SDColorado
macrumors 601
I find the SP6 display to be slightly sharper than the iPP, particularly when viewing text/word processing.
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Surface Devices
- Thread starter Dave245
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I find the SP6 display to be slightly sharper than the iPP, particularly when viewing text/word processing.
That may be it, so far I'm impressed. This definitely seems like it can replace both my iPad Pro and the dead Macbook Pro 2011 that i was going to replace, obviously it's early days and i'm still finding my way around.
kazmac
macrumors G4
Cripes that is huge. I’ve got until January 12th to return this iPad for a refund or exchange at Best Buy. I might run over there before work this Friday and see what my options are. If I can apply the money from the iPP and pay off the rest, I might do the swap. The screen on my Acer is horrid.
@Dave245 congrats. Sounds like you made the right choice.
SDColorado
macrumors 601
What model Acer do you have? It sounds as though it has not been a great experience for you.
I recommend you try out the Surface Pro, I'm just closing in on day 1 of owning the Pro 6 and so far it's been great, beating my expectations even. I use to look at Surface devices as something that was a compromised product but they really aren't. Using the Pro 6 all day since it arrived I've been putting it through the test, the Alcantara type cover is great, I have been writing away on this thing for hours, it feels better than the Apple keyboard. Windows Hello is a great little feature that works well and it's just as fast as Face ID in my opinion.
So far I'm able to confirm that it can replace a tablet and a laptop. Just remove the type cover and it asks if you want to go into tablet mode, select yes, put the kickstand back and you've got the perfect machine for watching content, snap the keyboard back on, it asks if you want to exit tablet mode, select yes, open word and you can be typing away just like on a real laptop, or open any app that you have installed and get some work done, check you're emails and so on.
At the moment I have to say that I also disagree with Apple, Tim Cook and most of the executives have said that the Surface is a diluted product that tries to be too much, I don't agree, at the moment I'm finding that it's a great device and something that Apple have completely missed the boat on! for the life of me I can't understand why Apple haven't done this themselves, I can only think that they haven't had any hands on time with Surface devices, because if they had I think they would totally get it.
This is just my initial thoughts, they could change over the coming days, weeks and or months, but as it stands at the moment I'm keeping this Surface Pro 6!
kazmac
macrumors G4
It’s a 2017 Swift model. It’s fast due to the SSD, but you know it’s a $650 laptop and not a good $650 laptop. I bought it through Amazon last year when I thought I had to bone up on Office for employment (nope). The display is very dim, not that great and it just hiccups or stalls with updates. The battery life is junk too even with the W10 battery saver settings.
I cannot fault Windows for these issues (certainly not the display), I just thought I needed something to learn Office for work and couldn’t buy a Surface at that time.
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That is fantastic news. If I can do an immediate swap and pay off the balance, I’ll go ahead with the SP6. If not, I’ll hang onto the iPP a little longer and wait. I am so glad you are enjoying your Surface Pro 6. That the type cover is better than the Apple keyboard is not a surprise. How would you compare it to the ASK?
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I’d say it’s better than the ASK, there is a backlight for the keys which helps at night, but also the keys have more travel and feel very nice to type on, the ASK just never felt like a proper keyboard to me. If yo get chance check it out in the store see what you think, personally I think the Surface Pro 6 is impressive.
kazmac
macrumors G4
SDColorado
macrumors 601
I always found ASK to have a soft/mushy feel without much travel and I never liked the vinyl covering over the whole thing. The Surface type cover feels more like a laptop key cover than ASK, which definitely feels like a tablet cover.
kazmac
macrumors G4
^This, ASK cover. And it was never smart imo.
The ASK was a waste of money for me. Disliked it when the ASK did feel like connecting to my 12.9 last year.
Queen6
macrumors G5
Displays on Surface device's are always top notch. Once my current contract is complete and I need greater mobility than my current 17.3" hex core affords I'll pick up a 15" Surface Book with few if any considerations.
My first Gen 13" without any doubts had the best display and keyboard of any notebook that I have used/owned and one of the best trackpads 🙂
Downside to Surface is similar to Apple with near zero repairability and high purchase prices. That said with Surface I do feel that I'm getting value, with Apple I feel that I'm dealing with a company that's looking to nickel & dime it's customers at every possible opportunity...
Q-6
With the Surface Pro 6, is it safe to leave it plugged in on power for long periods of time? for example when I'm at my desk and having long writing sessions? I don't want to do any damage to my battery on this thing.
I'm certainly starting to see that myself, my breaking point was when Apple wanted to charge me a ridiculous amount of money to fix my 2017 iPad Pro that was only 15 months old! The prices of the new iPad Pro's are just stupid.
I'm certainly starting to see that myself, my breaking point was when Apple wanted to charge me a ridiculous amount of money to fix my 2017 iPad Pro that was only 15 months old! The prices of the new iPad Pro's are just stupid.
AndyMacAndMic
macrumors 65816
Yes it is perfectly safe. The Surface pro 6 (just like any other well designed laptop/notebook) has a battery protection built in. If it is plugged in it simply stops charging the battery when it is at 98-100%, preventing it from damaging.
kazmac
macrumors G4
One of the reasons why I am leaning toward the Surface is the customer service and the value. I have no issue paying a bit more if I think the tech will benefit me in the long run. Apple has certainly shown me the nickel & dime malarkey, especially these last two years (iDevice revolving door) and not replacing my 12.9” 2017 iPad Pro despite the obvious hardware flaw. I know I keep going back to the art software, but I can and will adapt.
Anyway, thanks for the constant encouragement here.
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Queen6
macrumors G5
Breaking point for me was when Apple's lack of due diligence started to negatively impact my work, emoji's & slick marketing do not make a professional product...
Battery will manage it's self, I would just run it down once a month by 20% to keep the electrons flowing. I'm on my primary notebook now it's over six months old and rarely used off the mains as it's a 17.3"gamer re-rolled as a workstation, so far battery wear is zero. I can see how the Surface Book is doing once home as my daughter has it now and see frequently uses it on the battery.
Q-6
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SP6 is a fully fledged computer with a desktop OS that can re-role as tablet with Pen & Touch. Unless anything spectacular changes IOS devices will remain to be crippled by IOS. Apple deliberately segments it's hardware to force more sales, simple as that, rest little more than smoke & mirrors for the masses.
For consumption the SP6 is more than adequate in tablet mode, for those gifted a very decent platform for digital art and the primary reason my Surface Book is in my daughters hands now. SP6 storage can also be expanded by MicroSD Card which is also a factor, something else Tim & Co are trying to eradicate to force up sales of Cloud services & vastly overpriced storage 🙄
Q-6
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The_Interloper
macrumors 6502a
I have both a 2017 12.9 iPad Pro and 2017 Surface Pro. Watching the same 4K and 1080p content side-by-side, the Surface Pro definitely has the better screen. It's a hair sharper with better colour reproduction IMO. They're both great, though.
The Type Cover and ASK, on the other hand, are night and day. I loathe the ASK with every fibre of my being - it's a floppy, uncomfortable piece of overpriced junk - with known connection issues. All this aside, I had to replace three because they simply wouldn't lay flat - gave up in the end. Utter junk. The Type Cover is miles better.
The Type Cover and ASK, on the other hand, are night and day. I loathe the ASK with every fibre of my being - it's a floppy, uncomfortable piece of overpriced junk - with known connection issues. All this aside, I had to replace three because they simply wouldn't lay flat - gave up in the end. Utter junk. The Type Cover is miles better.
After getting my SP6, I am realizing that although my iPad Pro is a good entertainment device and works great for watching Playstation Vue with the app, the Surface is a true computer. If would develop they would develop a Vue app for Windows 10, I would switch over and get a Surface Go as well.
xraydoc
Contributor
I showed off my Surface Book 2 to some family members over the Thanksgiving Holiday. They all loved the screen (3000x2000) over the iPad Pro. And I’ve always thought Microsoft’s LCD subpixel font smoothing has been better than Apple’s.
My Surface Pen arrived today 🙂 it’s a great little device, it feels better in the hand than my first gen Apple Pencil, it also seems to be just as responsive with no lag. I especially like the ability to double click the top of the pen, take a screen shot and be able to write on it, also writing in Microsoft Edge is very handy.
Day 3 with my Surface Pro 6, I’m still getting use to using Windows but it’s so far been s great experience 🙂 I think it’s pretty telling that my Surface is now the first device I go towards, it use to be my iPad Pro.
This thing kicks the iPad Pro into the long grass, I don’t understand why the Surface doesn’t have as many if not more users and sales than the iPad Pro 😕 it’s much more of a computer package.
Day 3 with my Surface Pro 6, I’m still getting use to using Windows but it’s so far been s great experience 🙂 I think it’s pretty telling that my Surface is now the first device I go towards, it use to be my iPad Pro.
This thing kicks the iPad Pro into the long grass, I don’t understand why the Surface doesn’t have as many if not more users and sales than the iPad Pro 😕 it’s much more of a computer package.
SDColorado
macrumors 601
It's funny. I read a complaint in a professional review comparison between the iPP and Surface Pro about the Microsoft Pen needing "old fashioned" batteries which aren't as "graceful" a solution as the Apple Pencils lightning charging solution.
Never mind that the first iteration you had to insert the end into the iPP where it stuck out like a long white spear waiting to be accidentally broken (graceful indeed!), but after 14 months my pencil is still at 86% charge. What is wrong with a device using batteries if you only have to change them every 1-2 years. Definitely far better than Apples original keyboards that would use the 3 AAA batteries that required a monthly change.
I feel kinda stupid that I didn't wait to see how long the battery would last in the Pen and purchased a 4 pack of AAAA batteries from Amazon right off the bat 🙂
On the sales thing, I believe there are a couple of factors.
One was suggested that more people tend to treat the Surface Pro more like a computer than a tablet device and tend to hang on to them for 4-5 years, rather than swap them out every couple, which seems to be a trend for iPP owners.
The other is that there is some competition with the Surface Pro in devices such as the Lenovo Yoga, Samsung Galaxy Books, HP Elite and a few similar devices.
Apples competition for a tablet running IOS is zero.
If you combine sales for all Windows 2-1 detachable devices vs iPP, I am not sure where the numbers stand.
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kazmac
macrumors G4
Well I actually saw a closed Surface Pro and golden pen this morning, but could not touch. 😕Someone’s personal device. It was right in front of me on the desk I was working at.
Is there a Windows equivalent to Notability? And some app to scan documents onto the Surface?
I love Notability -and outside of Procreate- I ama bit hard pressed to find a Windows replacement. If there’s a solid Windows replacement and a scanning app, that will just leave Procreate.
Real life stupidity arose today so waiting to go into Best Buy to look at Surfaces until late next week.
Is there a Windows equivalent to Notability? And some app to scan documents onto the Surface?
I love Notability -and outside of Procreate- I ama bit hard pressed to find a Windows replacement. If there’s a solid Windows replacement and a scanning app, that will just leave Procreate.
Real life stupidity arose today so waiting to go into Best Buy to look at Surfaces until late next week.
SDColorado
macrumors 601
The obviously ones I guess would be Evernote and Microsoft’s own OneNote. I also like MyScript’s Nebo.
But here are some other options.
https://byrslf.co/7-note-taking-app-alternatives-6cddd20197d4
As far as a scanning app for documents I really like Microsoft’s Office Lens app to the point where I use it on my iPhone and iPP as well. It has modes for white board, document, business cards and photos and will do perspective cropping to give you a square and flat scan. It can of course save the scans to Microsoft’s OneDrive
kazmac
macrumors G4
Five days into my Surcace pro 6 adventure and... I love this thing. Battery life OS excellent, the screen is lovely, Windows is nowhere near as bad as I remember, the pen is fantastic to have available on my computer where I can do real work (compared to using my IP where I have to faff about exporting to Dropbox or ahome nonsense).
The only thing that is a little disappointing is when you scroll virtual screens with an external screen plugged in every screen shifts. I'd prefer to only scroll the screen the pointer is on.
The only thing that is a little disappointing is when you scroll virtual screens with an external screen plugged in every screen shifts. I'd prefer to only scroll the screen the pointer is on.
