Surface Go vs. Surface 3: Should you upgrade?
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- Опубликовано: 25 авг 2024
- Is the Surface Go worth the upgrade from Surface 3? Daniel Rubino breaks it down. Hint: YES. See at Microsoft: thrifter.com/syYK
Surface Go review: • Surface Go review: Bri...
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I still have my Surface 3. I use it everyday. It still performs very well. I have the 4 GB 128 one. I'd only get the Surface GO if my 3 failed.
Casey Thomas me too, I use it for work on the go. I compared the two in person and will stick with my surface 3 for the time being. I was really hoping for interchangeable parts.
ItzWolffz upgrade to Galaxy Book 12" for half the price of a Surface pro 2017
Price is great incentive!!! There is a huge bargain now in my Country for the Galaxy Book 12" 8GB 256 SSD with 4G LTE for 650 euros (750 dollars) and it comes with the pen and keyboard and it has an Oled 12" HDR screen.
Probably because Samsung will launch a newer model before christmas or Samsung did not sell enough of those.
So for that price i did choose the GB 12" instead of a more expensive surface.
But beware GB12 is not fanless.
The only thing i don't like on the Surface Pro is the lack of usb-c so they definitely will have to replace mini display port by a usbc on their next Pro 2018.
If price was the same i would have gone for the surface pro but that oled screen really looks gorgeous.
Now if someone has a surface book i would say the Go would be a great companion device using the same surface connector...
Same here. My Surface 3 is mainly for media consumption. Installing Photoshop on it was a fun novelty since I didn't have that option on my first gen Nexus 7, but my desktop handles all of the multimedia and gaming stuff.
I have the surface 3 too.
My wife still have the S3 128SSD 4GB... and to be honest, it keeps rocking for light task!
I paid $227 for a refurb S3 with type cover.
128 GB and 4 MB
Ralph Gibson 4mb ? You got rob
@@haloepic3092 I think he meant 4 gb but the thought of a computer with 4mb of ram made me laugh really hard
@@hax-dev 4mb used to be a lot in late 80s and early 90s
What is awkward about putting in a SIM card? It's something you have to do either once, or very rarely.
I think people who complained about losing their Surface 3 charger will complain when they lose their Surface Go chargers.
Luckily they can use a Type-C charger then. Also, Surface owners typically don't lose Surface Connect chargers because they know it's the ONLY ONE THEY HAVE.
Windows Central I heard the type C port on the Surface Go doesn't charge very quickly?
agreed it was a bad example taken from Panos Panay.I like to think windows users have more knowledge than apple user regarding hardware.It is a user problem not a hardware or design flaw.
Depends if the charger has USB-PD profile. Something MacBook users are very familiar with. Surface GO doesn't support QC, so Qualcomm QC chargers will charge at "normal" non USB PD speeds.
Charges up to 45Wh, which is more than 24Wh of Surface Connect in the box. So, it can be faster IF you have a larger Type-C charger around.
Upgrade only if your Surface 3 isn't cutting it for what you need to do and at the speeds you need it to do. Otherwise just stick to your Surface 3.
Agree, My Surface 3 is still good.
I agree 💯. My surface 3 LTE was enough for what I used it for until the LTE started to malfunction and the fact I dropped and cracked the screen 😩. Gonna wait til income tax and get surface pro 2017 with LTE and a surface go LTE. One for travel and one for a little more horsepower
The S3 is still a good product. I began having problems with my surface 3, with the camera, and it not charging. Lasted me four years. Had to upgrade to the SP6.
Daniel, thank you for this comparison review, it was very helpful in understanding the two. I had owned the Surface 3 4GB model and assumed that the GO was just a mild refresh of that unit. I see now that it really is a full redesign and much more useful product.
so on the s3 people would lose their charger and because it was microusb that was a problem, a micro usb charger - probably one of the easiest to find chargers out there today, you probably have 5 of them within 10 feet of where you are sitting right now.
But now that they have moved to a proprietary charger that is going to be harder to find and more expensive and you probably don't have 5 of them lying around the house already, you wont lose it! That is an interesting take on reality!
5:50 you can buy the docking station and attach the pen magnetically to the left-hand side 😊
(typing this on a Surface 3 of course)
Hello Daniel
I watched your video and while i agree on some obvious benefits of the Go, the "Should you upgrade to Surface Go" is a completely different matter.
Fyi, i am currently writing this on a surface 3 (4Go/128SSD(slow emmc!) with LTE unlocked (international).
I cannot imagine how expensive will be the new LTE Go model.
Long Story short, yes i feel the Surface 3 is quite slow for launching apps, but then for general task (browsing, writing, watching videos) it works nicely.
1 -Microusb issue : I wish it was usb-c(for fast charging, data and video) , but at the time 3 years ago on tablet they were rarely usb-c machines, and on windows X86 tablets or phone it was a usb 2.0 implementation at the beginning.Also micro usb was stil big on smartphones and tablets at that time so that made sense.
I Still have my original charger and cable and Pano's argument about slow charging because people would lose or use
a different charger is biased because on flagshipped phones (Samsung Galaxy Note 4 for example) come with fast charger that work just as well as the original from Microsoft.
Plus, Not until Surface Go, Surface 3 was the only surface that you could charge on the GO!(no pun intended) with a regular external battery.
If you had the Surface dock (which you can find for more than a year for less than 20 dollars), you can charge
you device to 100% in less than 2 hours
2 - Hardware Windows button : Well Microsoft pushed a update years ago in Surface Parameters to let users choose
to disable it or not.Vibration remains though.So at least there is a reason to have such huge bezels :)
3- Stylus Storage : With Surface (Pro 4)pens and clip, never ever been an issue for me. Just be smart
I can attach it to the tablet or the typecover with no problem and more reliably i think than on the Go.
It looks like the typecover is designed for this
www.windowscentral.com/6-ways-attach-surface-pen-surface-pro-3
4 - Surface 3 Kickstand, only 3 standing positions and completely flat. It lacks maybe a 4th drawing postion, but if you hold the tablet in your hand the pen in the other still lighter than Surface Pro it is very manageable.
For typing or viewing , the 3 positions are good enough i think.You can also add a cheap metal 10-20 dollars stand for tablets or phones that works really nice too on a desktop.
5 - 4K limitation (No 60Hz on external display for Surface 3 and no compatibility with 4K HEVC 10bits/VP9).Yes that one is a bit of a bummer.
6 - Slow emmc : I really think MS did it on purpose to choose the worst EMMC on the market that can make the tablet crawl more than it shoud be since the atom processor is still fast enough to run windows and deal with most apps.
Maybe to prevent surface 3 from being too good in front of Surface Pro 3
7 - Gaming : I don't play Minecraft sorry, no seriously yes i am sure this an area where Go is >> Surface 3
if you are a heavy gamer surface tablet are not your target and if you want to game depending where you live, you
can always suscribe to Streaming services...I played some AAA games on my Surface 3 with Nvidia Geforce experience, it worked wonders(1080p at 60fps everything maxxed out, don't have 4K display to test this serivce anyway) with the XBOX controller.
8 - Battery life : I think the Battery life is still better on Surface 3 but i can be wrong.And i am okay for slighly less battery for much better performance ( better performance/watts)
8 - 256 level of pression is already really nice to draw and take notes, tilt as well as 4096 levels of pressure is a nice bonus for the GO to have but for a now 100 dollars pen
9- Windows Hello feature : You can get around on Surface 3 but it is great to have it native on the GO.
Conclusion : Unless performance is really an issue and you'd love an even smaller tablet, i see no reason to upgrade.
Myself might be tempted because of surface connector and i have a surface book and its dock lying around but that prove redundant at home..Also definitely more interested in a LTE version than wifi only…(Here in Europe, internet is still very affordable).I will check the GO in store first.
My donated my S3 (4G/128G) to my Church when I purchased my new Go (8G/128G). I still maintain the S3. I tend to like both devices equally well. The S3 handled the basic tasks that I threw at it without any issues. The same with my Go.
I am a bit leery about the Go's battery.
Per the battery report that I ran today, the S3 is equipped with an SMP model P11G8M. It has a design capacity of 28,443 mWh. After 301 cycle counts, the battery has a full charge capacity of 26,250 mWh.
The Go sports an SMP AHA22135001. That battery has a design capacity of 26,128 mWh. After 12 cycle counts, the battery has a full charge capacity of 26,971 mWh. Despite having a higher full charge capacity, it feels like I'm charging the Go more often than I did the S3.
Either way, I like the Go and enjoy using it as my daily driver. I switch to my Surface Laptop for more demanding tasks.
As someone who has a Surface 3, and bought the Surface Go (8gb, 128gb) I can say without any reservation, heck yes, you should upgrade. The Go is the Surface vision MS has been working toward for a long time, and they nailed it.
Does the new pen work with the surface 3? I'm only going to buy the pen now after 5 years lol
Microsoft should just start selling Surface 3 for $100
Microsoft stopped producing Surface 3 back in late '16, so, um, good luck with that.
Look at ebay they have good deals as a bundle.
Got mine on ebay, gotta say it kicks ass even tho this guy is totally trying to troll it. All the surface 3 owners know its the right build now microsoft wont give you a new less expensive version of it.
Would you mind comparing surface go vs 2017 surface pro ? ... it will be nice to compare them
So worth spending $600 on the Surface GO when you can get a refurb Surface 3 (2GB) for $250 and really all you need it for is netflix and youtube?
Which one do you have? I'm looking into the go, spro 3,4 or 5. For drawing, Netflix or youtube, playing light games like stardew valley or wizard101. Would it be good for that?
I was practically forced to upgrade, as my Surface 3 had _massive_ WiFi problems. I was able to circumvent some of those after *much* research by digging deep into the registry to disable the power saving options on the adapter. With the Go, this is no longer an issue.
Also, the speed of the 3 was a pain in the butt, even on the 4GB model. So hooray, long live the king?
Not quite: I really don't get why they removed the clip on the new pen - I found that very useful. But much worse, the new stylus is visibly more craggly in handwriting. So much so that I sold my new one and kept the old pen, which delivers a _far_ better experience in OneNote.
Next, I really miss the start button on the bezel. The Sf3 was already short at least one button in my experience - why was there never a "back" button that I constantly need when surfing or navigating my own files?
Other small issues, like needing an adapter for plugging in a thumb drive or the reduction in resolution, I can forgive. But the pen is really a step down for all its newfangled tilting - it is even prone to accidental removal of the cap because there is no twisting motion involved for changing the battery. My advice: get the Go and an old model pen.
VERY HAPPY WC Did this comparison. As many have said, I wouldn't expect a 2018 device to lose to a 2015 one in hardware, but design can go forward or backwards.
Kickstand: While the infinity kickstand sounds great, it has proven to be a pain for folks trying to draw, as its resistance is too low. I preferred my S3's kickstand, albeit limited to 3 positions, because they had strong resistance.
Pen: Of course the new pen has greater sensitivity and tilt functions, as they didn't exist before; however, I miss the clip on the pen that allowed me to physically attach the pen to the thin part of the touch cover rather seamlessly. I like the magnets, but I never trust them when outside, just because I've got $100 dangling magnetically. At least with the clip, it would have to break first.
Screen Size: I didn't realize the screen was smaller, I felt the S3 screen was just right, and I owned an Asus ME400 (10.1"), so I certainly prefer the S3 screen size, though I'm sure that helped a bit with the price point.
Overall, really glad they made a successor, and I hope it does well.
The surface go seems like a nice tablet, but I think i'll stick with my surface 3 for these reasons:
1. The screen is bigger
2. I like the windows button
3.The keyboard is bigger and not all scrunched up like the surface go
Also the pen can stick to the surface 3 on the side where the button is and at the bottom when the keyboard isn't attached.
Hey, thanks i had never tried to put the surface pro 4 pen on the back on the side and it sticks.
Maybe Daniel should make an apology video to the Surface 3!
It also plays Cuphead at 60fps without problems.
Thank you for the comprehensive compare. I was wondering what was really different performance wise since the screen size was the first I noticed. I have a surface 3 and am generally still satisfied with it. My wife's S3 on the other hand is acting up and this may be a good alternative.
I have a Surface Pro 3 which I bought in late 2014 and still use it today. However, it has some issues which are starting to annoy me. Touch screen malfunctions more often than not, keyboard looses its connectivity and forces me to detach/attach it all the time, speakers are malfunctioning (they start emitting this crackling sound), sometimes browser slows down and kind of freezes and etc etc. Anyone else have similar problems? I'm considering buying the Surface Pro 6.
I was noticing on your geek benchmarks you're only showing surface 3 vs surface pro 3 that's not on the list? That run Intel i5 CPU
I need advice folks if i will buy a renewed product from amazon like surface 3 will it be good ?
Should be fine. Make sure to get the 4GB RAM model
@@davidh00 thanks
Am I the only person who uses these in tablet mode??
I pre-ordered the Surface Go without the keyboard. Will have to see if it's any good with just the tablet.
@@jackwongish I have the Surface Pro with type cover since it's my main and only laptop but it works good as a tablet for consuming media especially since it has an integrated hinge. If you plan on using the Surface Go as your daily device for work or school then you'll need the type cover or you can just get a cheap Bluetooth keyboard.
No, I barley use my surface 3 in desktop mode. I prefer tablet mode, because of how everything is laid out.
I use my Surface Book in tablet mode quite often, maybe 40% of the time but Windows 8.1 was still a lot better tablet OS in my opinion. I just loved it on my Surface Pro back in the days
Win 8.1 >>> win10 tablet mode
The sound on my Surface 3 has decided to stop working. I have tried reinstalling the drivers, different OS's (win 8, 10 and Linux) but nothing worked
I just bought a 3 for $249 off newegg. It's the 64\2gb model. I think for the price I paid and the light photo editing i need to do, it will do fine. Especially since IM saving over $300!
Compare the Go to a Surface Pro 3 or 4 please 😊
Иван Грязин w
Wait, why would you lose any charger? And why would you be more likely to lose the micro USB charger than surface connect?
I have the original Surface 3 and loved it. Perfect for light productivity (Word, OneNote) and very mobile, even with just WiFi. This video got right to the point--the Go experience will be an upgrade. Well done!
How about pro 3..? Ive been searching for this for a long time and its like surface pro 3 never existed
apdroid geek eBay and Amazon
I still have a Surface 3 4gb ram and a pen. I went to law school and now I’m finishing a MA in sociology were I’ve done gigantic tasks in SPSS / Excel and I can’t say that is as slow as some reviewers say. Compared to a NVME drive of course it’s gonna lose, but having a Pentium chip compared to an Atom which only has a few more IPS and the same clock, is not an upgrade. At the end of the day, the Surface Go is basically a NVME drive with a some logical updates. For a new Surface owner it’s a great deal, but to me at least, it’s marginal.
Just proves the point that we all have different uses, experiences, and expectations. Glad it worked out for you as that is all that matters in the end.
Windows Central I understand that the typecover is not compatible, but could the pen be recycled? Is it that much different the sensitivity of the pen itself?
Exactly, this is a incremental upgrade on performance.The biggest upgrade is the new port selection(usb-c and surface Connector)
Great comparison video with just the right amount of tech talk and superb charts to go with it all! My Surface Go arrives today and after seeing this video, I can’t wait to have it succeed my Surface 3, which has been going strong for many a years now but it’s definitely time for pension :)
So people complain about have to charge it over micro USB instead of the Surface connector.
They also complain about having a proprietary charger.
Every has a micro USB cable. You can even buy the in a dollar store.
It's not the cable, it's what it's plugged into for output. Phone chargers were the most common micro USB chargers on the market and they're all under powered for Surface 3. But Type C, well that, you can charge with many more choices.
At the time people praised the micro usb charging port because they complained about the proprietary charger of the Surface pros of the time and the Surface RT. Also the port also does data if you used OTG adapter.
Windows Central Some chargers charge slow and some fast so what? Micro usb is easy more flexible than surface connector
Agree, But still I prefer micro usb good enough even now, since i was using the turbo charger for micro usb (which is decent enough) and it gives flexibility all these days since i lost of my original surface 3 charger a while ago.
Lord Ba'al but now the Surface Go has the best of both worlds, no? I do love the surface connector for its ease of use, but in a pinch I can also use the usb c port for charging with a phone charger or power bank. I like having the choice
If you had the patience to use the 3 until now, the Go will probably feel downright fast to you in comparison. Just avoid the eMMC base model.
+tipoomaster
…… And avoid trying to use the Surface Go as a gaming pc or something like that when it isn't exactly made to be a gaming pc as well .
I am cautiously intrigued by this device, even though I had numerous issues with my Surface 3. The upgrade from Windows 8 to 10 broke the screen rotation and almost halved the battery life. Then the next couple of big Windows 10 updates continued to create new and bizarre issues. Now the device won't even shut down. I literally have to just hold the power button until it turns off. I have even done a fresh reinstall of Windows 10, and it still doesn't function as it should. I think I may have just got a bad apple --er bad Surface.
Great comparison with numbers and visuals. I am very familiar with the Surface 3 since I got the 2gb 64gb Surface 3 AND the dock cheap. Also the 2017 surface i5 128 4 gb. The dock charges the surface 3 at double speed. I throw the tablet in the dock and then pull it out with a decent amount of charge. And also the dock gives extra usb ports.
BUT the coolest feature of the surface 3 is using the 2017 keyboard which simply clicks on. The trackpad works great! It TOTALLY improves the surface 3. Yes it looks stupid but I use it at home kicking around the dining room. I was VERY interested in the Go but since the keyboards aren’t interchangeable, I think I will try to get another 2017 i5 with the type cover So have 2 type covers that work on 3 tablets. Oh, and I have a surface pro 3 dock that works on the surface 2017. The stupid docks work pretty well and you get hooked. Just glad I didn’t buy any of them at full price!
I will wait on the Go but I know better how to recommend it to friends based on great reviews by you and others. Thanks for your comparison.
Also, the new pen works very well on the old surface 3 (I have the old pen and the new one.)
Hi, thanks for the useful information, I've been considering buying surface go as my new device since last month. I'm wondering is the battery not that good? I heard that from some tech news. Thank you 😎
To be honest, Surface 3 holds most light web browsering and video playback and heavy work can be done on my Surface book 2, so I don't find any point to upgrade it to the Go.
I really like having the capacitive start button. Hitting the small on screen start button is annoying for me. It would be great to have a gesture for this in tablet mode.
Watching this on my Surface 3. Got it second hand for £190, and the only problem I have is faulty charging. And the fact I lost my pen after a few months (totally my fault)
Great video dude!! Can you please do a video testing out windows home, lightroom/Photoshop/Premiere , I really want to know it handle well, pleaseeeee!!! I want to buy right now if handle well. :)
Which has the better battery life? Please both 3 & go's screen on time while browsing.
hi can we use surface 3 typecover on surface go?
Thank you for the excellent review!
Thank you for this video. I still use my Surface 3 daily and been looking for an update but was unsure just how much better the Go was.
I didn't realise how much smaller it was too, a big bonus for myself.
Are these laptops suitable for a novelist? Looking for something portable and nice to type on. Cheers
I am trying to switch from MacBook air what shall I buy for my next one?
I still have my surface 3 works well my niece uses it more then me for school work
Side note for digital artists the Surface 3 or Surface Go is the ultimate inexpensive drawing tablet with the 8000 + plus pressure points stylists it destroys most Wacom drawing tablets. Small portable no PC needed on the GO.
It would be awesome if you compared this to the m3 Surface Pro as well. I'm interested in seeing if the primary difference for their use case will mostly be the screen size. I want to buy something for school and don't really need a lot of storage since I have a NAS that stores all my files while the library has tons of high-end desktops available for when I'd need more.
Surface go 8gb, surface pro 3,4,5 for drawing, netflix and light games like wizard 101. Which device would be good for that?
will the go charger work with my pro3? or pro 3 charger with the surface go?
The Surface Go is obviously the better device, and should be, since it is 3 years younger. The more interesting question is whether Microsoft should have built the Surface Go closer in size to the Surface 3 to get a bigger screen and a more spacious keyboard. Perhaps an extra 50 grams for a 10.5 inch device with slightly smaller left and right bezels?
I have a surface pro i5 4gb ram 128gb. Performance wise between this and surface go 8gb ram, which would you choose? I like the surface go size.
Has there been any comparisons between the Surface Pro 2 and GO?
I want a surface for note taking and as a small media computer (youtube and web surfing) Should I get the surface go or pro? will I be sad about the 3 inch shorter screen? help
How's the screen though I'm not sure how good is 1800 x 1200 is it like 1080p or?
Please make a video on how to make a screenshot when using the Surface Go.
Good review, without this I wouldn't realise the surface go is smaller than surface 3.
I'd rather my 3 with the type A USB port.
Great comparison Daniel, I have a surface 3 LTE 128GB (as well as a surface 2 and a pro 3 i3). I am really interested to know what you think of the difference between the surface 3 keyboard (which I like a lot, much more than the surface 2 / pro 3 type cover and virtually as much as the pro 4 one) and the surface go keyboard. Also, how about the sound and especially volume? Surface 3 has higher volume than surface 3 and even a bit higher than the pro 3. How does it compare to the go?
Hmmm...Surface 3's keyboard is bigger, which is nice, but honestly, typing on Go is just fine. Really no issue and I'd say it's a better keyboard (partially due to the much better trackpad). I'll have to try audio, but Go is very good all around - newer hardware, tweaked software, etc. should be better for audio too.
thanks a lot! If you have time to do a direct compartison of the audio, I'd be very interested. I'll go check the keyboard in a shop once it's available here in Switzerland, but I doubt I'll be able to compare the sound there...
I am thinking about getting a surface go because the battery life on my surface pro 3 is terrible.
i picked up the surface 3 in the 8gb ram, its a good tab with full windows on it
What do you use yours for?
Which is a worth of value surface go 8gb or surgace pro 4?
is fluent coding possible without lag in netBeans by Surface Go?
Where do you get your wallpapers please ?
best review for the surface go that I've seen!
thank you for this video of the comparison of the surface 3 to the surface go as I'm sold on the surface go instead of the surface 3
may be a shallow comment, but why are they rounding the tablet so it looks like everything else. Like the VW Golf, some of us LIKE the unique squared design.
What does he say at the end of his videos? "Take care everybody"? I turned on captions and it said "take care of body"
Good advice either way
wow impressive video! I am still wondering why they didn't reduce the bezels.. in 2018! when already the pro 4 had a bit on it.
I want a surface for a laptop since I’m getting a gaming desktop
how ports are better in surface go???
It's the random read performance, not the sustained MB/s on the storage that makes it feel slow.
When are they gonna change the surface connect port with a usb c thunderbolt port? This is basically the same as apple insistence with using a lightning port
Here in Canada the Surface Go 8GB version is $699 and I did the math as you would need the keyboard and pen for sure... mouse maybe if not use to trackpad it cost us Canadians CAD $1,043.97 before taxes.... so I am looking at $1 179.00 is the grand total... some awesome laptop's come in that pricerange and it's easy to drop a 500 SSD drive into it.. mind you M.2 drives like I have in my PC are much faster but I do love the size of the Go
You don't have to have the keyboard if you don't plan to use it as a laptop. For my use as a note taking tablet, pen+tablet is all what you need. A separate trackpad is Apple exclusive stupidity, and I hope this plague doesn't spread to PC. You can use a third party Windows Pen, it doesn't have to be Surface Pen. The universal Wacom one ($80 USD) or literally any Windows Pen bundled from Lenovo/HP/Dell will work.
james .mannequindisplay I'd say the pen isn't necessary, unless you also use a pen on your laptop. Before tax at 868.99 with the nicer keyboard, it still is pretty steep, though.
there are bigger and better 2 in1 devices for much less that come with keyboards and M3 processers, all the tech reviews are sponsored, this thing is a scam.
the Day they released this is the Day over 50% of my RUclips was filled with people reviewing the Surface Go as they gave this thing to everyone and reviewers I never heard before.
I'm sitting here right now typing this on my 8gb go. You would definitely want the keyboard but unless you are going to do any graphic design or draw on it you don't need to bother with the pen. I only got the pen because of my job. I use remote access to my main computer and all its processing power. I will be buying the small mouse you can get for these. Over all I really like it though it is a bit weird using windows in a tablet for factor. I'm so used to there being apps for everything and on windows there isn't. No you tube or gmail or anything google related in the app department. That being said, since it is a full blown computer you just go to the sites themselves in their full desk top version.
What about the MS Go cheaper version (4GB RAM/64GB eMMC)? Is it worthy? Is that better than MS 3?
Just bought a Surface Go thanks to this review! I currently have a Surface 3 that i use now. Or was using i should say.
It's been 10 months since you wrote this. Curious about how much of a different experience you're having with the surface go compared to the 3
The reason not to upgrade is the size though. It's just a tad to small for using it seriously, be it for note taking in class or typing on it for longer. The Surface 3 really hit the sweet spot imo here. It's small enough to not feel awkward to carry around in one hand while still offering a big enough display for writing on it and typing with the larger keyboard.
And who can forget the current Microsoft pen which only has one side button, compared to the two of the Surface (Pro) 3, with right click and eraser on it. The eraser on the back is just useless. When you take notes you don't want to flip around the whole pen every 10 seconds just to erase something, and with its big knob, it's just very imprecise.
At the time reviews praised the micro usb charging port because they complained about the proprietary charger of the Surface pros of the time and the Surface RT. Also the port also does data if you used OTG adapter.
The Surface 3 kickstand adopted the Surface Pros kickstand levels and was praised in comparison to the Surface RT it was replacing.
The battery life and processor did not age well over time and is frankly disappointing now.
Alot has changed and advanced since 2015 so of course the Surface Go is the better device by far, but that's comparing a Bugatti Veyron Vs a Model T Ford.
It's quite an unfair comparison, and unduly harsh.
Isn't this just a sign of progress? What was thought to be good design choices in 2015 may no longer be the case because we have found better ways of doing things.
Loved the video, but wanted to ask can you use the Surface go type cover on the surface 3?
It's too small.
I found my Surface 3 unpleasant to do real work on because its screen was just too tiny when at my desk. If the Go had a larger battery and 11/12" screen, it would be a significant quality of life improvement.
The Surface Go is aimed at people who WANT a small device. Remember, there were 7/8" Windows devices from major manufacturers not long ago. If you need an 11/12" screen then you aren't looking for a Surface Go, you're looking for a Surface Pro.
Get the cheap Surface Pro instead. The Go is an iPad competitor that's meant to be used as a tablet most of the time, instead of being a thin tablet/laptop hybrid.
Why does it look like Minecraft is not open on the Go when he plays it?
I have a Surface 3 LTE 2gb ram 64gb storage and for the use i geve to my surface its awesome, the screen is great the sound, i use the usb and the display port a lot , and the size is perfect... i dont like the corners on the surface go, it looks like an android tablet, it look cheap, and the smaller size its a downgrade for me... i only gona upgrade if i mest up my device, and i doit for a Pro, not this android looking cheap tablet
My feedback after using Surface 3 for the past 3+ years is :
Upgrade to Surface Go: If you are new to surface, yes it is go for it. But otherwise, it is not worthy if your existing Surface 3 device is still working (mine is working like a charm), retaining the advantages of flexible Micro USB charging(i use turbo charger) , USB Type A port (to connect any device or hub of my choice) and little big screen size.
My belief: Options to chose if Surface 3: I see two faces of this:
First: $399 4GB RAM version is good for general consumers with light weight usage (more of consumption) [ Prefer to Retain with Windows S mode here] and for all others who either need more processing power for sure, or who need windows home/pro for sure, for specific apps they should go for $549 model.
Second: $399 4GB RAM version is a good and default choice for managements of schools , colleges, and parent who are looking for their kids(students) a niche device to give all what they want for their studies. For enterprise users (if any really? although Pro is better here) and other power hungry or users who could afford more, $549 model would be a default choice.
May be another video from Dan/Windows central on the usage of Windows S mode in &399 model will bring a more clear picture for the general audience including kids and seniors who are looking at this device as a first computer /tablet of their life.
I should not refrain from saying, windows hello , type C port and all position kick stand of Surface Go is still lure me toward it :)
Hi, How long please to charge your Surface 3 with this "Turbo charger"? How those the same smartphones charger that have fast charging or yet another solution.
I think my Microsoft dock use the display port to Fast charge and provide more power than the micro usb port to my Surface 3 in 2 hours, since it has only 2 connections on the dock (1 display port and full size usb port)...
Hello Prabaharan,
Can you recomend me a good micro USB charger to use with my Surface 3? I've bought it used, without the original charger. I've tried several micro usb chargers, one of them of a Note 8 (wich is powerfull), but the charging rate is always painfully slow.
Thank you for any advice.
MS should do a battery configuration/upgrade option because the battery is very average on the Go.
This is best comparison ever for these two devices. Thanks. I just bought surface go 2. I had option for surface 3 to save half money. I skipped it
But with the Surface 3 pen loop, which I have, you can’t have the pen be clipped off if you scrape the tablet too close to a wall. You’ll feel the looped pen snag.
Literally nothing stops you from buying a $5 pen loop and still using it.
I wonder if I could use my surface 3 keyboard on the go it didn't seem that much larger
won't work not the same connectors
How was micro usba bad port? I could charge the surface 3 with a variety of chargers.
Because many users would use chargers that were slower than the Surface one, resulting in 'slow charging' complaints. Panos Panay is on record stating this and how bad it was from a CS point - lots of complaints, returns, etc.
Windows Central I still don't see how that Is a con or a disadvantage. I now have surface book but I enjoyed charging my Surface 3 with just about anything. Even my backup battery.
This or the Huawei matebook E ?
My surface 3 just died..... won't charge so I'm pulling the trigger on the Go. I got the 399.00 model and no accessories. I use it exclusively for reading lyrics for my band in which I use word and will probably keep it in S mode as I use edge as my browser. Anything else I use my laptop or phone. Hoping this will work was well as my surface 3 did......RIP😎
How's it working for you?
It's so frustrating seeing some reviewers not use it in tablet mode.
Can you only use Windows 10 S on this device? That's a deal breaker for me as I want to be able to run software not only found in the limited Microsoft Store.
You can upgrade to Windows 10 Home for free. Once you have upgraded you cannot go back to s-mode. Also once you have upgraded to full Windows 10 Home you can pay to upgrade to Windows 10 Pro. I think the Windows 10 Pro price is $99.
My MS3 is still working great and I love the full USB port. RUclips and movies only so no need for an upgrade. Also both have windows so I would be yelling at that too as windows isn't a great OS to begin with.
Great review....made a lot of sense
Owners loosing their USB charger ?! Come on ! This is ridiculous. Tablet charging with USB is a great feature, you can borrow an iPad charger if needed, or any other that has a bit of power, quite more convenient than 12v + power supplies...
Surface pro 3 i5 or surface go ??? Will do some casual photo editing and gaming nothing serious mostly web surfing.
Sp3.
I know it's two years late 🤣
Please, please, please do a review of the 64 GB EMMC model vs the 128 GB SSD model. I'm wondering if the price difference is worth it, especially with the pen and keyboard costing so much.
I reckon it's probably still very usable. On spec alone, the base model Go will still be a massive upgrade over the Surface 3, given that both has the same RAM and EMMC storage, but the Pentium Gold processor destroys the Atom in the S3. I have the Costco variant of the Go with 4gb RAM and 128GB SSD storage. So far haven't seen the need to upgrade to the 8gb RAM version
Watching this on my still-kicking Surface 3 :) This looks like a pretty sweet upgrade. But actually think Andromeda may be the better form factor for many use cases.
But how are the performance compared to older Surface Pro devices? It would be interesting to see how it stacks up to Surface Pro 1 to 3 :o)