I remember watching this video a long time ago wishing I had one! My my how fast time goes by! I'm typing this from my surface pro 3 i7 and couldn't be happier!
Terry Allen yeah that's what I'm reading everywhere, but this one person who's usally pretty reliable was giving it so much shit. Maybe she had a faulty device.
I like how Will raises a question that tries to make Microsoft look stupid, and then Norm gives a completely rational answer that makes perfect sense. Will - "I don't understand why they'd sell this without the keyboard frankly" Norm - "So they can sell it for $800 for the base model"
Yes, but that's disingenuous as hell on Microsoft's part. It's basically unusable as a laptop alternative without a keyboard. You could buy a cheaper one, but it wouldn't be as portable.
icestationzebra I had the original and if you didn't have a flat surface it is really awkward to hold and type with one hand, the kickstand wasn't all that great you couldn't really have it upright and type, but I did use it on my lap with the touch screen keyboard. I think the Surface Pro 3 is much nicer than the previous two models, unlike the 2, I would actually buy it at a better price point. I am curious to see how the 4 ends up, could be essentially a 3 but with small fixes, like the mentioned hitting the touch sensitive windows logo while drawing, or like the major jump from 2 to 3.
icestationzebra The onscreen keyboard on my original surface is actually very useable as it is and I can only imagine that the SP3, with its larger screen and better aspect ration, only makes improvements on it. Plus, if you have the screen tilted all the way down, it gives you a nice typing angle. It's not perfect, but it will get you though most all typing situations. I still use my type cover regularly, but I've don't mind using the on-screen when I'm feeling lazy.
funny how everyone complains about the price but then an iPhone 6+ with 128gb of storage costs almost as much as the Surface which has a core i5, the same amount of storage and is actually a fully functioning PC when you need it to be...
I've been wanting a tablet that I can actually draw on and that do what I like them to do. For ages I've stuck with Apple. Apple phone, Apple MacBook, etc. etc. but after seeing this im giving Microsoft a second chance
***** same here. Im on my 2012 macbook pro but I want to give this to my mother and buy me a surface pro 3. Just waiting to see when Windows 10 will be available for it. I know regular pc Windows 10 updates have already been released.
Great review guys! I've been waiting for this since you announced you were going to do one. I really appreciated the Photoshop and Lightroom demos. I am strongly considering this for on-the-go initial editing of images.
lol thanks for clearing the whole bias thing up Will. I was one of the people who commented about that and sometimes it has appeared to me that you may not like the predict that you guys review but in all i really enjoy these and everything you guys do!
Keep up the great reviews, guys! I get annoyed when all reviewers do is read off the specs, I want to know what it's like to use it for extended periods and what the quirks of a product are.
By far these are the best reviews I've ever seen for laptops (ultrabooks, stuff), period. You actually share information that I 100% care about. Keep up the awesome, awesome job!!
Seems like MS are actually getting closer towards making a convincing argument for why the Surface should exist, although, the ultrabooks still seem better.
The Surface Pro concept isn't a new one. Similar products have existed for years, but no one but artists, architects, engineers, etc. used them. IMO this doesn't compete with the MacBook Air or other ultrabooks. This is a niche device, which Microsoft is trying (and failing) to sell to the general consumer. Can it do all the things a MacBook Air can? Yeah, but why would you pay extra for features you wouldn't use? I have a Surface Pro predecessor, and I love it because I use the pen a lot, but if you don't, I don't see the point of getting something like this.
***** Agreed. Microsoft have never made a secret of this. This is a "see what we did here, now come and beat us!" device, just like the Nexus line. In both cases, OEMs got greedy and lazy, and innovation practically stopped. In both cases, the devices have reinvigorated their specific market segments and spawned all sorts of new competition and improvements. Job done, I guess ;)
Beard guy needs to shut the hell up. The one dude trying to actually explain what's there is getting cut off and spoken over by the dude who's talking about what's not... Asking questions about a product =/= telling me that it's not a MacBook over and over. It doesn't even make sense, if he's there to get the other guy to address certain topics then doesn't cutting him off and not letting him talk just so he can make his own snide comments, like, the complete opposite of his purpose?
I cannot stand him. I'm thoroughly researching this product because I might get one for my sister and the bearded guy seriously needs to stop talking like a condescending idiot and let the other man explain some actual specs and observations about the tablet. Whenever he talks I just tap the right arrow on the keyboard until he stops talking. Annoying.
zazamospanapolus i just got mine on monday, there are a lot of issues stemming from windows not being designed to be a tablet. for example the lack of mouseover makes it really hard to use a lot of dropdown menus/flash players/etc. as a tablet, it's mediocre--i found myself returning to my android tablet to watch videos/etc because it runs smoother and is more easily navigated (also i watch foreign TV w/ subtitles and it's easier to read on a smaller screen). however its a great laptop and this makes up for its shortcomings as a tablet imo
No matter how much he tries, Will still seems to have that "perceived bias" or condescending thought process when it comes to anything Microsoft that he's apparently been trying to avoid. Always thinking worst-case scenario rather than the solution that's right in his face. Anyone would know you're not going to hold the Surface from the keyboard and expect it to sit up like a laptop...using common sense would show you don't have a perceived bias. Also, the jab at Windows phones was anything but necessary. Aside from Will's comments on the Surface it was a really thorough review and extremely well done!
I agree with you. He should have just said "you can charge your phone." If you have a SP3 you probably wouldn't have a separate iPad at the same time...
Very through and "realistic" review, I love Tested for doing this kind of videos, because they are a fit for the hosts. In the "Cave", you kinda feel the absense of Adam when he is not there, but not in these. And I just love Will and Norm. Great work!
He is incorrect at 12:56 you can use your old type cover, I have a SP3 and it works fine with my old keyboard. also off the Microsoft store "Does Surface Type Cover and Type Cover 2 work on Surface Pro 3? A: Surface Pro 3 works best with Surface Pro Type Cover, however your Touch and Type Cover 2 will click in and work with Surface Pro 3." www.microsoftstore.com/store/msca/en_CA/pdp/Surface-Pro-3-256-GB--Intel-Core-i5/productID.300194700#surfacepro3vsmacbookair
holy crap. i've had my surface pro 3 for a couple of months now. didn't know it had an sd slot. neat! (this is why i watch reviews of things i already own. haha)
In the review it was mentioned that the SD slot is only for read only, this is not correct. I chatted to an MS Technician who confirmed that the SD slot can be used to expand the capacity of the surface pro 3 and use it to write data on it. Please correct this on your review, otherwise this was the best one i have seen for the surface pro 3. As a Techie , i enjoyed this a lot! thank you for your time !
JESUS PEOPLE! How are people not understanding that this is not overpriced junk, it's genus. It is the perfect thing for college and careers like engineering, medical, and ect. If u want a a high performance laptop, then buy a ASUS ROG laptop, but this is a hybrid. It combines features of a tablet and a laptop, allowing for features u can't get in just your normal laptop. And for the price, it's actually cheap for what you get. Remember every screw is not going to use the same screwdriver.
Desperately wanted to purchase an i7 model until they mentioned various real world issues, specifically the thermal and gaming issues. Any device this expensive should be able to play games at 60+ fps, and be able to do so without ever getting hot.
I will say i own a Surfice pro 2 and there are games that handle just fine. Portal high settings TF2 any 2d based games Minecraft Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 etc. It won't be playing crisis. But it handles a decent amount of my steam library. Also I would like to point out that the surfice pro 2 has the same power as the i5 models of the surface pro 3, as they both have Intel HD4400 graphic chips, so for anyone considering the i5 models, think of the surface pro 2 as a cheep alternative. If you get the i7 model, you will get Intel HD5000 graphics, witch should play most games with moderate settings. I will say one thing I enjoy at uni, is being able to chill with mates at the lounge, take out my tablet and 360 controllers, and have a match of skull girls and a pint.
It's not a gaming machine. This is for people who need the pen (e.g. artists, engineers, architects, etc.), and considering that pen tablets used to cost at least $2000 for the base model just 2-3 years ago, this is actually reasonably priced.
Seriously? You can get a gaming laptop, that will run games at 60fps+, that has long battery life and doesn't get hot, for about $1000? If so, where? The best deal I ever found for a "gaming notebook" was a $1450 Asus, and that was a terrible compromise. It had about 2 hours of battery life, weighed almost 1.7kg, and still sucked to play games on due to it's mobile GPU. I certainly wouldn't buy ANY tablet, or hybrid tablet/notebook, or laptop, and expect to get great gaming performance on it. Even the Alienware stuff sucks, and that costs nearly $3000. LOL. I guess you could load up Steam, and use the streaming functionality from a proper gaming PC on the network, but that's kinda cheating (and expensive because it needs the Surface AND a gaming PC). It'd be cool though, just plug in an Xbox 360 controller and game on! But that's about the only high-performance gaming notebook solution I am aware of ;)
I find it interesting that this is exactly the product that I have been looking for for years, since the years of Tablet PCs, and I know many other techies too but today people really like to beat this product down... there was a time when I was grateful for windows xp on a tablet that got 2hrs of battery life and 16gig hd so to me this is a dream come true lol....i feel like the only one who actually likes the surface line lol...
Haha, not by a long shot. People love to bash this device because it does more than most of them are even aware of. I've never had someone walk away unimpressed after actually showing them how these work.
I absolutely love this. This is what i've been asking for, for a long time and one of the reasons I dumped my iPad. It didn't do what I wanted effectively. I think a lot of people are wanting Apple to come out with a device like this and will bash anything they "perceive" as a threat.
Jasmine Hoegh rite the ipad recording sucks i spent $100s on music apps...when i couldve just gotten fl studio surface pro 3 256 gb and have a portable studio smh...bouta get it off ebay with the keyboard and pen
In my company one year down the track there is been a near 100% failure rate. That is, almost everyone has had a catastrophic failure requiring a new tablet, some people are still going on their original, or some are now on their second or third tablet. We had hundreds of employees migrate from a 2009 HP notebook to the surface pro 3. The failure rate was much higher than the previous HP Business notebook. Here are the most commonly seen problems. • The black screen of death. When taking the tablet out of sleep mode, the screen flashes, then no longer works at all. Even after fully charging the tablet, doing a hard reset or the “volume+power on for 15 seconds”, it doesn’t get the tablet to work. These tablets need to be exchanged for new ones. • Tablet doesn’t re-image properly, even after multiple attempts. • Lots of problems trying to load add-on support software like SQL Server express. • Cooling fan is on almost all the time and the back of the tablet is quite warm to touch. The idea of the device is good however Microsoft REALLY need to work on the reliability, the passive cooling, robustness of this device and the robustness of the operating system in this tablet environment. The workload of our IT department has shot up dramatically after this migration due to the very high rate of failures. We no longer consider this to be a serious business device or personal computer but just a toy.
Adam from Mythbusters killed this review with his annoying and forced 'questions'. As if buddy doesn't know or understand the specs.... Just let Norman handle it, please.
Granum Of Life Of course I can. The comment was was tongue-in-cheek. Satire, based on the fact that there is a resemblance. An exaggeration, if you will. Sort of like how your comments show that you don't understand satire and sound like Dwight Schrute, HAL or iRobot. It must be hard to live in a binary world.
It's getting to the point where I can't watch any of the tested videos where Will is a major contributor. His hyperactive energy grates on my nerves. Norm is a better presenter and tends to be more knowledgeable as well. Will starts off by saying he is going to ask questions as an unbiased party to help get Norm's opinion of the product. He proceeds to comment on each and every thing Norm says. When there is an actual question, it's often presented as if he knows the product or can guess at answers. Annoying. If you don't know, don't infer. Listen, digest, and ask good questions. Give Norm time to answer and shut the hell up.
Agreed...I even notice that Norm actually makes an annoyed looking gesture towards Will every once in a while especially when he is trying finish a sentence that Will keeps interrupting him with. Norm is obviously a much more intelligent person and it really shows when he is asking product questions. Just saying I can really do without Will.
I know. The whole time, I was thinking "That bearded guy needs to STFU". If I was trying to give a presentation and maintain my focus on delivering the material and some asshat kept interrupting me like that, I'd punch him in the face. He literally detracted from the video way more than he contributed.
I'm always leery of reviews because everyone has their opinion. However, you guys gave as unbaised a description of this product as I've seen! I'll only be using my Pro 3 i3 for Office suite applications, and watching the review made me fall in love with One Note again. This Surface fits my needs. I have a meeting I'm going to this weekend and I will definately be using that feature. All the best to you and I hope to come back to you for a review again!
its soooo over priced for what it is.....its like they saw how much Apple products go for and thought lets get in on this.......but its way over priced you can buy a decent spec laptop for the same money and my Samsung Note 10.1 204 edition does about the same and its costs half the price.
Darin Walker No it isn't.. 128GB ipad is $700, 128GB surface is $1000. Also there's no device that can do as much as it, and if you have money to blow and you want the best of the best, why not.
It's too expensive for a tablet too limited to be a true laptop replacement what it does it does grate but for the price I could get a new laptop that would handle work and play don't get me wrong it's a grate idea and the top spec one does everything you would need but the price is too much.
m a college student and have owned an iMac for 5 years and a MacBook Air for 2. I currently have an iPad 2 which I carry alongside my MBA since i can use my stylus to take notes on my iPad and they transport directly into my MBA with the Notability app. My iPad has served me well but its killing my back since its almost as heavy as my MBA so i was thinking if i should get an iPad air for 450 or a Surface pro for about 6-700. I can use windows fairly well even though all my products are apple. I love the idea of being able to take notes and have a full blast PC capable of playing video games all in one (although i currently league perfectly on my MBA). What do you think i should do? How has your experience been with the SP2?
I really recommend you give the SP3 a shot. I got the SP1 and put all the powerpoint slides, books, assignments, and notes I needed into organized OneNote pages. Semesters later I can still find everything from my old classes with ease. It was so useful for me that we got my little brother the SP3 for when he went to college. He's been having the same experience. There's just nothing you'll need to do for school that you won't be able to do on the SP3. Worst case scenario you return it and pick up an iPad instead :-p
Irene, how are you liking the sp3 so far? I'm in a similar situation, trying to decide between sp3 and iPad for note taking in nursing school. I've heard great things about the Noteability app on Apple devices; how does it compare to OneNote in your experience?
Taylor Vila I am loving my surface, my first one had some massive issues and you can see that on my new video on my channel, however dissapointed as i was, the product was so awesome i decided to give it another shot and Im loving it. Ive impressed all my friends by playing League on it smoothly and battlefield. Notability is a wonderful app for people who are stuck with an iPad. It doesnt compare to one note and the pens for iPad will never compare to the Surface Pen, it is so smooth, and the included palm rejection makes it so easy. Good pens for the iPad are like $200 and it doesnt have included palm rejection which is a pain in the butt. On here i can annotate all my pdf's,powerpoints, word docs,etc which comes in handy for Biology classes where you can annotate the pictures. I was always an Apple girl and will never switch out my iPhone and iMac but this hybrid has replaced my macbook and ipad and I dont regret it.
I have pre-ordered the i7 one for digital painting and 3D work (Zbrush when it comes in 64-bit, Maya). I was thinking about getting the Wacom companion but then this came out with better specs and a higher resolution screen, which for me is highly important for clarity and since menus cover less space while working. To me the price tag of the Wacom is simply too high, I hope this computer will live up to expectations, otherwise I'll just send it back. And Tested: I totally bought this without the keyboard, I have no use for it. And I Imagine any other artist on the go will do the same.
I hardly ever use the keyboard cover on my. I prefer using the "dual-thumb" onscreen keyboard. Using a Bluetooth mouse spares the USB drive if you need it. I do love using this for photo editing as the screen is gorgeous and accurate. I'll process maybe up to 100 raw photos at a time in lightroom and didn't notice the slowdown that was mentioned. I actually hardly ever use the kickstand, I just hold it like a book or notepad. Scaling for many things is small though, but the screen is so clear its not really a problem.
First time I have watched you and thought you were both very good. Questions were valid and the responses were good. Told me just about all I wanted to know if I was thinking of purchasing it.
My wishlist for SP4 so that I can finally buy a Surface Product Make a 12" and 14" or 13" version and a Mini version for all the moms out there Same weight Go back to Wacom but if they're gonna be dicks about it, fuck em. Help Ntrig get to Wacom level MAKE THE KEYBOARD PART OF THE PACKAGE See if it is possible to make it be able to be hard docked like Thinkpad Helix 10 hours battery life.
You're paying for an experience that makes note taking fluid. You're not paying for a laptop. It's about transitioning between taking notes with the keyboard and taking notes with the pen. It's about producing text with the keyboard and illustrations with the pen. Taking notes in class is never blocks of solid texts and facts, Nota taking is very dynamic and the pen compliments it very well.
I liked how your review gave a realistic perceptive of its usage: benefits and limitations, considering its price etc. but I think you would have done more justice to the device but factoring in and reviewing the camera because it not only gives weight to the price but also increases the overall productivity.
Like your review. What brand would you recommend buying functioning first as a laptop and tablet secondary? I have an online marketing business and travel quite a bit. So prefer to have something 13" or less. I have a Lenovo 15" Thinkpad which is too heavy and big for traveling. Thanks!
Had it for a month now, I love it way more than my IPad. I have an Alienware laptop so I don't need this for gaming (although there are some great win app games). This I use for school and Army business, it has the functionality I need for both. The price is the only thing I don't like but I should be able to keep it longer than my IPad. Those wondering why I just don't use my laptop, this is much lighter and easier to carry and set up, plus I can use it as a straight up tablet. I use one note for meetings and classes and it works very well. If you can afford one I highly recommend this device.
I dislike that in reviews such as this, when some feature is bad, it is when compared to an Apple product. But when it is a good feature, it is not in the slightest compared to and Apple equivalent. EDIT: Norm does a good job reviewing the product, though.
the screen grab works on other windows devices, you only hav to hit (window) + N and then S for screen clipping. Then you can select the area with the mouse
You can zoom in using OneNote, I believe you have to change the setting however, but once you do you can zoom is as easily as anything else and you can write smaller.
From a Artist Point of view. I have plenty of experience with Wacom tablets (intuos 4) and Previously a owner of a surface pro 2 and now a Surface pro 3. The noticeable difference between the 2 and the 3 as far as drawing is if you are an light sketcher, I often sketch very light (like on paper) and it takes slightly more pressure for me in a program such as "SketchBook Pro" on the SP3. It's not very comfortable drawing on a surface pro 2 as my drawing device. The surface pro 3 is quite a bit more comfortable to draw on counting the larger screen and versatile kickstand when trying to use it as a drawing canvas on a desk other than your lap. I'm all for wacom but the ntrig wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be..I hope the clears some decisions for Artist out there.
one little ergonomic mistake I would like to notice is that the windows button should have been placed at the left and not the right. + If you have your pen in the right hand (like most do) you would want to be able to push the windows button with your left. + most of us read from left to right, windows comes first, better advertising + the windows button leads to start. start is on left, the beginning - will feel a bit awkward for people coming from ios or android
other little ergo feature I would have added is to make the second magnetic type cover stip a little more narrow. So that the pen would have been able to be clipped on it when keyboard is being used.
Looks pretty slick. After all the Broadwell talk recently though I kind of want to see what the Surface iteration with that generation of processors will be like.
I got the mid range one as a birthday present to myself in October and, once I got it set up the way I liked it, I totally stopped using my HP laptop (so much so I gave it to a friend who has wanted a laptop for awhile but couldn't afford one). My only issue with it so far have been that sometimes I accidentally push the power button when putting it in the case I got for it. I also don't use the pen much and sometimes I'm still getting the hang of the touch screen (as I've never really used touch screen before).
Thanks for the review. I'm still checking whether or not I will buy it but so far it looks brilliant. Like the amazing screen, the new kick stand. All reviews are good and says that this is the best Windows device so far.
One quick question, when you fold back the keyboard, are the keypad and mousepad deactivated? If they are not, they might interfere with writing in onenote if you are putting the system on a table to write. Please let me know, thanks, Amir
I'm a programmer and I was excited to pick up a new Surface 3. I used it for 1 day before returning it. The 11" screen is WAY too small. At 11" with hi-res I couldn't read a thing. The keyboard felt like I was typing on a peice of cardboard. Bought a Dell XPS13, same size, bigger screen, less money, much better!
One thing i do not like on the surface pro is the speakers output level. I often find it too quiet. Has that been improved on the Surface pro 3? And another thing that is an issue is the wake up speed on the surface pro can be inconsistent and sometimes you are not sure if the device is waking up or not. Hopefully the resume on the Pro3 is improved.
So I have the Surface Pro 3 with i5/8GB/256GB and love it very much. It's a great laptop and desktop. The Windows 8 apps are okay, but I do miss "focused" apps that I have experienced on the Android tablets. So I just bought a Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 with Verizon LTE and keep my Surface as a laptop (which actually replaced a late mode 2013 MBP Retina 13). So far I'm pretty happy.
So I don't need to purchase a Wacom Cintiq which is about $1,000 alone for the base model...nice! The stylus functionality is already built in to do graphic design with drawing tablet functionality on the go. Adobe CC should run fine on this :)
Hey guys I would like your thoughts about my idea. I have been waiting for a Mac that would satisfied my needs. But unfortunately apple hasn't revealed one. So if I buy a surface pro 3 (the cheapest one) and when the surface 4 comes out trade in the sp3 for the best sp4 model. Would it be a good choice? Currently I have a macbook (white one) 2011.
I have been using P30 Pro for 4 years. Detachable keyboard is really handy. My only complaint is their hardware quality. Keyboard failed (connectivity problem) recently and I have to replace it with a new one. Power button needs to be pressed hardly for a while to turn on and not always working. The material of the blue keyboard gets dirty soon and after using for a couple of years, it started peeling off.
Surface Pro 3 with OneNote 2013 and a Lumia 920 with the Office Lens app is the perfect combination for me as a student. I love it and I don't regret anything. I really don't get why there are no competitors so that the prices would go down.
I was able to use this one-legged and cross-legged while testing it out at a store. Granted, my wrists were cramped, but it was doable. I'll admit that 20 minutes of straight testing isn't the same as weeks of it, but it seemed like it could be done.
This review is somewhat helpful. However, I would like to have seen some desktop functionality (I frequently dock my laptop when working at home) specifically how well does it handle dual monitor support? Does it have to be used with the MS dock or will it work with USB a port replicator (the way my current laptop does)? Finally, this would have been better without the dual-reviewer format. One reviewer constantly interrupting the other is frustrating to watch.
I didn't get to watch it all, so you 2 could of talked about it later, but can the surface pro 3 take pictures, or only download, or bluetooth pictures?
I thank you so much for this video! I plan to buy this one tomorrow because my Samsung notebook is too heavy and bulky. The desktop PC I have is a power machine but of course not very portable. I can not stand iOS; I always have the feeling I miss something, e.g. I need to get up from my bed and do "serious stuff" on my PC because I can't do "*that*" on the iPad. But the overall look and feel of the Surface Pro 3 attracted me in my local eletronics store. But man, my configuration would be 1,130€... That is quite an amount of money. And I want something for that money if I am actuallying going to purchase it. And how can you see if it is worth? Due to a good video. And *this* video is awesome. I am sick of these 2.30 minute bullshit around the web. Cool stuff, gentlemen!
@tested I was wondering about the high end version. the i7 would you be able to play games on that decently or no? in your opinion. or stream on twitch ?
One question.. how usable is it without the keyboard..? I'm planning on buying one using every cent of my savings but €130 for the keyboard seems way too much. Will the absence of the keyboard render it an ordinary $500 andorid tabled or can it still be used at it's full potential? And as a side comment, with this new 4G thing available everywhere, wouldn't one expect the SP3 to have a sim card slot? I don't think it's a deal breaker but I'm just saying..
With all of these high resolution 4k monitors coming out, Windows 9 will absolutely need to fix the scaling issues if it wants to stay relevant. Honestly, windows 8 should be able to handle scaling, but it doesn't. And this is coming from someone who prefers windows!
i have an original Surface Pro still have no complains , the whole point of the touch screen is so that you dont have to hold it in the palm of your hand and walk around like you would do with a laptop, the type cover and kickstand is not nearly as bad as people make them out to be. you actually have to use the thing to appreciate.
The mini displayport on the Surface Pro 3… what kind of signal can it send out? Is it a mini displayport 1.1, 1.1a, or 1.2? Can it send out a 4K signal at 60 hz or just at 30 hz? Thank you.
Importand question: when you are in the pdf/pen writing mode, can you change the colours and style of your pen? Or is it always going to be this sorta pencil style? Would be nice if you could also change it to a textmarker style for example, featuring lots of bright neon colours and the such
Something people need to understand is that this is a TABLET meant as a hybrid with laptop capabilities. The price is reasonable considering it has SSD. Every laptop with SSD goes for more than 1000 bucks. The fact that they added laptop level processors and RAMs justifies the price even more. It's also the reason the keyboard is sold separately, some people just want a tablet, so if you want a laptop then buy a keyboard. It's like buying a desktop and saying oh why doesn't this come with a monitor and keyboard & mouse??
im curious to know how this thing runs audio programs and DAWs.. how would this thing perform with maschine, fl studio, cubase, etc.. and latency with external midi controllers etc... with the integrated audio card as well as an external USB one.
so just wondering, Surface pro 3 or the macbook? as art student i really like the functionality of the surface, it work similar like the Wacom which i like but for a first laptop, i dot know what i should go for. if i get macbook i have to spend extra to get drawing tablet but, but if i get surface i dont have to spend any since the pen is there n i already have bluetooth keyboard. Decision ! : S
Enjoy tech? Check out Projections, our series about AR and VR: bit.ly/2ufaYr2
I remember watching this video a long time ago wishing I had one! My my how fast time goes by! I'm typing this from my surface pro 3 i7 and couldn't be happier!
How is the display? I want one, but I've heard the blacks aren't great.
The display is one of the tablets better traits!
Terry Allen yeah that's what I'm reading everywhere, but this one person who's usally pretty reliable was giving it so much shit. Maybe she had a faulty device.
I like how Will raises a question that tries to make Microsoft look stupid, and then Norm gives a completely rational answer that makes perfect sense.
Will - "I don't understand why they'd sell this without the keyboard frankly"
Norm - "So they can sell it for $800 for the base model"
Yes, but that's disingenuous as hell on Microsoft's part. It's basically unusable as a laptop alternative without a keyboard. You could buy a cheaper one, but it wouldn't be as portable.
Tested Is the on-screen keyboard that bad? Don't recall seeing it in the video :)
icestationzebra
I had the original and if you didn't have a flat surface it is really awkward to hold and type with one hand, the kickstand wasn't all that great you couldn't really have it upright and type, but I did use it on my lap with the touch screen keyboard.
I think the Surface Pro 3 is much nicer than the previous two models, unlike the 2, I would actually buy it at a better price point. I am curious to see how the 4 ends up, could be essentially a 3 but with small fixes, like the mentioned hitting the touch sensitive windows logo while drawing, or like the major jump from 2 to 3.
icestationzebra The onscreen keyboard on my original surface is actually very useable as it is and I can only imagine that the SP3, with its larger screen and better aspect ration, only makes improvements on it. Plus, if you have the screen tilted all the way down, it gives you a nice typing angle. It's not perfect, but it will get you though most all typing situations. I still use my type cover regularly, but I've don't mind using the on-screen when I'm feeling lazy.
Team Chan! Suck it Vernon Smith
funny how everyone complains about the price but then an iPhone 6+ with 128gb of storage costs almost as much as the Surface which has a core i5, the same amount of storage and is actually a fully functioning PC when you need it to be...
I just picked this up on cyber monday for $499 with the keyboard for free. bad ass deal.
6644pmr Damn
I've been wanting a tablet that I can actually draw on and that do what I like them to do. For ages I've stuck with Apple. Apple phone, Apple MacBook, etc. etc. but after seeing this im giving Microsoft a second chance
***** same here. Im on my 2012 macbook pro but I want to give this to my mother and buy me a surface pro 3. Just waiting to see when Windows 10 will be available for it. I know regular pc Windows 10 updates have already been released.
Great review guys! I've been waiting for this since you announced you were going to do one. I really appreciated the Photoshop and Lightroom demos. I am strongly considering this for on-the-go initial editing of images.
lol thanks for clearing the whole bias thing up Will. I was one of the people who commented about that and sometimes it has appeared to me that you may not like the predict that you guys review but in all i really enjoy these and everything you guys do!
Keep up the great reviews, guys! I get annoyed when all reviewers do is read off the specs, I want to know what it's like to use it for extended periods and what the quirks of a product are.
By far these are the best reviews I've ever seen for laptops (ultrabooks, stuff), period. You actually share information that I 100% care about. Keep up the awesome, awesome job!!
Seems like MS are actually getting closer towards making a convincing argument for why the Surface should exist, although, the ultrabooks still seem better.
The Surface Pro concept isn't a new one. Similar products have existed for years, but no one but artists, architects, engineers, etc. used them.
IMO this doesn't compete with the MacBook Air or other ultrabooks. This is a niche device, which Microsoft is trying (and failing) to sell to the general consumer. Can it do all the things a MacBook Air can? Yeah, but why would you pay extra for features you wouldn't use?
I have a Surface Pro predecessor, and I love it because I use the pen a lot, but if you don't, I don't see the point of getting something like this.
***** Agreed. Microsoft have never made a secret of this. This is a "see what we did here, now come and beat us!" device, just like the Nexus line. In both cases, OEMs got greedy and lazy, and innovation practically stopped. In both cases, the devices have reinvigorated their specific market segments and spawned all sorts of new competition and improvements. Job done, I guess ;)
asdfrozen Artist use pencil and paper, not a bloody pressure sensitive touchscreen
chrischoy9 Yeah, because pencil and paper is great for digital art ...
asdfrozen Pencil and paper =/= digital art
love the question and answer format. you guys did a good job putting it through the wringer
Beard guy needs to shut the hell up. The one dude trying to actually explain what's there is getting cut off and spoken over by the dude who's talking about what's not... Asking questions about a product =/= telling me that it's not a MacBook over and over. It doesn't even make sense, if he's there to get the other guy to address certain topics then doesn't cutting him off and not letting him talk just so he can make his own snide comments, like, the complete opposite of his purpose?
I cannot stand him. I'm thoroughly researching this product because I might get one for my sister and the bearded guy seriously needs to stop talking like a condescending idiot and let the other man explain some actual specs and observations about the tablet. Whenever he talks I just tap the right arrow on the keyboard until he stops talking. Annoying.
zazamospanapolus i just got mine on monday, there are a lot of issues stemming from windows not being designed to be a tablet. for example the lack of mouseover makes it really hard to use a lot of dropdown menus/flash players/etc. as a tablet, it's mediocre--i found myself returning to my android tablet to watch videos/etc because it runs smoother and is more easily navigated (also i watch foreign TV w/ subtitles and it's easier to read on a smaller screen). however its a great laptop and this makes up for its shortcomings as a tablet imo
Michael Ian Ross Windows 10 may fix these issues....when it's officially released in a few months.
Let the people do there job man
Well sir, you need to "calm the hell up" before you can make any sane statement.
Best non-biased review of the Surface I've seen! Nice job!
No matter how much he tries, Will still seems to have that "perceived bias" or condescending thought process when it comes to anything Microsoft that he's apparently been trying to avoid. Always thinking worst-case scenario rather than the solution that's right in his face. Anyone would know you're not going to hold the Surface from the keyboard and expect it to sit up like a laptop...using common sense would show you don't have a perceived bias.
Also, the jab at Windows phones was anything but necessary.
Aside from Will's comments on the Surface it was a really thorough review and extremely well done!
I agree with you. He should have just said "you can charge your phone." If you have a SP3 you probably wouldn't have a separate iPad at the same time...
you guys are really in depth and show cool features. best review so far. Thanks!
You could just flip the surface over if you bump the windows key with your hand, the screen will rotate no matter what orientation you have it in.
If he is an artist. Inking , hé wouldnt have the keyboard connected while drawing
***** But luckily the kickstand goes over a hundred degrees, so if you flipped it over, it'd still stand, somewhat :D
Yes it does, i brought one 4 days ago
+Daniel Bentley i have one, it does
Very through and "realistic" review, I love Tested for doing this kind of videos, because they are a fit for the hosts. In the "Cave", you kinda feel the absense of Adam when he is not there, but not in these. And I just love Will and Norm. Great work!
too expensive for me..
btw norm has a t shirt with testicles on it.
Granite it's actually the anatomy of a bee!
it even makes apple products seem reasonable :-D
Tested oh hahaha
nudl3Zz No, still not
This is the most unbiased review I've seen yet. Good job. You guys should teach the writers at The Verge how to review products.
He is incorrect at 12:56 you can use your old type cover, I have a SP3 and it works fine with my old keyboard. also off the Microsoft store
"Does Surface Type Cover and Type Cover 2 work on Surface Pro 3?
A: Surface Pro 3 works best with Surface Pro Type Cover, however your Touch and Type Cover 2 will click in and work with Surface Pro 3." www.microsoftstore.com/store/msca/en_CA/pdp/Surface-Pro-3-256-GB--Intel-Core-i5/productID.300194700#surfacepro3vsmacbookair
Best review of the Surface Pro 3 yet....great job, guys!
holy crap. i've had my surface pro 3 for a couple of months now. didn't know it had an sd slot. neat! (this is why i watch reviews of things i already own. haha)
Hahahahahahaha
for real, though: super-excited to find this out.
You aren't the only one I just found that out 2 weeks ago and I had it since it was first released.
@@AdrianClavijo - STFU
In the review it was mentioned that the SD slot is only for read only, this is not correct. I chatted to an MS Technician who confirmed that the SD slot can be used to expand the capacity of the surface pro 3 and use it to write data on it.
Please correct this on your review, otherwise this was the best one i have seen for the surface pro 3. As a Techie , i enjoyed this a lot! thank you for your time !
JESUS PEOPLE! How are people not understanding that this is not overpriced junk, it's genus. It is the perfect thing for college and careers like engineering, medical, and ect. If u want a a high performance laptop, then buy a ASUS ROG laptop, but this is a hybrid. It combines features of a tablet and a laptop, allowing for features u can't get in just your normal laptop. And for the price, it's actually cheap for what you get. Remember every screw is not going to use the same screwdriver.
Desperately wanted to purchase an i7 model until they mentioned various real world issues, specifically the thermal and gaming issues.
Any device this expensive should be able to play games at 60+ fps, and be able to do so without ever getting hot.
I will say i own a Surfice pro 2 and there are games that handle just fine.
Portal high settings
TF2
any 2d based games
Minecraft
Roller Coaster Tycoon 2
etc.
It won't be playing crisis. But it handles a decent amount of my steam library. Also I would like to point out that the surfice pro 2 has the same power as the i5 models of the surface pro 3, as they both have Intel HD4400 graphic chips, so for anyone considering the i5 models, think of the surface pro 2 as a cheep alternative.
If you get the i7 model, you will get Intel HD5000 graphics, witch should play most games with moderate settings.
I will say one thing I enjoy at uni, is being able to chill with mates at the lounge, take out my tablet and 360 controllers, and have a match of skull girls and a pint.
It's not a gaming machine. This is for people who need the pen (e.g. artists, engineers, architects, etc.), and considering that pen tablets used to cost at least $2000 for the base model just 2-3 years ago, this is actually reasonably priced.
Have you ever even started to consider that this might not be designed for gaming? Get yourself a gameboy.
Seriously? You can get a gaming laptop, that will run games at 60fps+, that has long battery life and doesn't get hot, for about $1000? If so, where? The best deal I ever found for a "gaming notebook" was a $1450 Asus, and that was a terrible compromise. It had about 2 hours of battery life, weighed almost 1.7kg, and still sucked to play games on due to it's mobile GPU.
I certainly wouldn't buy ANY tablet, or hybrid tablet/notebook, or laptop, and expect to get great gaming performance on it. Even the Alienware stuff sucks, and that costs nearly $3000. LOL. I guess you could load up Steam, and use the streaming functionality from a proper gaming PC on the network, but that's kinda cheating (and expensive because it needs the Surface AND a gaming PC). It'd be cool though, just plug in an Xbox 360 controller and game on! But that's about the only high-performance gaming notebook solution I am aware of ;)
cacarey01 Exactly what I thought xD
Ryan DeClue If you want to game, buy a gaming computer or laptop for the same price.
I find it interesting that this is exactly the product that I have been looking for for years, since the years of Tablet PCs, and I know many other techies too but today people really like to beat this product down... there was a time when I was grateful for windows xp on a tablet that got 2hrs of battery life and 16gig hd so to me this is a dream come true lol....i feel like the only one who actually likes the surface line lol...
Haha, not by a long shot. People love to bash this device because it does more than most of them are even aware of. I've never had someone walk away unimpressed after actually showing them how these work.
I absolutely love this. This is what i've been asking for, for a long time and one of the reasons I dumped my iPad. It didn't do what I wanted effectively. I think a lot of people are wanting Apple to come out with a device like this and will bash anything they "perceive" as a threat.
Jasmine Hoegh rite the ipad recording sucks i spent $100s on music apps...when i couldve just gotten fl studio surface pro 3 256 gb and have a portable studio smh...bouta get it off ebay with the keyboard and pen
I dont think the original surface pro had any issues with the keyboard. I have one and frankly absolutely love it.
you shouldn't compare weight with two different hands...besides that great video thanks!
good review, love the fact you guys cover a lot of aspects, subbed and pls keep them coming!
Ill take that surface pro if you don't want it
It seems like a flawless device with the new accessories coming out and the ability to connect it to almost anything.
LMAO at Will's disclaimer
In my company one year down the track there is been a near 100% failure rate. That is, almost everyone has had a catastrophic failure requiring a new tablet, some people are still going on their original, or some are now on their second or third tablet. We had hundreds of employees migrate from a 2009 HP notebook to the surface pro 3. The failure rate was much higher than the previous HP Business notebook.
Here are the most commonly seen problems.
• The black screen of death. When taking the tablet out of sleep mode, the screen flashes, then no longer works at all. Even after fully charging the tablet, doing a hard reset or the “volume+power on for 15 seconds”, it doesn’t get the tablet to work. These tablets need to be exchanged for new ones.
• Tablet doesn’t re-image properly, even after multiple attempts.
• Lots of problems trying to load add-on support software like SQL Server express.
• Cooling fan is on almost all the time and the back of the tablet is quite warm to touch.
The idea of the device is good however Microsoft REALLY need to work on the reliability, the passive cooling, robustness of this device and the robustness of the operating system in this tablet environment.
The workload of our IT department has shot up dramatically after this migration due to the very high rate of failures. We no longer consider this to be a serious business device or personal computer but just a toy.
Adam from Mythbusters killed this review with his annoying and forced 'questions'. As if buddy doesn't know or understand the specs....
Just let Norman handle it, please.
Are you blind, or just low on iq?
Granum Of Life My vision, like my intellect, is outstanding.
Propfrwrd
But you can't see the difference between Will and Adam?
Granum Of Life Of course I can. The comment was was tongue-in-cheek. Satire, based on the fact that there is a resemblance. An exaggeration, if you will. Sort of like how your comments show that you don't understand satire and sound like Dwight Schrute, HAL or iRobot. It must be hard to live in a binary world.
Propfrwrd my apologies... the 2001 computer speaking to Hal.
Thanks for the honest review. Thanks to Will for being super critical.
Dude who are you kidding! Only took me one minute to now you hate Microsoft and their products. You are the last person to give an unbiased opinion.
Opposed to someone who LOVES windows products.... Every review will be biased that's just how they work.
TBH attempting to find flaws is what I want to see in a review, that way I don't find any obvious flaws if/when I buy a product.
this is the best in depth video... thanks for pointing all the details.
It's getting to the point where I can't watch any of the tested videos where Will is a major contributor. His hyperactive energy grates on my nerves. Norm is a better presenter and tends to be more knowledgeable as well. Will starts off by saying he is going to ask questions as an unbiased party to help get Norm's opinion of the product. He proceeds to comment on each and every thing Norm says. When there is an actual question, it's often presented as if he knows the product or can guess at answers. Annoying. If you don't know, don't infer. Listen, digest, and ask good questions. Give Norm time to answer and shut the hell up.
Agreed...I even notice that Norm actually makes an annoyed looking gesture towards Will every once in a while especially when he is trying finish a sentence that Will keeps interrupting him with. Norm is obviously a much more intelligent person and it really shows when he is asking product questions.
Just saying I can really do without Will.
I know. The whole time, I was thinking "That bearded guy needs to STFU". If I was trying to give a presentation and maintain my focus on delivering the material and some asshat kept interrupting me like that, I'd punch him in the face. He literally detracted from the video way more than he contributed.
YES this is so accurate. I seriously can't with that guy.
Yup. I had to stop watching because of this.
Exactly. Thank you.
Totally great review. Thanks guys. Huge amout of very practical and experience based comments. Cheers
R u kidding me? $800? Im good. I'll stick with a normal laptop.
Not only that but you have to pay extra money for the keyboard as well.
P
Blame Intel
Fox Player Well, I don't think it's pretending to be a gaming computer...
Fox Player is this where everyone says you and your first world problems at Christmas???
I'm always leery of reviews because everyone has their opinion. However, you guys gave as unbaised a description of this product as I've seen! I'll only be using my Pro 3 i3 for Office suite applications, and watching the review made me fall in love with One Note again. This Surface fits my needs. I have a meeting I'm going to this weekend and I will definately be using that feature. All the best to you and I hope to come back to you for a review again!
Shut that guy in the pink and let the guy using the device talk FFS!
That USB thing in the plug is genius. You can charge your phone while using it as a hotspot for the device.
its soooo over priced for what it is.....its like they saw how much Apple products go for and thought lets get in on this.......but its way over priced you can buy a decent spec laptop for the same money and my Samsung Note 10.1 204 edition does about the same and its costs half the price.
Yeah but I'd take that over an iPad any day. Yes it's expensive, but I don't think their market is people who are low on money.
GreenleafFPS Not even the same price point. Double to triple the cost?
Darin Walker No it isn't.. 128GB ipad is $700, 128GB surface is $1000. Also there's no device that can do as much as it, and if you have money to blow and you want the best of the best, why not.
It's too expensive for a tablet too limited to be a true laptop replacement what it does it does grate but for the price I could get a new laptop that would handle work and play don't get me wrong it's a grate idea and the top spec one does everything you would need but the price is too much.
GreenleafFPS best of the best is the macbook air. clearly everyone has it wrong lol
m a college student and have owned an iMac for 5 years and a MacBook Air for 2. I currently have an iPad 2 which I carry alongside my MBA since i can use my stylus to take notes on my iPad and they transport directly into my MBA with the Notability app. My iPad has served me well but its killing my back since its almost as heavy as my MBA so i was thinking if i should get an iPad air for 450 or a Surface pro for about 6-700. I can use windows fairly well even though all my products are apple. I love the idea of being able to take notes and have a full blast PC capable of playing video games all in one (although i currently league perfectly on my MBA). What do you think i should do? How has your experience been with the SP2?
I really recommend you give the SP3 a shot. I got the SP1 and put all the powerpoint slides, books, assignments, and notes I needed into organized OneNote pages. Semesters later I can still find everything from my old classes with ease. It was so useful for me that we got my little brother the SP3 for when he went to college. He's been having the same experience. There's just nothing you'll need to do for school that you won't be able to do on the SP3. Worst case scenario you return it and pick up an iPad instead :-p
Michael Werner Thanks! very helpful, Im heading to microsoft tomorrow, with student discount the 256gb i5 is only 1,100 :)
Irene, how are you liking the sp3 so far? I'm in a similar situation, trying to decide between sp3 and iPad for note taking in nursing school. I've heard great things about the Noteability app on Apple devices; how does it compare to OneNote in your experience?
Taylor Vila I am loving my surface, my first one had some massive issues and you can see that on my new video on my channel, however dissapointed as i was, the product was so awesome i decided to give it another shot and Im loving it. Ive impressed all my friends by playing League on it smoothly and battlefield. Notability is a wonderful app for people who are stuck with an iPad. It doesnt compare to one note and the pens for iPad will never compare to the Surface Pen, it is so smooth, and the included palm rejection makes it so easy. Good pens for the iPad are like $200 and it doesnt have included palm rejection which is a pain in the butt. On here i can annotate all my pdf's,powerpoints, word docs,etc which comes in handy for Biology classes where you can annotate the pictures. I was always an Apple girl and will never switch out my iPhone and iMac but this hybrid has replaced my macbook and ipad and I dont regret it.
Irene Arlet Haha, that's awesome!
All track pads are a joke. Sure, some are better than others, but you can not be getting serious work done without a mouse.
I used to play quake 3 arena with a trackpad.
I can't use trackpads any more. They physically hurt my fingers
The only good ones I've found that I could do work on if I don't have a mouse handy is the Mac/magic trackpad
I have pre-ordered the i7 one for digital painting and 3D work (Zbrush when it comes in 64-bit, Maya). I was thinking about getting the Wacom companion but then this came out with better specs and a higher resolution screen, which for me is highly important for clarity and since menus cover less space while working.
To me the price tag of the Wacom is simply too high, I hope this computer will live up to expectations, otherwise I'll just send it back.
And Tested: I totally bought this without the keyboard, I have no use for it. And I Imagine any other artist on the go will do the same.
1:40
"a traditional laptop like a macbook pro"
fucking facepalm
?
um. no
I hardly ever use the keyboard cover on my. I prefer using the "dual-thumb" onscreen keyboard. Using a Bluetooth mouse spares the USB drive if you need it. I do love using this for photo editing as the screen is gorgeous and accurate. I'll process maybe up to 100 raw photos at a time in lightroom and didn't notice the slowdown that was mentioned. I actually hardly ever use the kickstand, I just hold it like a book or notepad. Scaling for many things is small though, but the screen is so clear its not really a problem.
Why do you compare everything to Apple? Not everyone is a soy latte sip'n Mac user
That's a non fat latte. Get it right lol jk
First time I have watched you and thought you were both very good. Questions were valid and the responses were good. Told me just about all I wanted to know if I was thinking of purchasing it.
My wishlist for SP4 so that I can finally buy a Surface Product
Make a 12" and 14" or 13" version and a Mini version for all the moms out there
Same weight
Go back to Wacom but if they're gonna be dicks about it, fuck em. Help Ntrig get to Wacom level
MAKE THE KEYBOARD PART OF THE PACKAGE
See if it is possible to make it be able to be hard docked like Thinkpad Helix
10 hours battery life.
surface pro 4 will be 14''
dont forget about thunderbolt 3.0 which should be included in the sp4
You're paying for an experience that makes note taking fluid. You're not paying for a laptop. It's about transitioning between taking notes with the keyboard and taking notes with the pen. It's about producing text with the keyboard and illustrations with the pen. Taking notes in class is never blocks of solid texts and facts, Nota taking is very dynamic and the pen compliments it very well.
I liked how your review gave a realistic perceptive of its usage: benefits and limitations, considering its price etc. but I think you would have done more justice to the device but factoring in and reviewing the camera because it not only gives weight to the price but also increases the overall productivity.
Like your review. What brand would you recommend buying functioning first as a laptop and tablet secondary? I have an online marketing business and travel quite a bit. So prefer to have something 13" or less. I have a Lenovo 15" Thinkpad which is too heavy and big for traveling. Thanks!
Had it for a month now, I love it way more than my IPad. I have an Alienware laptop so I don't need this for gaming (although there are some great win app games). This I use for school and Army business, it has the functionality I need for both. The price is the only thing I don't like but I should be able to keep it longer than my IPad. Those wondering why I just don't use my laptop, this is much lighter and easier to carry and set up, plus I can use it as a straight up tablet. I use one note for meetings and classes and it works very well. If you can afford one I highly recommend this device.
I dislike that in reviews such as this, when some feature is bad, it is when compared to an Apple product. But when it is a good feature, it is not in the slightest compared to and Apple equivalent.
EDIT: Norm does a good job reviewing the product, though.
the screen grab works on other windows devices, you only hav to hit (window) + N and then S for screen clipping. Then you can select the area with the mouse
Thanks for making this awesome and comprehensive review! Definitely helped me make a better decision as a consumer!
You can zoom in using OneNote, I believe you have to change the setting however, but once you do you can zoom is as easily as anything else and you can write smaller.
From a Artist Point of view. I have plenty of experience with Wacom tablets (intuos 4) and Previously a owner of a surface pro 2 and now a Surface pro 3. The noticeable difference between the 2 and the 3 as far as drawing is if you are an light sketcher, I often sketch very light (like on paper) and it takes slightly more pressure for me in a program such as "SketchBook Pro" on the SP3. It's not very comfortable drawing on a surface pro 2 as my drawing device. The surface pro 3 is quite a bit more comfortable to draw on counting the larger screen and versatile kickstand when trying to use it as a drawing canvas on a desk other than your lap. I'm all for wacom but the ntrig wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be..I hope the clears some decisions for Artist out there.
Was unsure about buying it until i watched this. The note taking features will be perfect for university
one little ergonomic mistake I would like to notice is that the windows button should have been placed at the left and not the right.
+ If you have your pen in the right hand (like most do) you would want to be able to push the windows button with your left.
+ most of us read from left to right, windows comes first, better advertising
+ the windows button leads to start. start is on left, the beginning
- will feel a bit awkward for people coming from ios or android
other little ergo feature I would have added is to make the second magnetic type cover stip a little more narrow. So that the pen would have been able to be clipped on it when keyboard is being used.
Otto Van De Steene you can disable that windows button ^^
Hands down the best device I've owned. All tablets and laptops included
Looks pretty slick. After all the Broadwell talk recently though I kind of want to see what the Surface iteration with that generation of processors will be like.
I got the mid range one as a birthday present to myself in October and, once I got it set up the way I liked it, I totally stopped using my HP laptop (so much so I gave it to a friend who has wanted a laptop for awhile but couldn't afford one). My only issue with it so far have been that sometimes I accidentally push the power button when putting it in the case I got for it.
I also don't use the pen much and sometimes I'm still getting the hang of the touch screen (as I've never really used touch screen before).
Thanks for the review. I'm still checking whether or not I will buy it but so far it looks brilliant. Like the amazing screen, the new kick stand. All reviews are good and says that this is the best Windows device so far.
One quick question, when you fold back the keyboard, are the keypad and mousepad deactivated? If they are not, they might interfere with writing in onenote if you are putting the system on a table to write.
Please let me know,
thanks,
Amir
They do get deactivated. There's no issue with keyboard interference when folded back and using the stylus.
Michael Werner Alright cool.
Cant you force the fan to go at max speed and THEN start rendering the video?
Through drivers or something like speedfan?
I'm a programmer and I was excited to pick up a new Surface 3. I used it for 1 day before returning it. The 11" screen is WAY too small. At 11" with hi-res I couldn't read a thing. The keyboard felt like I was typing on a peice of cardboard. Bought a Dell XPS13, same size, bigger screen, less money, much better!
You forgot to mention the backlit keyboard which is great in so many, many circumstances!
I went for a 2015 macbook over this and is, so far, great at what it does. Should I have got this instead?
One thing i do not like on the surface pro is the speakers output level. I often find it too quiet. Has that been improved on the Surface pro 3? And another thing that is an issue is the wake up speed on the surface pro can be inconsistent and sometimes you are not sure if the device is waking up or not. Hopefully the resume on the Pro3 is improved.
So I have the Surface Pro 3 with i5/8GB/256GB and love it very much. It's a great laptop and desktop. The Windows 8 apps are okay, but I do miss "focused" apps that I have experienced on the Android tablets. So I just bought a Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 with Verizon LTE and keep my Surface as a laptop (which actually replaced a late mode 2013 MBP Retina 13). So far I'm pretty happy.
Guys, great review. I would say the 1 USB port is not such a bad thing, because we do have options to use a USB hub. Yet hella review.
So I don't need to purchase a Wacom Cintiq which is about $1,000 alone for the base model...nice! The stylus functionality is already built in to do graphic design with drawing tablet functionality on the go. Adobe CC should run fine on this :)
There's quite a large inaccuracy at 12:55 : you CAN use type/touch covers from older model surfaces.
Hey guys I would like your thoughts about my idea. I have been waiting for a Mac that would satisfied my needs. But unfortunately apple hasn't revealed one. So if I buy a surface pro 3 (the cheapest one) and when the surface 4 comes out trade in the sp3 for the best sp4 model. Would it be a good choice? Currently I have a macbook (white one) 2011.
I have been using P30 Pro for 4 years. Detachable keyboard is really handy. My only complaint is their hardware quality. Keyboard failed (connectivity problem) recently and I have to replace it with a new one. Power button needs to be pressed hardly for a while to turn on and not always working. The material of the blue keyboard gets dirty soon and after using for a couple of years, it started peeling off.
Surface Pro 3 with OneNote 2013 and a Lumia 920 with the Office Lens app is the perfect combination for me as a student. I love it and I don't regret anything. I really don't get why there are no competitors so that the prices would go down.
love Norm's tech savy expertise!
I was able to use this one-legged and cross-legged while testing it out at a store. Granted, my wrists were cramped, but it was doable. I'll admit that 20 minutes of straight testing isn't the same as weeks of it, but it seemed like it could be done.
This review is somewhat helpful. However, I would like to have seen some desktop functionality (I frequently dock my laptop when working at home) specifically how well does it handle dual monitor support? Does it have to be used with the MS dock or will it work with USB a port replicator (the way my current laptop does)? Finally, this would have been better without the dual-reviewer format. One reviewer constantly interrupting the other is frustrating to watch.
I didn't get to watch it all, so you 2 could of talked about it later, but can the surface pro 3 take pictures, or only download, or bluetooth pictures?
I thank you so much for this video! I plan to buy this one tomorrow because my Samsung notebook is too heavy and bulky. The desktop PC I have is a power machine but of course not very portable. I can not stand iOS; I always have the feeling I miss something, e.g. I need to get up from my bed and do "serious stuff" on my PC because I can't do "*that*" on the iPad. But the overall look and feel of the Surface Pro 3 attracted me in my local eletronics store.
But man, my configuration would be 1,130€... That is quite an amount of money. And I want something for that money if I am actuallying going to purchase it. And how can you see if it is worth? Due to a good video. And *this* video is awesome. I am sick of these 2.30 minute bullshit around the web. Cool stuff, gentlemen!
@tested I was wondering about the high end version. the i7 would you be able to play games on that decently or no? in your opinion. or stream on twitch ?
MAN! i got windows 8.1 on my desktop but literally i started crying for dis laptop and the metro apps really get to me man!
One question.. how usable is it without the keyboard..? I'm planning on buying one using every cent of my savings but €130 for the keyboard seems way too much.
Will the absence of the keyboard render it an ordinary $500 andorid tabled or can it still be used at it's full potential?
And as a side comment, with this new 4G thing available everywhere, wouldn't one expect the SP3 to have a sim card slot? I don't think it's a deal breaker but I'm just saying..
Fantastic overview. Thanks.
With all of these high resolution 4k monitors coming out, Windows 9 will absolutely need to fix the scaling issues if it wants to stay relevant. Honestly, windows 8 should be able to handle scaling, but it doesn't. And this is coming from someone who prefers windows!
nice review, hope you guys review the Surface Pro 4 when it comes out!
i have an original Surface Pro still have no complains , the whole point of the touch screen is so that you dont have to hold it in the palm of your hand and walk around like you would do with a laptop, the type cover and kickstand is not nearly as bad as people make them out to be. you actually have to use the thing to appreciate.
The mini displayport on the Surface Pro 3… what kind of signal can it send out? Is it a mini displayport 1.1, 1.1a, or 1.2? Can it send out a 4K signal at 60 hz or just at 30 hz? Thank you.
Importand question: when you are in the pdf/pen writing mode, can you change the colours and style of your pen? Or is it always going to be this sorta pencil style? Would be nice if you could also change it to a textmarker style for example, featuring lots of bright neon colours and the such
If you print the pdf into a OneNote page, you'll get all those options for sure.
Something people need to understand is that this is a TABLET meant as a hybrid with laptop capabilities. The price is reasonable considering it has SSD. Every laptop with SSD goes for more than 1000 bucks. The fact that they added laptop level processors and RAMs justifies the price even more. It's also the reason the keyboard is sold separately, some people just want a tablet, so if you want a laptop then buy a keyboard. It's like buying a desktop and saying oh why doesn't this come with a monitor and keyboard & mouse??
you can actually zoom in onenote if you turn on the setting
im curious to know how this thing runs audio programs and DAWs.. how would this thing perform with maschine, fl studio, cubase, etc.. and latency with external midi controllers etc... with the integrated audio card as well as an external USB one.
how long should the battery last? is a lost of 30% in one hour normal or may I have a problem with my battery?
so just wondering, Surface pro 3 or the macbook? as art student i really like the functionality of the surface, it work similar like the Wacom which i like but for a first laptop, i dot know what i should go for. if i get macbook i have to spend extra to get drawing tablet but, but if i get surface i dont have to spend any since the pen is there n i already have bluetooth keyboard. Decision ! : S