"I was hoping the [$499] Surface Pro would cure my desire for a new 13 in. retina Macbook Pro"
A Surface Pro is the wrong device for someone who is already happy with their tablet and laptop, is not invested in the Microsoft ecosystem, and does not need an ultraportable work / drawing device. However, if one or more of those applies, giving the Surface Pro a shot may be an eye-opening (even if flawed) surprise.
Since I'm working on a 5 year old Macbook Pro of course I want a new one :)
I think that the Surface Pro is compared to both Macbook Air's frequently. It is almost exactly the same guts as an 11 in Macbook Air.
Just because I purchased it on sale doesn't mean I didn't expect it to fill a need that I have for an updated computer. With the keyboard it totaled > $630 and an 11 Air isn't all that much more on Apple's refurb site.
I don't regret trying it one bit. And I was just sharing my experience and context.
I'll be one to say that my experience with the device and the stores has been the opposite, so it can be either way.
It is, indeed, not a laptop. It works well on a desk, or a small tray in a classroom, or, if you have an SP2 with the second angle, it makes a decent, but not amazing, laptop.
It's really designed to be a device that can be used in a variety of scenarios, and is decent at all of them, but not great at any of them.
I personally like mine, and it's worth a shot if curiosity sparks. The Microsoft Stores are super friendly, and will let you basically take the device from the display and use it around the store. I put Vim on one and experimented with it on my lap, and found the experience to be decent enough.
That being said, it's top heavy and overall a strange device. If you love 100% of everything about an MBP, you probably won't like this. But if you don't, then give it a try. Can't hurt anything.
Just as a fair warning to anyone who reads this to take it with some salt ;)
I'm always open to new hardware and software experiences and mine might have been better with a Samsung ATIV 9 plus or some other really nice ultra book for the way I compute.
I think I could work in any OS but the one thing that really struck me as missing in my Surface Pro experience was the accurate way to input. Apple's products have superb keyboards and trackpads and I was really struggling with the Type 2 cover to feel like it was translating my input well.
>"Finally, and perhaps a contributor to my decision to return the Surface Pro, the recent browser usage statistics from New Relic show that IE is down to a paltry 14.8% share across more than 2 million application instances. If that’s not a signal that Microsoft's role as THE predominant client is beyond repair I don't know what is."
I don't see how IE's browser share is relevant to the Surface Pro or Windows as a client OS. Windows Vista, the disowned stepchild, even has a higher market share than OS X[1].
For the record, I have a Surface Pro as my daily workhorse. I do everything from classes to work, programming to statistical modeling to Photoshop. It has issues, but overall I enjoy it. The only thing it completely fails at is Adobe CS, as they refuse to fix issues with high DPI Windows screens and their custom interfaces. This article doesn't even touch on the merits of the device itself, or using it for anything.
I also had a fantastic experience with the Microsoft Store, as I accidentally broke my Pen within a few hours of getting it (my fault), and it only took a 10 minute call to get a new one sent out Next Day shipping for free. Most of that was confirming the issue was the pen, and not the computer (to know which needed a replacement).
Since I believe the browser and apps are the future of most clients browser share was a small contributor in deciding whether to keep or return a device design that wasn't working for the "way I compute.
The device design not working for you is understandable. It does have some unexpected/unusual quirks owing to it's form.
But I still don't see the correlation between a single browser share and the fate of the client OS. With things such as the Browser Choice window for EU installs[1], it's understandable that the decoupling of IE from Windows would result in a market share decline for the browser. Even while declining, IE still has twice the browser share of Safari[2]. And although I can't find free aggregated stats that let you dice browser percentages by OS, my own analytics accounts show Chrome being roughly twice as popular on Macs than Safari. That doesn't mean OS X is doomed and everyone should move to Chromebooks...
I keep hearing this same line over and over, that Microsoft should stick with the enterprise which is what they are good at.
For anyone with more than 10 years experience, this kind of statement is hilarious because not that long ago Microsoft was laughed at as an 'enterprise' software company. Oracle, IBM, Tibco, SAS - these were enterprise companies and Microsoft was a consumer software company.
But that by and large is unimportant history for what they face now. There has been a sea change in the relationship large corporations have with their information technology departments. For most of the time since computers became a basic necessity for white collar workers, the IT group dictated what devices could and should be used. They bought specific laptops or desktops and that was it. If you wanted to use a personal information management device like a Palm Pilot or Windows CE device, you had to plug it into the computer at the office. That meant IT had to approve the device because they needed to ensure its compatibility with their Windows setup and your enterprise infrastructure.
I dont need to regurgitate what happened, but needless to say we no longer need that tether and devices now speak directly to the services. This frees management and workers to buy the devices they need and want. Upper management gets an iPhone or iPad and they want to work with it, IT has to bend. I have seen this in our consulting practice over and over - IT did not want to allow iPads but C*O level folks insisted and voila, we now support iPads. IT did not come around, they were forced by good consumer devices that just worked.
Microsoft recognizes this sea change and knows that they have to be a player and a big one in the consumer device market as this market is now dictating to IT, not the other way around. Consumer devices now drive the choices in the enterprise so Microsoft cannot give up here, they have to double down.
Agree with everything you said. 10 years ago (well maybe more now) Microsoft was laughed at in the Enterprise but now you can hardly find a big business not running Exchange and Active Directory at least.
You may be right that Microsoft can't give up here. If that's the case they will need to improve their execution versus the competition.
Well of course the Surface Pro isn't a laptop. Just like the iPad isn't a laptop. The form factor of both devices just doesn't make it a competitor to a laptop.
However, the Surface Pro is the only tablet that can do everything you can do on your laptop. That's the important distinction. It just can't do it well (form factor again).
I've personally found that the Surface Pro is great to bring to class and with an external monitor/keyboard/mouse, it makes a great daily computing device. However, I am thinking about buying a ThinkPad Yoga to replace both my Surface and Laptop. I need something where I can take notes (going paperless rocks), but also something I can write code on.
I agree with you. And I think I said that in my post. If you are a mobile person that needs a full computer on the go for work, home and being out Surface Pro might work.
Quirky review. Trying to cure your desire for a $1300 laptop by purchasing a $500 hybrid tablet and then declaring that it isn't good as a laptop is quite prescient.
And the nail in the coffin was that other people aren't using IE.
Important and insightful blogging. You really must keep it up.
Just because it was on sale. The Surface Pro is really a $1029 device ($899 retail price + $129 type cover).
My point about sharing the sale price was at $499 how could I not love this gorgeous little device. And the answer was it did not work for the way I compute.
Since I consider the browser the real client of the future the IE share numbers were a contributor to my final decision to return vs keep.
I do realize when I share things though that I open things up for debate.
Well you aren't comparing apples. The tablet weighs a lot less, has hybrid functionality and is touch screen. If you made the tablet heavier, with a non touch screen and a built in keyboard it would cost about $400 at rrp. So it isn't logical to compare with a $1400 macbook
15 comments
[ 3.6 ms ] story [ 33.5 ms ] threadA Surface Pro is the wrong device for someone who is already happy with their tablet and laptop, is not invested in the Microsoft ecosystem, and does not need an ultraportable work / drawing device. However, if one or more of those applies, giving the Surface Pro a shot may be an eye-opening (even if flawed) surprise.
I think that the Surface Pro is compared to both Macbook Air's frequently. It is almost exactly the same guts as an 11 in Macbook Air.
Just because I purchased it on sale doesn't mean I didn't expect it to fill a need that I have for an updated computer. With the keyboard it totaled > $630 and an 11 Air isn't all that much more on Apple's refurb site.
I don't regret trying it one bit. And I was just sharing my experience and context.
It is, indeed, not a laptop. It works well on a desk, or a small tray in a classroom, or, if you have an SP2 with the second angle, it makes a decent, but not amazing, laptop.
It's really designed to be a device that can be used in a variety of scenarios, and is decent at all of them, but not great at any of them.
I personally like mine, and it's worth a shot if curiosity sparks. The Microsoft Stores are super friendly, and will let you basically take the device from the display and use it around the store. I put Vim on one and experimented with it on my lap, and found the experience to be decent enough.
That being said, it's top heavy and overall a strange device. If you love 100% of everything about an MBP, you probably won't like this. But if you don't, then give it a try. Can't hurt anything.
Just as a fair warning to anyone who reads this to take it with some salt ;)
I think I could work in any OS but the one thing that really struck me as missing in my Surface Pro experience was the accurate way to input. Apple's products have superb keyboards and trackpads and I was really struggling with the Type 2 cover to feel like it was translating my input well.
I don't see how IE's browser share is relevant to the Surface Pro or Windows as a client OS. Windows Vista, the disowned stepchild, even has a higher market share than OS X[1].
For the record, I have a Surface Pro as my daily workhorse. I do everything from classes to work, programming to statistical modeling to Photoshop. It has issues, but overall I enjoy it. The only thing it completely fails at is Adobe CS, as they refuse to fix issues with high DPI Windows screens and their custom interfaces. This article doesn't even touch on the merits of the device itself, or using it for anything.
I also had a fantastic experience with the Microsoft Store, as I accidentally broke my Pen within a few hours of getting it (my fault), and it only took a 10 minute call to get a new one sent out Next Day shipping for free. Most of that was confirming the issue was the pen, and not the computer (to know which needed a replacement).
[1] http://www.netmarketshare.com/operating-system-market-share....
But I still don't see the correlation between a single browser share and the fate of the client OS. With things such as the Browser Choice window for EU installs[1], it's understandable that the decoupling of IE from Windows would result in a market share decline for the browser. Even while declining, IE still has twice the browser share of Safari[2]. And although I can't find free aggregated stats that let you dice browser percentages by OS, my own analytics accounts show Chrome being roughly twice as popular on Macs than Safari. That doesn't mean OS X is doomed and everyone should move to Chromebooks...
[1] http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/what-is-the-brows... [2] http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp
For anyone with more than 10 years experience, this kind of statement is hilarious because not that long ago Microsoft was laughed at as an 'enterprise' software company. Oracle, IBM, Tibco, SAS - these were enterprise companies and Microsoft was a consumer software company.
But that by and large is unimportant history for what they face now. There has been a sea change in the relationship large corporations have with their information technology departments. For most of the time since computers became a basic necessity for white collar workers, the IT group dictated what devices could and should be used. They bought specific laptops or desktops and that was it. If you wanted to use a personal information management device like a Palm Pilot or Windows CE device, you had to plug it into the computer at the office. That meant IT had to approve the device because they needed to ensure its compatibility with their Windows setup and your enterprise infrastructure.
I dont need to regurgitate what happened, but needless to say we no longer need that tether and devices now speak directly to the services. This frees management and workers to buy the devices they need and want. Upper management gets an iPhone or iPad and they want to work with it, IT has to bend. I have seen this in our consulting practice over and over - IT did not want to allow iPads but C*O level folks insisted and voila, we now support iPads. IT did not come around, they were forced by good consumer devices that just worked.
Microsoft recognizes this sea change and knows that they have to be a player and a big one in the consumer device market as this market is now dictating to IT, not the other way around. Consumer devices now drive the choices in the enterprise so Microsoft cannot give up here, they have to double down.
You may be right that Microsoft can't give up here. If that's the case they will need to improve their execution versus the competition.
However, the Surface Pro is the only tablet that can do everything you can do on your laptop. That's the important distinction. It just can't do it well (form factor again).
I've personally found that the Surface Pro is great to bring to class and with an external monitor/keyboard/mouse, it makes a great daily computing device. However, I am thinking about buying a ThinkPad Yoga to replace both my Surface and Laptop. I need something where I can take notes (going paperless rocks), but also something I can write code on.
But so would any ultra book I think.
That is when it will click for everyone why have a surface.
And the nail in the coffin was that other people aren't using IE.
Important and insightful blogging. You really must keep it up.
My point about sharing the sale price was at $499 how could I not love this gorgeous little device. And the answer was it did not work for the way I compute.
Since I consider the browser the real client of the future the IE share numbers were a contributor to my final decision to return vs keep.
I do realize when I share things though that I open things up for debate.