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Microsoft Says Its New Surface Book 2 is Twice as Powerful as Latest MacBook Pro
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Now things are much more hopefull when it comes to cooling. Did not know it is a 15W CPU that they use in a 15” model. Now checked the specs on Microsoft site...
The claim of it being “twise as powerfull as the lates MacBook Pro” becomes loughable at best at the same time though.
MS looks quite desperate comparing it to Apple in every second paragraph of their marketing materials.
While saying that Surface Book 2 13,5” boasts a higher resolution than MacBook Pro 13”, they forgot to mention that a 5K display can be connected to Pro 13” with a single cable and it will thus run 18 841 600 perfectly scaled pixels (resolution of internal display + 5k), without breaking a sweat, just on the integrated GPU. Even if a 4k display will be connected to Surface Book - there will be 14 337 600 pixels to run. A lot for sure, but (24%) less than what an MacBook Pro 13” can do while being completely silent at that and weigting from 164 to 272 grams less than Surface Book 2 13,5”. Here, lots of interesting figures right there for the marketing team.
I think Microsoft just alienates quite a few of their customers (or their ex customers), by trying so hard to beat Apple. This new notebook looks pretty good indeed, but the whole presentation is oh so bad.
Will be intereting to check the reviews and see if MS claims have any meat to them.
Wow. When you turn down that next billion dollar offer, would you please give me a referral??!!
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I haven't run Windows on any of my PC laptops in a decade. I run Linux. In general, the two downsides to running Linux on a desktop/laptop these days are 1) Linux kernels lag a bit for the latest PC hardware - you generally have to wait a few months to get bleeding edge hardware to work correctly with it, and 2) you have to be a bit self-sufficient in maintaining applications and the OS. I retired from working in a technical field, so am used to the self-sufficiency part. You have to be familiar enough with software/hardware issues to get help from Linux forums when you need it. I wish this machine was offered pre-configured for Linux, as Dell offers that option with the XPS 13. I have no interest in Windows anymore, but running Linux on this box is really appealing to me. I wouldn't risk the money on it until I was sure it would run with a non-windows system.
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This might be my next laptop and replace my XPS/iPad ... beautiful but not cheap, but then again most don't mind paying a premium for top notch build and design. And it has ports!!!
I thought rumours said Surface line was dying? Looks alive to me
I thought rumours said Surface line was dying? Looks alive to me
Looks great on paper. Nice design, nice hardware. But running Windows 10 on my SurfaceBook 1 for over a year, has been the biggest hassle. Biggest POS in my experience and of my co-workers. Nothing but issues. Microsoft can't get their own hardware run smoothly on their OS. I have no confidence that this will be any different on the shiny SB2
No doubt that Microsoft has been working hard to catch up to everyone in the PC manufacturing space and I applaud them for continuing to try to be both a software and hardware developer. It's something they should have done decades ago, even if it meant that their software business suffered in the short-term as other manufacturers looked to other options (as if there were any other viable options to consider back then).
I would definitely temper any excitement about the new Surfaces for two reasons. One is that with the newest Intel chips, it's not surprising that they're both faster and more efficient. And when Apple releases newer Intel chip powered devices, they'll then be faster, so it's a game of leapfrog, as long as Apple continues to use Intel chips. The other reason to be cautiously optimistic is that MS now has a reputation of promoting power/performance and then when devices are tested they fall flat, not living up to their claims.
I was genuinely interested until I saw that Type-C port was only USB and not thunderbolt. An egpu could legitimately add years to the life of a laptop. Guess I'll keep waiting to see what Apple has in store for next year...
My wife has been using a gen 1 of these for a few months now and loves it. It's a beautiful machine, the screen is amazing and it just all works so well. She doesn't ever use it as a tablet though. My father in law is likely about to place an order for one of these newer models to replace his desktop too. I'd buy one for myself if it ran OS X. I get laptop envy every time I see my wife use hers or use it myself. I always think this is what the MacBook Pro should be by now.
My dream Apple machine would be something physically very similar to the Surface Book but with a hybrid OSX/iOS software running on it.
My dream Apple machine would be something physically very similar to the Surface Book but with a hybrid OSX/iOS software running on it.
Been on Mac since '94 but have always had a PC as well ( windows 3.11 up to 10 ) and while I'm absolutely a Mac guy I have never had any issues with my Windows boxes ( AutoCAD ). Windows is different but to me thats all, I don't see it as a huge disadvantage personally. I did just pick up a Acer Chromebook 14 which I have to say is really nice for $269.00 and does everything I need it to do as an iPad replacement, just an observation fro reading some of the previous posts. Take care......
Yeah, I can see that. I dread every update, because updates have demonstrably taken away features I rely on or broken compatibility with essential software. Doesn't help that I can't turn off notifications of updates, only hit snooze for another day. It's like a daily reminder that I can't trust a company I've relied on for 17 years, and I need to rely on still.
I don't know that I would entirely blame the post-Jobs era for my disappointment. Apple was probably already on this trajectory and pattern of bold, unilateral decisions that were sometimes shortsighted and sometimes farsighted, with a focus that was ever creeping toward "the new" rather than "the practical" (why not upgrade processors/batteries/graphics cards regularly at the high end instead of only when they have a "revolutionary" new take on a laptop or desktop?).
Also, since the iPod, I think the focus was already moving toward mass adoption even if some things didn't scale well IMO. (For example the retail stores were amazing showcases when Apple was fighting for dominance; but add in crowds and attempts to keep that same culture of cashierless casualness, and they're responsible for some of the worst retail and tech support experiences in my life.) That Apple under Jobs might have made "better" decisions overall is a credit to his/their management then, but the culture that he/they put in place might have something to with the problems now, when Apple's batting average isn't as good.
There's an obvious political comparison to make (give more power to a leadership position when you agree with most of what he wants to do, but woe to you/woe to everyone when someone else has plans for that same power, in that same position), but for a less divisive example: if the film is great, we're more likely to forgive/give a pass to its amazing director who was awful to everybody on set, who created a culture of difficulty, perfectionism, and strict hierarchy. But the up and coming director who learned/followed that culture from the amazing director? Her or his film had better be just as good.
Won’t have 70% more battery life when that GPU fires up. Still won’t have good battery life as a tablet. Twice as fast in some graphics benchmark I’m sure - the CPU is only slightly faster. Marginally higher res screen, that lacks DCI-P3.
Speaking of DCI-P3, Microsoft sure promotes this feature on the Surface Studio (which they specifically market to creatives). Yet the Surface Book 2 lacks it. What does that say about this machine as a device for creative people who need color accuracy and wide gamut in their display?
I'm currently looking around an office mostly full of Macs.
Macs have their place in an office environment. We are using Macs, Linux and Windows machines because thats what people wanted to use and all work well. People using Macs and Linux - thats a personal choice, as well as those using windows. People choose the o/s based upon what is best for them and their particular role.
They probably just want the best of both worlds, which is completely fine. (Which is what I'm trying to say, both OS' are great IMO)
Depends how they measured the performance! microsoft can't just put out any old crap - as long as they can justify and prove the performance difference.
Apple often use raw benchmarks that don't translate over the real world.
It may have been true 20 years ago, but it's certainly not the case today.
Both OS's are increasingly mainstream, and becoming more and more similar. Macs have viruses. Windows is easy to use. Both have strong showings in media and content creation. Both are also fully capable business machines. And while it is definitely possible to buy PCs for cheaper than Macs, it is also increasingly common (as with the Surface Book 2) for PCs to be priced about the same as their Mac counterparts.
The "X is trash, I'll only ever use Y even if you paid me a billion dollars" line was old and tired in the late 1990's. I'd love to see these platform die-hards at their next job interview. Go ahead, ask them whether you'll be using a Mac or a PC. Stand up and walk out if they tell you they're using the "wrong" platform.
I've been a Mac user since 2003, but during that time I've also used Windows PCs on a daily basis at work. I could go on and on about how things have changed since then. Apple is still great but they've stagnated, and Windows has grown leaps and bounds. Bottom line, they both get the job done.
Yeah ok ok, awesome specs and features that macbook never will get, as the super fast boot, the pen and touch screen thing BUT NO animoji and NO touchbar???
What kind of pro device is that?? Hahahahaha
Anyway, it doesnt matter how advance its specs are, running windows to me is as if it is just sold on Mars.
What kind of pro device is that?? Hahahahaha
Anyway, it doesnt matter how advance its specs are, running windows to me is as if it is just sold on Mars.