (despite having a dual boot Hackintosh) for my day to day tasks, but Windows 10 is actually a massive improvement over previous versions. I'm willing to bet you're still basing your opinions on Windows from the Win XP / Vista days.
It's missing the Apple logo.
As much as I prefer Mac OS over Windows, the same could be said about Mac OS; no games, no superior hardware support, no flexibility/customization, etc.
I'm not switching anytime soon to Windows (despite having a dual boot Hackintosh) for my day to day tasks, but Windows 10 is actually a massive improvement over previous versions. I'm willing to bet you're still basing your opinions on Windows from the Win XP / Vista days.
10 bucks says this Windows 10 S will be unlocked by someone, or some group the first week, or two it's out. Probably just some registry entry and some slightly modded .dll files to keeping you locked into Windows store. MS will gladly remove the lock for 50 bucks, right?
Assuming it has a premium PCIe SSD like the other Surface devices, pretty much as fast as most other premium notebooks.
Base specs. And I seem to remember people on this forum complaining about only having USB C.
As fast as Kaby Lake is vs Skylake. Slightly faster with better graphics performance at the same or lower prices. No idea on SSD speed.
4/128 for 999$? The Macbook Air is 8/128 for the same price with a better screen and all the programs you could want.
And how grundulated is that fabric topper going to be in a year or two?
This is terrible.
And how grundulated is that fabric topper going to be in a year or two?
This is terrible.
He said MacBook.
As for MBP, I prefer the MBP, which is what I own. 1 cable solution to my 5K display is bliss.
THIS. Seems like there a lot of people that overlook or discount the importance of the tight software/hardware integration that Apple does so well. For years I've had friends tell me that "Windows is basically as good as a Mac now," and yet every time I have to deal with a PC, regardless of whether it's running Win7, 8, or 10- there are just a million inconsistencies all over the place and as a geek, to me it's (extremely) annoying, to a non techie those inconsistencies can be bewildering. Here's an (admittedly anecdotal) example. I work at a school and a teacher came to me complaining the (Java based) grade book seemed to be launching on her Dell laptop, but the actual window to enter her grades never appeared. It turned out that she had hooked the PC up to an external display at home and moved the window there... where it stayed even once that display was disconnected-- we had to hook it up to something here to find the window. It's 2017 and MS still doesn't get multiple monitors right. Ridiculous. I've also experienced pains with MS's HiDPI failures. I'm sure Windows is great for lots of people, but it fills me with murderous rage, every. time.
Yes, and I said that he said that.
The Surface Laptop is competing with the 13 inch MacBook Pro. Many here keeps comparing it to an air on price, and the non-pro macbook/MacBook Air on weight for some reason. And few seem aware of anything beyond the base specs.
That is true bliss. We have a couple here in the office hooked up to 4k displays. So clean.
Touch ID is fantastic for 1pass. Volume on the touch bar stopped working for one of my coworkers today, though.