Microsoft Surface Pro 3 - first impressions

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I got an i5 128gb Surface Pro 3 today. PC World have a £100 off deal which makes it quite attractive at £749, though I also got a keyboard in black which is £109 as well. The keyboard has "proper" keys i.e. they move, and a larger touchpad and is also illuminated.

First impressions are good. It's thin, light and has a nice large, bright and crisp screen. The kickstand now has a full range of adjustment making it easy to use the device on my lap with the keyboard as I'm doing now typing this. The keyboard is quite responsive and I have no problem touch typing. The touch screen is very responsive as well. The impressive thing that I did find was the setup. I logged in with my Microsoft account, and everything magically initialised with the same settings from my desktop and Asus mini-tablet without me needing to do anything. Fantastic. It's as if Microsoft have finally "got it" when it comes to simple and easy setup. With One Drive and One Note, I got all my cloud stuff sorted within a few minutes.

My daughter, an ardent Apple fangirl, has been eyeing up the Surface this evening over the top of her Macbook, and my wife also fancies one now too.

The new pen is interesting. It works by Bluetooth and has pressure sensitivity and two buttons on the side and a click one on the top. I use One Note a lot for meeting notes and find a stylus to be a much more engaging way to take notes compared to a keyboard as people don't think that you are working on your emails! My little Asus tablet has a WACOM stylus which has always been difficult to get calibrated accurately, which is why I'm sure Microsoft have switched from WACOM to the new approach. It seems well calibrated in the corners which is a relief. It also has some other functions for erasing and automatically launching One Note - excellent. Once you've used a pen with One Note going back to keyboard only feels very archaic, especially when you realise that your hand written notes are fully searchable.

I'm about to install Lightfoot which should work fine. I've put a 64gb microSD card in it too. It has some videos on it and I just tried running a video on the Surface and then handing it off to my LG smart TV which picked up the playback seamlessly. Very cool indeed, with no config needed - it all just worked. Bliley - is this Microsoft?

So far, a few hours in, I like it. I was tempted by the Surface 2 but it seemed obvious that there was another generation to go before it became a properly useful device. I am annoyed I don't have anywhere to put the pen though. And Windows 8.1 is always going to be a bit "odd" with the schizo Modern UI and traditional desktop thing going on, but I like the flat look of the Modern UI. I imagine Microsoft will improve things further in Windows 9 to blend the two types of UI together better. I've got used to the swiping thing now and it works well for me when in tablet mode.

Happy days so far.
 
Interesting review indeed. What size screen does this thing have then Andy? Are we talking much bigger than an iPad?
 
I've been intrigued by the SP3 since it's announcement and your review is enticing me even further. Microsoft are also offering me massive discount (apparently), will try to negotiate discount to free :p

So, out of curiousity, are you planning to test the stylus with Lightroom/PS editing? That's one area I would be delighted to know more about!
 
antc said:
Interesting review indeed. What size screen does this thing have then Andy? Are we talking much bigger than an iPad?
Click to expand...

Yes, it has a 12" screen so much more real estate than an iPad, though obviously that makes the device bigger. Resolution is good too.

Neilc28 said:
I've been intrigued by the SP3 since it's announcement and your review is enticing me even further. Microsoft are also offering me massive discount (apparently), will try to negotiate discount to free :p

So, out of curiousity, are you planning to test the stylus with Lightroom/PS editing? That's one area I would be delighted to know more about!
Click to expand...

Yes indeed - just about to download Lightroom onto it. Should be interesting. Apparently an updated version of Photoshop is coming out for touch Windows devices as well.

daugirdas said:
Very interesting. They are finally starting to look attractive. P.S. Do you not find 128GB limiting?
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Not yet - only had it 18 hours! Actually I've put a microSD card into it (after searching for the slot, which is under the kickstand). Having expandable storage is cool. Also, most of my stuff is on One Drive and I tend not to clog up local storage. With a bunch of apps and Office Pro 2013 installed I've got just under 100gb spare which will be plenty for me.

What I am trying to figure out is the DLNA sharing to my LG TV which has a SMartShare feature. This is potentially really cool - I select a pic or video from the Surface and tap Devices and select my TV, and the pic/video pops up on the TV over WiFi. This is excellent, but the TV isn't displaying the videos in 16:9 and photos don't fill the TV screen. There must be some settings somewhere that I need to change.
 
Surface = Proper portable computer.

iPad = Toy.


It amazes me that more people don't buy this instead of the iPad. Proper processors, running a proper operating system (not a crippled phone OS). Proper inputs.


Surface:
Full-size USB 3.0
microSD™ card reader


iPad:
Nothing.


You just can't use the iPad as a serious portable computer. Surface runs windows, and has decent processors. You don't NEED Lightroom "mobile".... you can just use Lightroom :) As it has pen support, retouching or editing on a surface just makes Lightroom Mobile on the iPad seem comical. In fact.... I'm amazed anyone bothered developing Lightroom Mobile when there are so much more superior tablets and portables around than the iPad.

Why does anyone buy an iPad?
 
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Pookeyhead said:
Surface = Proper portable computer.

iPad = Toy.


It amazes me that more people don't buy this instead of the iPad. Proper processors, running a proper operating system (not a crippled phone OS). Proper inputs.


Surface:
Full-size USB 3.0
microSD™ card reader


iPad:
Nothing.


You just can't use the iPad as a serious portable computer. Surface runs windows, and has decent processors. You don't NEED Lightroom "mobile".... you can just use Lightroom :) As it has pen support, retouching or editing on a surface just makes Lightroom Mobile on the iPad seem comical. In fact.... I'm amazed anyone bothered developing Lightroom Mobile when there are so much more superior tablets and portables around than the iPad.

Why does anyone buy an iPad?
Click to expand...

For simplicity, it may not run OSX or Windows, have an x86 processor or have any expandability options for storage, but in all fairness the people that buy them aren't usually too bothered as they use it a portable tool, a pick up and reference bit of kit. For that, I would say the iPad excels and trust me that I am FAR from an apple fan. It should be Surfaces that are deployed in the schools, not iPads as it makes no practical sense at all, they are not great or tactile for typing, are relatively insecure from a network infrastructure perspective and development tools (something our children are supposed to be being pushed to learn) are minimal at best!

If they release a docking station that has dual video outputs for my 2 Dell Ultrasharps, then I will seriously consider replacing my laptop with one :)
 
Pookeyhead said:
Surface = Proper portable computer.

iPad = Toy.


It amazes me that more people don't buy this instead of the iPad. Proper processors, running a proper operating system (not a crippled phone OS). Proper inputs.


Surface:
Full-size USB 3.0
microSD™ card reader


iPad:
Nothing.


You just can't use the iPad as a serious portable computer. Surface runs windows, and has decent processors. You don't NEED Lightroom "mobile".... you can just use Lightroom :) As it has pen support, retouching or editing on a surface just makes Lightroom Mobile on the iPad seem comical. In fact.... I'm amazed anyone bothered developing Lightroom Mobile when there are so much more superior tablets and portables around than the iPad.

Why does anyone buy an iPad?
Click to expand...
Because an iPad isn't a laptop replacement. It's a portable primarily media consumption device that has some limited (cut down) productivity apps available.

It's cheaper too, I only paid around 300 for my wifi 32gb. It's over double for the SP.
 
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Surface starts at £260 if I recall. I'm sure Tesco are/were doing the Surface 2 RT for that.
 
The fact that Microsoft do two types of Surface tablet could lead to some disappointment for careless purchasers, The Pro features the Intel i5 processor, and runs Windows 8. That means it can run lots of windows apps. The RT uses a RISC processor which runs the limited RT options. Much like a conventional tablet.. The problem could be that someone sees the add for the Surface Pro and buys a conventional Surface, only to be disappointed when it doesn't do half the things the Pro does.

The Pro looks like a good bit of kit. Well done Microsoft. Not sure though how effective the pen is going to be. The resolution for the sensing device may make it to low to make it useful for taking notes, if my experience with ones for the iPad are anything to go by.

Pricing seems very competitive, but the MacBook Air is very close when you add the optional Surface Pro keyboard
 
Even the RT allows computer like access to the OS. You can make folders, drag and drop, copy files easily, and basically use it like you would a laptop. Performance would not be stellar, granted.... but neither is the A5 or A7 iPad processors if you try it with anything except the cut down "apps" you run on them.

If someone offered to swap my iPad for a Surface RT I'd bite their hand off. Not that I could... the iPad was free from work and isn't mine. I'd never actually buy one.... with money.
 
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Chappers said:
The Pro looks like a good bit of kit. Well done Microsoft. Not sure though how effective the pen is going to be. The resolution for the sensing device may make it to low to make it useful for taking notes, if my experience with ones for the iPad are anything to go by.

Pricing seems very competitive, but the MacBook Air is very close when you add the optional Surface Pro keyboard
Click to expand...

256 Pressure Levels and Sub-Pixel Accuracy, who knows what to believe in real-life terms, all I do know is that I cannot find any negative feedback about the SP3's pen online so far....

I've not used a Surface Pro 3 yet, but I have had the unfortunate experience of the MacBook Air, something I will hopefully never have to repeat, and so will never be able to compare, financially or otherwise lol
 
Here's an update.

Firstly, I love the thing. Very light, thin (considering the power of it) and usable. I have an I5 128GB 4GB model. The ntrig pen is much more reliably accurate than the WACOM equivalent and I haven't had any need to calibrate it yet - it is accurate right into the corners.

On the subject of the pen - the SP3 is just brilliant as a note-taking device with One Note. I've been taking notes in meetings throughout this week and the large screen and pen make the SP3 like a massively turbocharged A4 workbook. One Note integration is very good indeed, and I particularly like the fact that handwritten notes are searchable (assuming you have moderately neat handwriting). Using the pen is very natural for me now and it feels odd not to use it.

The keyboard is very usable. The keys have more travel than the thin-ness of the keyboard seems to allow. How this works I don't know but touch typing as I am now is perfect. It's a better keyboard than I've used on many full laptops, with a nicely usable touchpad which is larger than on the previous Surface keyboard. The screen is excellent, backlighting is even and the detail/resolution is good.

On the downside there are a couple of bugs that are bugging me. The first is a well-reported tendency for the network adapter (for wireless and wired) to mysteriously disappear when coming out of sleep/standby. Cured by a reboot, the word is that a fix is on it's way. Secondly the Metro/Modern version of Internet Explorer occasionally decides to consume 30% of CPU for no apparent reason. Cured by closing and re-opening it, again it is a known bug. It would also be good if there was a place in the unit to store the pen.

I anticipate that the two problems above will be sorted in fairly quick time as Microsoft can't let this flagship device be hindered by a couple of silly problems like this. In fact a few updates came down today which I need to install and look through.

Battery life is good, though artificially affected by the CPU drain if IE misbehaves. Even with that I am getting 6-8 hours without a problem. Recharge from the small mains adapter (with an additional USB charge socket) is fast at about an hour which is great.

So far, so good. Lots of interest from everyone who sees it - they all want a play, including the MacBook Air users who are completely wowed by the note-taking ability of the pen. I have Lightfoot installed by haven't used it in anger yet.
 
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neil_g said:
Firefox uses more CPU (and memory) than IE I find.
Click to expand...

If it works better as a result, that's fine by me.

However... most of the time I can't detect any CPU use when I have Firefox open, and a few hundred MB isn't exactly a big deal.

Y3850uz.jpg
 
Pookeyhead said:
If it works better as a result, that's fine by me.

However... most of the time I can't detect any CPU use when I have Firefox open, and a few hundred MB isn't exactly a big deal.

Y3850uz.jpg
Click to expand...
FF is much more unstable and bloated these days once you start opening a few tabs. The flash player plugin for example is woeful.

I can tell you that by running them side by side all day every day to separate work and personal browsing.
 
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Unfortunately Firefox abandoned their Metro browser development. I normally use the Metro version of IE. MS will sort it shortly I think.

Also, I would have liked to have 8GB of RAM. With a bunch of windows open (Outlook, IE, Excel, PowerPoint etc) I'm at 62% of my 4GB. Unfortunately the i5 8GB is quite a bit more pricey and nobody had them in stock. A mid-range i5 8GB with 128GB drive would be a good option that doesn't exist unfortunately. All the 8GB i5's are 256GB which just adds to the price.

In the meantime, I'm getting lots of approving looks from the folks in the office - it's generated much more interest that I had anticipated.
 
Why is everything still 32 bit? I thought we moved on years ago...

Pookeyhead said:
If it works better as a result, that's fine by me.

However... most of the time I can't detect any CPU use when I have Firefox open, and a few hundred MB isn't exactly a big deal.

Y3850uz.jpg
Click to expand...
 
Chappers said:
The fact that Microsoft do two types of Surface tablet could lead to some disappointment for careless purchasers, The Pro features the Intel i5 processor, and runs Windows 8. That means it can run lots of windows apps. The RT uses a RISC processor which runs the limited RT options. Much like a conventional tablet.. The problem could be that someone sees the add for the Surface Pro and buys a conventional Surface, only to be disappointed when it doesn't do half the things the Pro does.

The Pro looks like a good bit of kit. Well done Microsoft. Not sure though how effective the pen is going to be. The resolution for the sensing device may make it to low to make it useful for taking notes, if my experience with ones for the iPad are anything to go by.

Pricing seems very competitive, but the MacBook Air is very close when you add the optional Surface Pro keyboard
Click to expand...


I think you are missing the fundamental point about the pen of the Surface and the difference between that and a stylus on an iPad.

The iPad can have a stylus, which is essentially a piece of metal/plastic with a conductive end, a thinner finger if you will. The surface has a pen, an active device with a battery that pairs with a special coating on the screen to give pressure sensitivity and far greater location sensitivity too. The two pens/stylus are just not comparable

It's basically the same as the Wacom graphics tablets graphic designers have been using for years (but this evolution its made by N-Trig, a Wacom competitor - I think because it is better at handwriting). Handwriting on it is pretty similar to writing on a normal pad, not identical but pretty close. The handwriting recognition is pretty impressive as well, it picks up almost everything properly IME. My GF got one about a month ago and she loves it now, it's her primary photo editing device and we use it for note taking now. The pen works perfectly with lightroom and it's far better than a mouse for painting masks etc.. The aspect ratio is also spot on for DSLR images too, at 3:2.

The only negative is it doesn't have a full sized SD card reader built in, but then I can see why they don't... There will soon be another SP3 around however, my sister loves it so much she's getting one...
 
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daugirdas said:
There is a simple fix for IE problem - google chrome or firefox.
Click to expand...

Don't think FF or Chrome have a metro version of their browsers yet do they?

The simplest solution is just use the desktop version of IE.:p
 
daugirdas said:
Why is everything still 32 bit? I thought we moved on years ago...
Click to expand...


Certain apps that don't really need to be 64bit often are. Anything in that list that doesn't specify will be 64bit. A browser, back up scheduling process, a USB charging app, and my calibration software are the only 32bit apps there. A lot of stuff that doesn't need to be 64bit is 32bit on the PC simply because you can run 32bit apps under WoW64 (Windows on Windows) and it's a good thing, as it makes it easier to run older legacy applications. I can still run stuff that was written for Windows 95. While not essential, it is nice to play the odd game of Quake 1 :)
 
Also on the subject of the pen, it has two buttons on the barrel (eraser and right click) and a button on the top which can be single or double clicked for additional functionality. Very nice indeed.
 
I've been using my SP3 a lot for taking handwritten notes in meetings, using OneNote 2013. It's super at doing this - the larger screen and the accurate inking with the pen makes it very natural. With OneNote you can import all the meeting details from your Outlook calendar into a new note giving you all the attendees, the meeting subject etc, and then just write your notes under that.

Also today I had the SP3 connected to a projector in a brainstorming meeting. I had prepped some content which I'd dragged into OneNote (bullet points, some diagrams etc) and I was then able to run the meeting from the SP3, writing on the screen to emphasise key topics, circle key words and take additional notes which were all displayed up on the big screen via the projector. Top stuff and very intuitive. It also made the meeting very engaging for the other participants, none of whom fell asleep. Used like this, it's like having a big interactive whiteboard with none of the drawbacks of big interactive whiteboards. Very nice indeed.

I still have the two strange issues on CPU and WiFi that I described earlier. The WiFi issue happens less frequently (once in 2 days) for some reason. Everyone is expecting a patch today ("Patch Tuesday") which I hope will fix them.

Lastly, I do wish I'd got an 8gb i5 instead of the 4gb one. I'm currently at 64% RAM usage running Outlook email, Outlook calendar, OneNote, Internet Explorer, Mail (Metro version). Trouble is that it's about £200 more (though you do get 256gb SSD storage instead of £128gb).
 
They definitely use the Apple pricing model!
 
Tobers said:
Lastly, I do wish I'd got an 8gb i5 instead of the 4gb one. I'm currently at 64% RAM usage running Outlook email, Outlook calendar, OneNote, Internet Explorer, Mail (Metro version). Trouble is that it's about £200 more (though you do get 256gb SSD storage instead of £128gb).
Click to expand...

You know since Vista that Windows has a prefetch feature which will try and use up available physical memory by caching system files into it? I wouldn't read too much into the % usage unless you are actually running out.

I have a 128gb/4GB Surface Pro 1 and I've happily run RHEL Linux and Oracle inside a VM on it, inside a W8 host.
 
Sounds like a good piece of kit but I don't understand why a laptop has to compromise so much to become a tablet.

First of all, why can it not have expandable memories. Why is it a motherboard soldered on 4GB or 8GB?? Neither of which is capable of running Photoshop. Secondly why does this (a laptop I remind you) not have proper processor choices...only i5 is available.

I am not convinced this is the final product. Yes it's a leap into the right direction in terns of bridging the gap between tablet and laptop. But still, I want to see a true laptop being portable....

Hopefully the new intel processors and new screen tech and new battery deaigns can help solve this.
 
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ricky1980 said:
Sounds like a good piece of kit but I don't understand why a laptop has to compromise so much to become a tablet.

First of all, why can it not have expandable memories. Why is it a motherboard soldered on 4GB or 8GB?? Neither of which is capable of running Photoshop. Secondly why does this (a laptop I remind you) not have proper processor choices...only i5 is available.

I am not convinced this is the final product. Yes it's a leap into the right direction in terns of bridging the gap between tablet and laptop. But still, I want to see a true laptop being portable....

Hopefully the new intel processors and new screen tech and new battery deaigns can help solve this.
Click to expand...
Power consumption and physical size. You want a tablet, there's no room for sockets - everything is soldered to the board. Also, a high performance CPU wouldn't be able to be kept cool in a tablet form. And battery life....
 
Depending on what you actually use it for, 8Gb is certainly sufficient for Photoshop. There is also an i7 based Surface Pro 3 available but it is quite pricey.
I was so close to buying a Surface Pro 3 last week, but went with a Macbook Pro in the end!
Love the convertible aspects of the Surface Pro and the pen capability, but wasn't convinced how easy it would be to use in laptop mode with the add on keyboard if using on a lap or other uneven or soft surface.
The other thing that concerned me was how Windows 8 would cope with the high resolution of the screen as from what I read it doesn't scale as well as OSX.
 
arad85 said:
Power consumption and physical size. You want a tablet, there's no room for sockets - everything is soldered to the board. Also, a high performance CPU wouldn't be able to be kept cool in a tablet form. And battery life....
Click to expand...
indeed i appreciate the problem confronted by laptop/tablet designers. but hopefully the new generations of intel architecture - skylake, the OLED screens would save a lot of batteries. who knows my dream might come true :D
 
ricky1980 said:
indeed i appreciate the problem confronted by laptop/tablet designers.
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If you understand it, why ask questions which say "I don't understand why a laptop has to compromise so much to become a tablet"? ;)
 
nah, its just i don't understand why they try to compromise...knowing that they cant get there. thats all.
 
Latest update on Sept 9th seems to have fixed the WiFi and CPU issues. Now running smoothly and very very nicely indeed.
 
Tobers said:
Latest update on Sept 9th seems to have fixed the WiFi and CPU issues. Now running smoothly and very very nicely indeed.
Click to expand...
MSFT here. Can confirm the WiFi issues with certain access points are resolved now.
 
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