Microsoft Surface Pro Review

For the past week now I have been almost exclusively using a Windows 8 Pro Surface tablet. I have a few early observations I wanted to share here. First, the ability to run full Windows applications on a tablet has been something that many people, including yours truly have been waiting for. As promised, the Microsoft Surface Pro allows for this to happen. There is something liberating about having a tablet that can actually truly run any Windows program out there.

 

Windows 8 Pro - a fine mix of native tablet & Windows apps

 

Although not as powerful as most ultrabooks, the Surface tablet does include some impressive technical specifications considering it is a first of a kind device.



Intel Core i5-3317U Dual Core Mobile Processor
4GB DDR3 Memory
128GB Solid State Storage
10.6" WUXGA (1920x1080) Multitouch Display
1.0 Megapixel Front and Rear Webcam
Intel HD 4000 Graphics
802.11a/g/n Wireless, Bluetooth
USB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort, microSD, Cover Port, Pressure Sensitive Pen Stylus
10.8" x 6.8" x .53" @ 2 lbs.
Windows 8 Professional

The Surface Pro screen takes the 10.6-inch display panel up to a 1920x1080 resolution while and can fully support 1080p high definition video. Color and brightness are quite good and the viewing angles are very wide with little contrast loss.

The heart of the Surface Pro is the same hardware that would typically be found in most ultrabooks today. It is powered by the Intel Core i5-3317U dual core mobile processor that is matched up with 4GB of DDR3 memory. The result is that the system offers some outstanding performance that allows it to take on tasks that most tablets would not be able to. Of course the processor setup along with the full Windows 8 Professional means that it can run any of the traditional Windows applications on the market. The Surface requires active cooling which means that there are fans inside the case. There have been reports of loud fans although I have had no noise issues with mine.  In addition Microsoft did a good job of disguising the air intake and output slots.

The more demanding hardware of the Surface Pro meant that Microsoft needed to put a larger battery in the tablet. They wanted to balance the weight and size of the system as well. They eventually settled on a 42Whr battery pack. This is larger than the Surface RT tablet at just 31.5WHr and roughly the same as Apple's iPad 4. Average battery length is about 4 hours which is about half of other tablets on the market today.

Storage is a big subject with regards to the Surface Pro tablets. In fact, I am reviewing the 128GB model specifically because of the space constraints that exist within the 64GB model. After the OS and recovery partitions are taken up, there is just 29GB of space left on the 64GB model. That leaves little space for programs and data. In contrast, the 128GB version has 89GB which is much more functional. This does drive the cost up but should be something that anyone considering the tablet should take seriously. The solid state storage does help make the system extremely responsive with the operating system cold booting is just about twelve seconds and applications come up almost instantaneously. There are options of adding extra storage through an internal micro SD card slot for use with flash memory or external storage through a USB 3.0 port which is something not seen in any other table today.

My favorite network application, "Track-It" running on the Surface



I was able to log my Surface tablet onto the network at work with a secure SSID which connects to the AD (active directory) server. From there I was able to install networked applications, access network files and print to networked printers. This is where a Windows tablet is going to find it's success.

The Windows 8 app store still needs to grow but I am not really that worried about that. The store's inventory has grown alot during the past couple of months and I see no reason for this trend not to continue.

Finally, we come to price. The 64GB model of the Surface Pro retails at $899 while the 128GB model runs $999. This already places it at the premium end of ultrabooks and well beyond the cost of your typical tablet. However if you want a truly mobile device that can do it all this may be the mobile solution for you.

I will be travelling with the Surface a couple of times during the next few weeks so stay tuned for more evaulation... and please keep your fingers crossed.