Customer Ratings & Reviews
- Model:
- ZIA-00018
- |
- SKU:
- 6582855
User rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars with 140 reviews.
4.5(140 Reviews)- 6 Expert Reviews
Customer reviews
Rating 4.5 out of 5 stars with 140 reviews
(140 customer reviews)Rating by feature
- Battery Life4.7
Rating 4.7 out of 5 stars
- Durability4.7
Rating 4.7 out of 5 stars
- Display4.8
Rating 4.8 out of 5 stars
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Surface Pro
||Posted . Owned for 1 week when reviewed.This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.The best surface that I could get, slim and lightweight
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Deceptively powerful 2-in-1
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.The Surface Pro 13 OLED 2-in-1 is a best of both worlds beast. Deftly switching from tablet to laptop with an optional keyboard and powered by a 12-core Snapdragon processor mated with a 512GB SSD, 16GB RAM, and a new OLED screen, the tablet feels like a strong laptop in both performance and features. Design/Body: The 13-inch tablet isn’t as large and bulky as it sounds. Much like early smartphones, I’ve come to realize that 13-inch tablets aren’t as huge as I originally thought they were. At first glance the Surface Pro doesn’t look much larger than my 11-inch tablet. It’s only when placed side by side does the slightly larger size of the Surface Pro become evident. The Surface has some weight to it but isn’t uncomfortably heavy. I find it easy to use and handle. The body is crafted from aluminum with a kickstand that allows the Surface Pro to be used upright in landscape mode with a keyboard. The kickstand folds flat against the back of tablet when not in use. I don’t find the aluminum body slippery or fragile feeling. The Surface has two USB-C ports on the left side, two ports on the bottom that integrate with the Surface Pro Keyboard, and three buttons on the top for power and volume controls. All ports and buttons are described with the Surface in the landscape position using the kickstand. Screen: The 13-inch OLED screen looks fantastic. I admittedly wasn’t quite as blown away as I’d hoped but it still looks good. It’s just not the quantum leap I thought it would be over previous Surface tablets. It has the deeper blacks and more richly saturated colors common with OLED. Text and graphics are also clean and razor sharp thanks to the 2880X1920 resolution. The screen has good brightness and fast response. Performance: The 12-core Snapdragon X Elite processor does not feel like an ARM processor. It feels more on par with a full-fledged X64 laptop. This is good because the Surface Pro is essentially a Windows 11 laptop in a tablet body. Despite the demands of running Windows 11, there is no noticeable lag. Windows open quickly and fluidly. Apps launch swiftly and run with no latency or hiccups. The NPU works splendidly and provides the processing punch required to make Copilot and other AI features actually useful rather than merely window decorations. The Surface isn’t the best equipped for PC gaming, but can handle most other tasks efficiently. The only downside are compatibility issues with some software due to the ARM processor. For example, I cannot install the exact same antivirus as my Windows laptops. I get booted to the Microsoft store for a less capable app version of the program. But as far as productivity apps, media editors, and content creation, the Surface Pro handles it all with ease. It doesn’t run hot in most instances and I haven’t encountered a freeze or blue screen yet. The two cameras and speakers are both decent quality. The QHD front facing camera has face tracking and is utilized for Windows Hello facial recognition. The camera takes good quality photos and video and works great for video conferencing. The 10mp rear camera performs well also. Neither camera can best high-end smartphone cameras but both are more than sufficient for a tablet or even a laptop. They’re also better than the cameras on my other tablets. Same with the speakers. They sound loud, clear, and better than anticipated for a tablet. Music sounds rich and is actually enjoyable. The speakers easily outperform my other tablets and even the quite capable laptop I’m currently typing on now. Battery life is fantastic. I only have to charge every couple days with moderate usage. Extras: Windows 11 recently introduced several AI powered new features. The most anticipated being Copilot. Co-pilot is an AI chatbot that provides a wealth of useful information at your fingertips. It can be helpful for research or automating certain creative processes. It can also utilize plug-ins for recipes, shopping, travel, home and more. Another interesting Windows AI feature is the DALL-E powered co-designer. Integrated with later versions of Paint, it allows you to create dazzling works of art using descriptive phrases and rough sketches. For example, I described an anime turtle on the beach, used some brush strokes to indicate the sand, water, sun and clouds and co-creator did the rest. I included the before and after photos with this review. The more descriptive the phrase, the more accurate the AI rendering. Features in Copilot also provide AI enabled searches and information requests, real-time translation with live captions, creative studio filters and effects for the camera and more. The camera filters were somewhat disappointing. There are only three filters and they only work in the video mode, not with still photos. There are also two blur modes: background and portrait. The AI camera effects are an okay start but I hope Microsoft plans on expanding the filters to not only include a larger selection but work for still photos as well. Cons: As we all know, few things in life are perfect and I’d be doing a disservice by gushing over what impressed me and omitting what didn’t. In the not-so-great department, I already mentioned the compatibility issues I encountered trying to install X64 apps on an ARM device. The Surface Pro runs so well, it’s easy to forget it’s an ARM device until running into an issue like that. Another not so great is the requirement for a complex PIN. I wanted to use a simple four-digit PIN that was easy for me to remember but Windows wasn’t having it because it didn’t meet complexity requirements. Now I have to look up my PIN if facial recognition fails for whatever reason. Lastly, it’s a Windows device, so that means frequent updates. It updated on first boot right out of the box. Lastly, I also had a bunch of unwanted files from another PC dropped onto the Surface thanks to OneDrive being infuriatingly active by default. Despite the above minor cons, I am still blown away by the power and capability of the Surface Pro OLED. It’s blazing fast, has great battery life, and offers the power of a laptop with the convenience and travel friendly size of a tablet. I do strongly recommend using it with a keyboard for the full experience. Case style is best and the Surface works seamless and marvelously with the Surface Pro Keyboard. However, any keyboard is better than no keyboard for those times you need a laptop, not a tablet. One thing I can say is as far as reliability, the Surface has already proven to be a long-lasting well-built piece of tech. I'm still using a Surface Pro X 1876 that is at least 4-5 years old and it’s showing no signs of slowing down.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
The Best Windows PC Experience Out There!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Windows has obviously been around a long time and is the known big name operating system for computers around the world, but its only been the last handful of years that Windows has been making their Surface laptop line. I have used many Windows computers in my day and it’s safe to say that this Surface Pro with Copilot+ is simply the best windows PC experience I have had! PROS: - Unboxing this and setup was a treat. Immediately you notice the top tier build quality that shows how thin it is but premium with how it feels and looks. The kickstand is very sturdy and can be adjusted in different angles, and it’s nice and light in your hand as well. Setup includes a smooth process of a few questions and you are ready to go! - The first thing you will notice when using this is how truly amazing this screen is, I mean wow! The OLED just makes everything pop and ever color feel like it stands out on its own. The whites are crisp and when the screen is black it is a true black. Makes for any work, play, or content you consume to be a real joy. I particularly enjoyed using this for movies and shows or games as the Dolby Vision with Dolby Atmos speakers really popped. - The Snapdragon processor brings a new level of speed as well. Often you think that you need a big machine to get you fast and efficient speeds but the Snapdragon processor along with the great ram and SSD specks make for a blazing fast experience when using multiple apps at the same time with either work or play. - Of course the big rollout of these new Windows PC’s are the built in Copilot+ which helps use AI for all your work and creative needs. I found the real world use cases for AI to be so beneficial as it helped my work look better and gave me ideas I had not considered before. I think it’s only going to get better with time as well but so far the AI features are a big perk for me in my use cases. - The surface pro also comes with some nice features like dual front/back cameras and 2 USB C ports. Both of these increase the versatility as the front camera is amazing for conference calls or streaming, the back is useful for taking pictures, and the two USB-C are the way of the future and work with all of my accessories I need. - Along with all this speed, AI, and OLED screen you would think that was too much power for a solid battery but I was very impressed with how long I could use this Surface Pro in between charges! It works wonderfully and only adds to its portability to be able to bring along like its nothing. CONS: - I really did not have too many downsides about this. Sure you could say it needs more ports but I find myself using them less and less, especially with docking stations and Bluetooth. Plus it keeps the profile more sleek and modern. BOTTOM LINE: - This is simply the Microsoft Laptop to buy. It has an incredible form factor that is great on the go, at your deck, or docked into monitors, its blazing fast, has an unreal OLED screen, and the built in AI features give you the real use case for AI that you may not have seen before. Microsoft has really hit a home run with this Surface Pro and it will easily be my daily driver for all my needs and I think it will cover yours as well!
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 4 out of 5 stars
Great device, a few 1st gen hiccups.
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.So far this has been a surprisingly painless experience. It's my first foray into an ARM powered windows machine, and so far the experience has been almost indistinguishable from a typical x86 machine. There are a few hiccups, some x86 programs don't run well emulated (or at all), although they're usually niche things that most people don't need. Also, because Windows on ARM isn't quite mainstream, it can be hard to find programs compiled for it - I had to go to a few different websites to find Java 21 compiled for ARM. Most of this will be resolved with time however, and it's already quite usable. Regarding AI and Copilot+, honestly at the time of writing they're mostly just a gimmick. most of the available features are rather useless in daily usage. And in case this isn't clear to anyone, the copilot AI assistant does NOT run locally, it's purely cloud based. Won't even load without an internet connection. Studio effects (camera stuff) could be useful in online meetings, and live captions can be useful to view content in other languages. I hope to see some more useful features come out eventually, but right now it's mostly just a shiny new gimmick. The camera is great quality - compared to almost any other laptop webcam, this is in another class altogether. From what I've heard, Qualcomm actually has an image signal processor on the SOC, and typical x86 laptops rely on whatever cheap ISP is inside the webcam - which usually leads to really low quality, even if the webcam is "1080p" or even "4k". It also helps that the Surface Pro is a tablet form factor and has much more room for a quality image sensor. I was hoping to dual boot Linux, however at the time of writing the Snapdragon X aren't supported on Linux yet. As far as I'm aware, these chips are designed in such a way that you have to add support directly to the Linux kernel for each specific chip to be able to run it, which is unfortunate. However, Qualcomm is actively working on making Linux work with these chips - which is really nice to see. Now to the device - The OLED screen is gorgeous, brightness is great - even sufficient outdoors (at least in shade, haven't tested in direct sunlight). As it is a touchscreen device, there is a slight pattern from the digitizer visible up close to the screen - I can only see it from distances unreasonable for any average user (say, 6-8 inches away from the screen). HDR looks great, 120hz is fluid, VRR provides a nice power saving option. Battery life has been pretty good compared to some other laptops I've owned, it lasted quite awhile even streaming HD content for hours. The build is solid, the hinge feels pretty durable. The power and volume buttons are plastic which is a slight disappointment but not a huge issue. The SSD is easily accessible through a magnetically attached door, which is great to see from a repairability standpoint, albeit a little odd. The form factor is a bit uncomfortable sometimes, it's a bit hard to use they keyboard cover if you're not at a desk or table. As a tablet it works great wherever though, as most tablets do. Windows is fairly usable touch only, minus a few UI quirks. You tap with two fingers to "right click," but if you need to do that with any sort of precision then you long press with a single finger - unfortunately there's no haptics, sound, or visual indicator to let you know it's been long enough, so you end up wasting time holding it too long. Could get used to it with time, but an indicator of any kind would be a much better option. Overall it's a great device, just needs a bit of time for software to catch up.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Tablet that Mimicks a Windows Notebook PC
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I have been wanting a Microsoft Surface tablet for a long while now, so was beyond excited to be able to get this one! The Dune color is beautiful! It reminds me of a dark rose gold, which I love. The 13" OLED display is super bright and crisp. Just, wow! It's honestly awesome. The magnetic 'snap on' power cord is really great. It latches on to the port on the side of the tablet securely, and even has a light to show that it is fastened on correctly. The 'fold out' lower panel on the backside of the Surface Pro is adjustable, so you are able to position the tablet at just the right angle you so choose. There are 2 handy USB-C ports on the side, as well. Setting up my new Surface Pro was actually fun. Since this was my first experience with a Microsoft tablet, I spent the time getting to know my new device. Updates took the usual time, and after a small "hiccup" being able to log into my OneDrive account, we were up and running! The Snapdragon X 12-core processor, so far, is performing above my expectations. It truly feels as though I'm using a mid-range laptop, and not a tablet. So responsive, with fast transitions when opening multiple windows, starting software, and switching between all of these operations with ease. The 16gb RAM also assists with helping numerous applications and tasks to run smoothly. I'm not a big fan, as of yet, of AI in general. However, as someone fascinated by technology and well versed in trying out innovative tech, I'm interested in seeing where AI will leads us as this "new" technology will certainly improve and be implimented in many more useful applications to come. Copilot itself was interesting. There are 3 "modes" - Creative, Balanced, and Precise. You can type in a short description of what you'd like to be created, or speak it. The AI does the rest. I tried all three modes and came to understand that depending on the criteria of what you'd like the AI to create for you, you should best choose which mode to use in order to get the desired result. That being said, the Live Captions feature proved quite useful. Sometimes the videos I watch from various international content creators can be difficult to understand. Being able to use this feature during video chats for business or school work, ie to make "in-person" conversations easier to understand in 'real time', is a big plus. CoCreator was also very very fun to play around with. The tools were basic, yet simple enough to understand, being similar to other types of creation software. I'm not an artist, but I've studied art and admire those skilled with this particular talent. While the Style options were simplistic and limited, they gave me several choices with which to manipulate the AI generated image that I had the program draw. Using the Creativity slider changed the image even more, but putting the slider all the way to the right, caused my drawing to become a bit weird (not necessarily a bad thing). Windows Studio Effects is another really fun feature to experiment with while using the camera and for videos. I liked how the creative filters removed the wrinkles on my face, but at the same time, there was that "unreal" AI look I've come to recognize and not like very much. But that's merely a matter of preference. My overall take? After trying out Copilot+ and all the new features this Microsoft Surface Pro has going for it, I'm beyond pleased! Using this tablet is FUN! Whether you are an artist, content creator, writer (like myself), or someone interested in AI software options for personal use or business/work, then this Surface tablet is one to consider. It's features are geared toward the future. With this device, Microsoft is "forward thinking." I've no doubt that this technology will improve and become even more innovative as time goes on.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Versatile and powerful
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Having been a user of Microsoft software since its inception — yes, I’m talking MS-DOS back in the day — this marks my first experience with Microsoft Surface hardware. In just a few days with the Surface Pro – Copilot+ PC, I can confidently say it has exceeded my expectations. The Surface Pro impresses with its sleek, lightweight design. Opting for the Dune color was a refreshing change for me, adding a new dimension to its aesthetic appeal. The Dune-colored Surface Pro keyboard is equally versatile, seamlessly attaching and detaching from the tablet. Its magnetic connector allows flexible positioning for comfortable typing, or lays flat to reveal the Slim Pen neatly stored in its tray (see attached pictures). The Alcantara material covering the keyboard, akin to a high-quality felt, not only feels soft but also ensures stability on any surface. I particularly appreciate the backlit keyboard with adjustable brightness levels, enhancing usability in different environments. Setting up the Surface Pro was straightforward, with Windows seamlessly restoring my previous computer’s settings, ensuring instant familiarity. The OLED display is stunning, delivering crisp details and vibrant colors, perfect for video editing tasks. Downloading various video editing programs and creating/editing videos has been a great experience thus far. Thanks to the Snapdragon X Elite processor, creating and saving videos has been exceptionally fast and enjoyable. Accessing the Copilot AI assistant, integrated into the keyboard, has been effortless. While I’ve only scratched the surface with Copilot my experience thus far has shown it to be intuitively useful and powerful. The Surface Pro’s versatility shines whether in tablet mode with its responsive touchscreen or as a laptop with the attached keyboard for typing tasks. Battery life has been excellent, I’ve used it all day unplugged and still have around 50% battery left. I’ve not used a Slim Pen before, I’ve been a laptop/mouse guy forever but I gotta say, I really like the functionality of the pen. Managing files and other functions become very easy in lieu of a mouse. See that? Turns out you can teach an old dog new tricks, love the Slim Pen. In my opinion, the Surface Pro is a premium computing product. Its blend of design, usability, and processing power places it at the forefront compared to the numerous laptops and tablets I’ve used in the past.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Fast, solid tablet as expected
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.DESIGN: Got the Surface Pro in the Dune color which reminded me of rose gold. It has a solid build, and physical power and volume buttons on the sides have a nice button press. The tablet feels light and touchscreen is responsive. Kickstand doesn’t feel flimsy although it feels like it possibly could flex with some force. Volume buttons in landscape mode are still left - volume up, and right - volume down.To me, when paired with a keyboard this action feels reversed, but it looks unchangeable as the + and - is imprinted on the button itself. Being able to charge via USB-C is great, however there are only 2 USB-C ports. SPEAKERS The speakers sound good for a tablet in my opinion. Low mids and even a little of subs in moving bass lines can be heard compared to other phone or laptop speakers. Disabling ‘audio enhancements’ in audio settings made the speakers sound very tinny. DISPLAY: I love the OLED display. Currently I have it set to 2880x1920 @ 120hz and things feel snappy and smooth. I’m not a color pro but personally it looks balanced after switching off the ‘Adaptive color’ setting because I was getting an orange tint (like night mode) under direct sunlight. Brightness is not an issue and it can get very very bright. The corners of the screen are rounded which felt different to me and I enjoyed that. I had no issues with the touchscreen which felt very responsive. LIVE CAPTIONS This was something I was really looking forward to, since I like to watch international content on YouTube but subtitles aren’t always available. Unfortunately it didn’t really get the job done - the captions felt like they were missing half of the things being said and even then it was a little slow and often mistranslated. To be fair there was background music with the dialogue but nowadays most content on YT has music in the background. Maybe Live Captions is better suited for video conferencing and professional situations since there is also a ‘include microphone audio’ option in the settings. There are 3 settings for positioning (above screen, below screen, overlaid on screen). On YouTube, choosing one position for the captions and then full screening the video will revert the captions to its default position (above screen), which was a bit of a buggy experience for me. COPILOT: I asked for a few movie recommendations (from a specific country) but it only gave me 2. When I asked for more, it gave me 3 additional titles for a total of 5 titles. Not bad, but another AI with the same prompt gave me 3 genres with 2-4 titles each for a total of 9 titles. CAMERA The front facing camera has a nice wide angle (making the room in the background look huge). As a result the video feels like there’s some breathing room around instead of just a talking head taking up the entire space. Something about the overall color feels off/dated somehow however, like the quality from a phone camera from 5-8 years ago. BATTERY I can’t accurately comment on this but while typing this with the Surface Pro Keyboard attached on the ‘recommended’ power setting at 50% brightness and 45 minutes of ‘display on time’, the battery has gone from 100% to 88%. Nothing else was in the background besides 3-5 other open browser tabs. OTHER THOUGHTS: Overall the Surface Pro feels very fast and responsive. For its price I was expecting it to, and it didn’t disappoint. Normal use such as browsing or watching things online doesn't make the tablet hot, it stays cool or just a little warm on the skin, although it did get hot to the touch while downloading/installing programs and updates during initial setup. IN THE END The biggest thing to consider for me was its form factor. For example, when connected with the Surface Pro Keyboard, moving the ensemble required two hands or else the keyboard would end up flapping around in the air. In addition, I couldn’t use the Surface Pro with Keyboard on narrow surfaces, forcing me to remove the keyboard and use other alternatives. PROS: Solid, light design. Fast and snappy. Speakers sound good for a tablet. OLED Display is 120 hz. Front camera is wide angle. Kickstand is great for videos without needing a tablet stand. CONS: Surface Pro tablet/keyboard combo has some limitations as to where it can be set up and the kickstand feels like an additional step that can take some getting used to. 2 USB-C ports only, will need a dock for extra peripherals
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Excellent Hardware- Intriguing AI.
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Well, here we go…AI…Integrated into a computer. I was super excited to get my hands on Microsoft’s Copilot + PC…I tuned it on and went through the basic windows set up…and I was waiting for that moment like in the movie “Her” where the AI started talking to me and I would be blown away…and that didn’t happen. So then I hit the dedicated Copilot button on the Surface Pro Keyboard and started asking it some questions… Like “plan a trip to Pawhuska, Oklahoma”. I already planned a trip there for later this summer, but I was curious as to what it would say. That’s when it began to feel a little more like the “Her” experience. The voice is super conversational. Subtle inflections in the voice and tone make it warm and friendly. The data was good and she offered some ideas that I had not come across. The day she planned was from the drive out of town to the location and was a day trip. What I found helpful was the fact that I think I was unrealistically planning too many activities in a day trip and Copilot helped me understand that because Copilot’s time line considered things in a more realistic fashion and not just trying to cram a bunch of things into a single day trip. That’s a real game changer. We are going to make it a two-day trip now. Copilot really brought insight and value in a very novel and powerful way. I asked Copilot to create a weekly menu for a medical condition I have and it did…I asked it to tell me a story about our Sun…and it did…about how it would burn out in about 5 billion years. And it’s not just the conversational and information aspects that are subtle but impressive. The onboard camera for video calls. I noticed the background blurring and effects are more defined and smooth looking. They look more professional for a lack of a better description. The slim pen (sold separately) writes so crisp and clean. It is fast and responsive and looks just like my handwriting. AI is assisting with that as well. Then there is the image generation that kicks over to DALL E 3. I wanted an elephant driving a car….and I got a few versions of that. Very impressive. I could see how I will be probably upgrading to Microsoft Copilot 365 for the integration into the Office suite. As impressive as it all is and it is… I have just a pang of disappointment though. I really wanted a fully engaged AI experience like in the movies…and it’s first generation. It is the future and Microsoft is right in the lead of things…but again, It’s still first generation and has a long way to go before it’s like the movies. I don’t think that is fair to Microsoft…my expectations, like my day trip were unrealistic. But as I played with Copilot more…I really began to see where we are going…It is going to be wild and surreal ride. BUT…EVEN IF Copilot was not on the Surface Pro, the hardware is ABSOLUTELY PHENOMINAL!!! The 13” OLED is just gorgeous! The colors and brightness and crystal-clear text and graphics are truly spectacular! The amount of sheer horsepower in such a small and portable design is really awe inspiring and a technical marvel! The design and color palette (Dune in my case) of the unit really stands out. It’s one of the most striking looking pieces of tech I have ever owned. The Surface slim pen and Keyboard are an absolute must buy with the Surface Pro. It’s like cookies and milk and not having cookies! I digress, The keyboard and pen combined with the Surface Pro is a one and done laptop replacement that looks gorgeous, feels amazing in the hand and with the power of the Snapdragon X Elite is truly a laptop replacement tablet! Then there is the battery life. When Microsoft says all day battery life… they mean it. That’s a big deal for me and the magnetic charging is also really nice. I love the way Microsoft designed the “kickstand” on the tablet as well. That is such a nice feature, that I was unsure of. It looks kind of weird in the marketing and pics of the unit but in practicum and daily use, it’s the most stable and versatile idea out there. The stand that you don’t have to pack, manipulate… you set it an it works. Really cool. The last thing I really liked was that Microsoft is really stepping up their recycle game. The Surface Pro enclosure is made of 72 percent recycled material and the aluminum alloy and rare earth minerals they use are 100 percent recycled. That’s important to me. Good on you Microsoft! Overall, just amazing tech infused with the future of humanity (gulp).
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 4 out of 5 stars
The Future is (Almost...) Now
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.The new Surface Pro with Copilot+ is one of the more exciting new Windows devices to launch in recent memory. Sporting all new Snapdragon powered internals, with a knockout OLED screen and class best battery life, this finally feels like the tablet that can truly bridge the divide between tablet and laptop. That said, the experience not without hiccups. Fit and finish on this tablet are frankly second to none. It emanates quality, featuring an incredible display, uniquely rich color, and a rock solid hinge mechanism. It has an assured weight, owing to its (presumably) aluminum chassis. Ports are a bit lacking, with only 2 USB C ports on the left and the single power port on the right. Notably lacking are a headphone port (which, in truth, is becoming somewhat passe in 2024) and additional USB ports which could be quite useful for those using the Surface Pro in professional capacity. Speaking of usage... I'm both blown away and slightly underwhelmed by the performance. In general, the device is lightning quick. The best way I can describe it is that most of the time, it feels like a phone, which is to say that it feels incredibly responsive with infrequent slow downs. However, it's not quite there; actions like three finger pinches on the touchscreen, or especially three finger swipes on the touchpad of the optional Pro keyboard attachment feel VERY laggy. These lag instances are made all the more obvious by how fluid the rest of the experience is overall. It's a bit of a disappointment, but overall the performance here feels ALMOST top notch a lot of the time, and I feel this is likely an area that will continue to improve as the Snapdragon X platform matures. At least, I hope it does. I've had zero problems with apps being able to run correctly, which is frankly amazing given where Windows was just a few short years ago in terms of emulation ability for ARM based processors. Brief trials of Adobe based products (Premier and Photoshop) both ran exceptionally well in my limited experience. Very brief testing with Reaper, which has no native Windows based ARM support currently, also seemed to work correctly. Again, this is a marked improvement over previous iterations of ARM based systems on Windows. Overall, it's highly impressive, and points to a concerted effort to make this a class leading device that can do it all. Almost. All that said, don't expect to do any type of serious gaming on this thing. Given the device type, you shouldn't anyways, but the additional emulation layer required to run a lot of games at current time means anything fast paced is likely out of the question. This, as with a lot of things here, will likely to improve in the coming months, though, as platform support for the Snapdragon X chips expands across the industry. The elephant in the room here, besides of course the shiny new Snapdragon X Elite processor, is the inclusion of what Microsoft has branded "Copilot+ PC". This aims to integrate a series of AI features directly into the OS, giving you quick access to tools that should help your day to day workflow. My primary usage of this was to invoke Copilot using dedicated Copilot button on the keyboard to assist in software development tasks. Powered by a combo of GPT-4 and Bing Search, Copilot is as useful as you'd expect at tasks. Overall, this is a nicely streamlined experience for those that utilize Chat GPT on a regular basis, and the inclusion of GPT-4 without an OpenAI premium sub is a really nice bonus. The other main AI feature I've tried in my short time with the Surface Pro laptop is the "Cocreator" function in MS Paint. Yes, that MS Paint, that long ago was relegated to intentionally awful "photoshops". Now, with a Surface Pen and Cocreator, you can create legitimately solid pictures. Or at least that's the sales pitch. My personal experience with this has been underwhelming, personally. Great idea, less than great implementation. Finally, I'll mention battery life. Put simply, it's stellar. Compared to other Windows laptops I've had (including a Surface Book Pro 3), this Surface Pro tablet is heads and shoulders above all of them. I'm routinely going days without charging on moderate usage. This finally feels like what we should be expecting out of our devices; multiple days of battery life without sacrificing performance. Overall, I really enjoy using the Surface Pro tablet. As mentioned earlier, this is the first device that I've used that truly feels like it's bridging the gap between tablet and laptop/PC. This iteration of ARM on Windows is in its infancy, but already, the makings are there of something great. This feels like the future for all but the most demanding workflows (like gaming), and likely will continue to amass market share in the coming months and years. Finally, Microsoft has spent some capital on trying to make evolve their ecosystem and finally, it feels like they're on their way to doing it. Nagging performance issues aside, this device is a joy to use in a number of scenarios, and will likely become my primary device for travel, work, and leisure.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Nearly Perfect Portable PC
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I’ve owned a few Surface’s over the years, but I haven’t been excited about them for a while now - really since the very first one. I was a little skeptical about all the hype on the Snapdragon X processor and after using the new Surface Pro I can confirm that, unlike previous attempts, it mostly delivers on the promise of Windows on ARM. The performance is great on both native and x86 apps, the battery lasts forever (and it sleeps properly), the OLED screen is beautiful, and the build quality is as great as it’s ever been for a Surface. It’s not going to replace a high end desktop or a big beefy gaming laptop, but as an everyday device it does everything I want and I know I can depend on it to just work. The build quality is as good as it’s ever been from Microsoft, which is to say excellent. The ‘Dune’ color is a somewhat muted gold color that looks very classy. The aluminum casing feels nice and does a reasonable job of resisting fingerprints. The integrated kickstand folds out to just about any position and holds firm where you set it. For ports there is the proprietary Surface Connect port and 2 USB4 USB-C ports. The included 39W power adapter connects via the Surface Connect, but the Surface Pro supports 65W fast charging through USB-C or another Surface charger. Behind the kickstand there is a plate covering the 512GB SSD that can be popped open without any tools that reveals an M.2 2230 SSD that can easily be upgraded in the future. The keyboard and pen aren’t included in the price of the Surface Pro, so this is something to bear in mind when pricing it out. With the keyboard and pen attached, the overall weight is just a little over 2.5 lbs. The OLED display is new for Surface and it looks fantastic. It supports HDR and a 120Hz variable refresh rate. It also gets very bright. The 2880 x 1920 resolution provides a dense 267 ppi and the 3:2 aspect ratio gives you some extra vertical space that’s great for productivity. In the 5 or so days I’ve used the Surface so far the main thing I’ve noticed has been how great the battery life is. I’ve had other Windows devices with good battery life before, but the problem I’ve had with them is they tend to drain a lot even when you’re not using them to the point where I have lost 30% or more battery over the course of a day if I didn’t completely shut them down. This is not an issue with the Surface. The battery lasts to the point where I could very comfortably leave the charger at home for at least a day if not more. And it doesn’t need to be shut down; you can put the Surface to sleep and come back in a few hours or even a day to the same amount charge it had before. And it’s always ready to go right when you bring it on out of sleep. It opens up a lot of possibilities just from the simple fact of not having to have anxiety about whether or not your laptop is going to make it through whatever you’re doing. The performance so far has been great for me on both native ARM and x86 apps. Obviously native apps run better and don’t stress the battery as much, but I don’t feel hamstrung by the ARM processor. So far I’ve primarily been using Chrome and Adobe apps. I haven’t tried any gaming yet, but from what I’ve seen other places the results are underwhelming - not that I would have chosen any previous Surface device for gaming anyway. I know the x86 compatibility isn’t 100%, but for me I haven’t run into any issues and with so many more ARM-based Windows devices coming out I’m hoping compatibility will improve and more applications will get native ARM versions. Microsoft is calling the Surface a Copilot+ PC, which means it has a separate processor for doing AI tasks. So far in Windows this is mostly down to what I would call gimmicky things like eye contact in the front-facing camera, generative image generation in Paint based on what you draw, and a basic upscaler for gaming. These features are all good and even useful at times, but so far none of them are game changing. Windows 11 is still Windows 11 and while I’m a fan, many are not and nothing about how you interact with it with the Surface is going to change anybody’s opinion on it. The nice thing about it being a product directly from Microsoft though is the Windows bloat is reduced compared to other brands. The front-facing camera looks great and incorporates many of the aforementioned AI features. The built-in microphone is also high quality. You also get Windows Hello, which recognizes and logs me in in less than a second most of the time. The rear camera is just okay, but fine for basic photos or documentation purposes. The speakers get quite loud and don’t distort at high volumes. There’s also more bass than I was expecting for such a small device. Overall I’m really impressed with the new Surface. It’s got a beautiful build, a beautiful screen, a battery that lasts for days, and the performance to back it all up. It’s an almost no compromises portable Windows experience and aside from the higher price you’ll pay for that I’d have no problems recommending it to anyone.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Lightweight tablet with heavyweight power!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Ladies and gentlemen, gather 'round because the Surface Pro 11 is here, and it’s ready to knock your socks off. Microsoft’s latest 2-in-1 tablet/laptop hybrid is not just another device; it’s a tech lover's dream. Here’s my personal take after spending some quality time with this beauty. –Battery Life– First up, battery life. The Surface Pro 11 boasts over 11 hours of juice, which is leaps and bounds ahead of my old Surface Pro 6, which barely survives 4 hours on a good day. This means I can binge-watch, work, and play all day without desperately seeking an outlet. It’s like having a marathon runner in a world of sprinters. –Portability– The Surface Pro 11 is feather-light. At under 2 pounds without the keyboard and just under 3 pounds with it, it’s easy to carry around, whether you’re commuting or just moving from the couch to the kitchen. It’s so light, you might forget you’re even carrying it. –Performance– Now, let’s talk about what’s under the hood. The Snapdragon X Elite ARM CPU with its 12 cores is a powerhouse. It handles computationally expensive tasks effortlessly and stands toe-to-toe with Apple’s M3 ARM CPU. Benchmarks don’t lie; this thing even outperforms my desktop with a Ryzen 9 5900X. Day-to-day tasks feel as smooth as butter, proving this device is no slouch. –Display– The OLED panel is stunningly bright, making it perfect for outdoor use. Those thinner bezels are a breath of fresh air compared to the chunky ones on my Surface Pro 6. Whether I’m watching videos, working on graphics, or just browsing, the display is vibrant and crisp. –Upgradeability– Here’s a win for the tinkerers: the SSD is upgradeable! Unlike my Surface Pro 6 with its soldered-on SSD, the Surface Pro 11 allows you to upgrade your storage. This feature has been around since the Surface Pro 8, and I’m glad it’s still here. The only downside is it uses an M.2 2230 form factor, which limits upgrade options. –Ports and Connectivity– The port selection is pretty generous with two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a magnetic Surface charging port. I can connect almost anything I need, as long as I have my trusty dongles. Setting up my web development environment was a breeze, and WSL ran like a champ. It performs on par with, if not better than, my HP Omen 14 with an Intel Core 7 155U. –Instant Wake and Sleep– The wake and sleep times are impressively fast. The Snapdragon X Elite brings an instant-on experience that’s noticeably quicker than any Windows device I’ve used. It’s a real productivity booster. –Copilot Feature– The integrated Copilot feature, powered by the NPU, is a major plus. Having AI assistance on the device is fantastic, but the placement of the Copilot key (replacing my beloved ‘Control’ key) is a bit annoying. My muscle memory is still adjusting. –The Not-So-Great Stuff– - RAM is soldered: You’re stuck with whatever RAM you buy. No upgrades here, which is a letdown. - Copilot key placement: Great feature, but the placement could be better. My fingers still miss the old ‘Control’ key. - SSD form factor: Limited to M.2 2230, which restricts upgrade options. - Lapability: Using it on your lap can be tricky and uncomfortable, a quirk that’s been around since the first Surface Pro. - Laptop stands: Difficult to use with laptop stands because the angle depends on the built-in kickstand. Annoying for those who use stands regularly. - Bezels: The top and bottom bezels are thicker than the sides. Symmetry would’ve been nicer. - Audio: The built-in speakers are a bit tiny. I rely on my Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones, but it’s worth noting for others. –Wishlist– - Upgradeable RAM: It’s 2024, why can’t we have this in thin and light devices? - Dedicated GPU: An RTX 4060 would’ve been the icing on the cake for some light gaming. Maybe next time, Microsoft? –Conclusion– The Surface Pro 11 is an impressive and versatile 2-in-1 device. Its portability, battery life, and performance make it a standout in its category. It’s not perfect—no device is—but it comes pretty close. If you’re looking for a powerful, portable hybrid, the Surface Pro 11 should be at the top of your list. Just be ready to adapt to a few quirks, and you’ll be more than satisfied. So, should you buy it? Absolutely, especially if you need a powerhouse device you can take anywhere. The Surface Pro 11 sets a new standard for 2-in-1 devices, and it’s a joy to use.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Beautiful machine that will impress in hardware
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Over the years, Microsoft has shown innovation with its Surface line. At one point, the Surface was the best all-around Two-In-One available for users who wanted to experience a device that offered the benefits of a tablet and a mobile laptop. The Surface Pro was first introduced in 2013, and even though it's been a solid choice, it has yet to evolve exactly how Microsoft wanted it to. Enter Surface Pro 11, equipped with the latest computer world's latest buzzword: A.I. Or, more specifically, Microsoft's Co-Pilot. A.I. has pushed harder than anything I can remember. It's everywhere. No matter what company you're loyal to, Apple, Google, or Microsoft, you'll be constantly reminded that A.I. is the future and the future is now. It's been talked about so much that you'd think this new Surface Pro will be a personal assistant you can converse with and ask to do projects on your behalf. But sadly, it is not. The A.I. aspect, as of right now, is underwhelming. There's just not much here yet, however. I'm sure a lot is around the corner. The most unique aspect of it is a dedicated "Co-Pilot" button. It does open up the co-pilot program, but not much else yet. On the other hand, when you get past the A.I. hype, you get an excellent machine that will impress with its quality hardware. This thing is beautiful. The OLED screen pops with contrast and solid blacks. I'm a sucker for OLED and find it difficult to use any other screen with anything bigger than a phone, and Microsoft did not disappoint in the screen. The built-in kickstand is as solid as ever with the Surface, and the new Dune color separates itself from the pack of devices out there. The entire package is very stunning. I received the Snapdragon X Elite version, and the speed and power of the machine can be seen immediately. Everything is snappy and quick, with no hiccups or delays. Power consumption is well managed, as the battery life is better than most 2-In-Ones I've used in the past. I wish Microsoft would market the build quality of these machines more than the A.I., because working on this has made me forget it even has A.I. features. I don't use them yet, but I am a freelance writer and do a lot of photography editing. I haven't delved too much into the editing capabilities yet, but writing on this with the Pro keyboard has been comfortable. If you haven't had a Surface Pro and have always thought about it, then I'd say it's the perfect time to get one with the 11. PROS: • OLED screen is beautiful • build quality is excellent • battery life is impressive • speedy and powerful CONS: • A.I. is underwhelming • Pen can be a bit more hefty
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 4 out of 5 stars
Nice tablet but AI not quite there
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Out of the box, the unit doesn’t break any new designs looking pretty like all surface tablets, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Case is anodized aluminum. My unit came with; Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite CPU’ NPU (Neural Processing Unit – can you say Terminator) Copilot+PC 512GB Samsung MZ9L4512HBLU-00BMV 2230 NVMe Gen4 SSD. This can be upgraded through a nifty magnetic “door” you just flip open. 16GB LPDDR5X ram – not upgradable OLED 2880x1920 3:2 13-inch 120 Hz touchscreen. Gorillas Glass 5 and unit still has the 165-degree kick-stand, which I really like. 2 USB-C (4.0 ports). Supports charging, data transfer, DisplayPort 1.4 as well as Thunderbolt 4.0 dock User facing 1440p ultrawide camera with studio affects and facial recognition (windows hello) Rear facing 10-MP UHD camera. Built-in microphone Built-in 2 W Dolby Atmos Qualcomm Aqstic adapter speakers. They sound nice for their size and somewhat immersive. Wifi 7 Bluetooth 5.4 Surface Pro keyboard port Surface Connect 39-watt AC adapter. About 7 ft long with inline brick. Lithium-ion battery Windows 11 home I also received the Surface Pro keyboard and Pen. Very light at just under 2 lbs. (before adding keyboard/pen). 1-year warranty Use This is my 1st machine using ARM architecture and I was pleasantly surprised by the performance. It tested very well using Cinebench. I did, however, run into an unexpected issue trying to install some of my “go-to” security, testing and taskbar software. It appears not all x86 based software will install/work with ARM. I had not considered this, and it is certainly disappointing – but I am not sure where the fault lies exactly? So just be aware. OLED screen is very impressive and supports HDR (my info shows 900 nits) but is very reflective. The 4:3 aspect ratio seems a tad odd, nice for docs, scrolling, etc. but lacks a little when viewing a movie. But movies look almost 3-D they have so much color/resolution. Very responsive touch as well. Easily connected to my wifi 7 mesh network. Battery life is very impressive. In recommended mode I looped a movie (stored on SSD – not streaming) with Wifi and Bluetooth both on and at 13-hour mark there was still 6% battery left. Best-performance mode ran about 75% of that. Super quiet while running and size/weight makes it very portable. AI experience. Co-pilot key was easy enough to use. It opened a search engine type window. Co-creator in Paint is easy to access. You draw in a box on the left side, giving a description of what you would like to create while also selecting a style, on the right. I described Godzilla (grandsons) and drew a very rudimentary figure but what it generated certainly wasn’t what I was looking for. Photos AI inspired Restyle tool accessed by selecting edit then AI colored button. Has options such as Fantasy, Anime, Watercolor, etc. Fun to play with but needs better rendering. Photos also has Image Creator where you can give description and it will generate photos/pic. I tried dinosaurs (again grandsons) and it provided several nice options. This was my favorite out of the 3. As with any new software/process there are going to be issues. Mine are not really with the software per se but with the fact you must sign into your MS account and have an internet connection to use them. You cannot use these features off-line. With that being the case there are any number of online editing tools you could also use. Negatives. Not great for gaming Touch-screen is reflective. No keyboard included (additional cost). This is kind of a must have for me to give it some semblance to a true laptop. No pen included (additional cost). Using finger to paint, etc. is nice but you really need a pen. No headphone jack – easily “fixed” with USB-C to mini connector. No Micro SD to easily add storage. No HDMI connector. Given tablets sleek design is not surprising. Easily “fixed” as well with USB-C dongle or hub. Since you can charge using USB-C connection I would prefer an additional USB-C connection replacing the Surface connect. ARM/X86 software issues but should be resolved soon hopefully. Cannot use AI software off-line. Also, for an additional monthly charge you can access CoPilot Pro. While I feel that AI is not ready for prime time yet, this unit should have you ready when it is. It is a nice compact unit filling that line between a tablet and laptop. Powerful, compact/light and energy efficient for everyday use I would recommend but it is a tad pricey especially if you add keyboard and a pen. There are more AI machines coming out every day. Also, I had Copilot rewrite the above and this is what it produced; • The tablet features an anodized aluminum case and a 13-inch OLED touchscreen with a 2880x1920 resolution and 120 Hz refresh rate. • It’s powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite CPU with an NPU (Neural Processing Unit). • The storage includes a 512GB Samsung NVMe Gen4 SSD, which can be upgraded via a magnetic door. • The tablet has 16GB LPDDR5X RAM, user-facing 1440p ultrawide camera, rear-facing 10-MP UHD camera, built-in microphone, and 2W Dolby Atmos speakers. • Connectivity options include USB-C (4.0), Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and a Surface Pro keyboard port. • It runs Windows 11 Home on ARM architecture. • The OLED screen supports HDR but is reflective due to Gorilla Glass 5. • The 3:2 aspect ratio is great for documents but may not be ideal for movies. Regarding compatibility, some x86-based software may not work on ARM architecture. Keep that in mind when installing applications. Overall, it’s a lightweight tablet with impressive performance and features! 😊📱
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 4 out of 5 stars
Amazing portability, power, and all day battery.
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.This tablet / laptop works great for a lot of things. I was skeptical at first being that it is an arm based product and historically windows on arm has been a little hit and miss. However after using this table for a bit as my non-gaming daily for over a week or so I have to say I am pleasantly surprised by the performance and reliability for “most” things that I have tried to do with it. I do software development, and for the most part that experience has been fairly painless and performance has been great. However there are some caveats to that. Programs that are not specifically made for arm run in an emulation mode (so x64 apps) and those apps do have some slight performance hits due to this translation layer. But during normal use those issues are mostly not noticeable at least for the applications I have been using. When it comes to down right application failures there have been a few applications that I was unable to install because they don’t offer an arm version and they would not install ( such as ARC browser which I use on Mac and my intel based windows machine) I also had an issue where an application would install fine but I could not activate it for some reason so I was unable to use it. For productivity software however those where the only two real examples of problems I had. I’ve also been really happy with battery life in normal use as I can get a full 12 hour day of work done and still have battery to spare without much of a worry at all. That’s nice compared to some other laptops I’ve tried to use for work in the past that left me scrambling for a place to plug in. Build quality and style wise, I really appreciate the simple clean design just the adjustable kickstand on the back and that blends in when you fold it down. That kickstand is amazing as well allowing me to use more angles than I ever thought I needed for different situations. The copilot+ stuff is cool if you have a use for it. I played around with the image co-creater features for a while and it really helped flesh out an idea I had been working on even though I am an awful artist. It’s nice to be able to prompt the system, start drawing and as you go it slowly improves the generated image. It’s a neat feature if you have a use for it and I’ll probably use it more in the future. The other really cool co-pilot plus feature I was not expecting to like so much was live captions. It was amazing to be able to watch a video in another language that did not have translations available and be able to understand what was going on. It’s surprisingly fast and super useful for some of the work I do. As for it’s accuracy I’m not totally sure on that front but it was close enough for me to get the information I needed without needing to refer to another source or person. As for all the other co-pilot+ features I’ve not had a lot of time to use or play with them so I don’t have much to say on those but overall I have been super happy with the experience and pleasantly surprised. Overall if you’re looking for a super portable and fairly quick computer to do work on this is shaping up to be a great choice overall. I’ve all but replaced my other travel electronics because this takes up less space and does the things I need it to without too much hassle. There is one note for all of this though, do not expect to be able to play games on this laptop/tablet. It’s not intended for that and the driver compatibility with games is very far from good. There are also several games that just won’t run at all because some kernel level anti-cheat systems don’t support ARM. I’m sure that will get better in the future but in reality that’s not what this computer is intended for anyway. I just wanted to make sure I included that in my review just in case someone was looking at it for that reason. The only real reason I was not able to give this a 5 star rating was the few issues I did have with software compatibility. I think after some time that issue will get better though.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Best Surface Tablet Yet
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.This is my third Surface tablet, coming from a Surface 7, so I was anxious to see how much this latest model with the new processor architecture would do. My first impression just on unboxing it was very good, as the color they call “Dune” is a very attractive silvery-gold that really pops and looks quite classy. It uses the same charger as my previous device with its own dedicated port on one side, leaving the two USB-C ports on the other side free for connection to various types of devices. These ports are listed as having charging capability for doing things like topping up your smartphone, earbuds, etc. An external display can also be driven from these versatile connections. When first powering it on, I was also wowed by the OLED screen, which is the best I’ve had on a device this size. Similar to most smartphones, Microsoft eases the initial setup of a new device like this by letting you select from the latest configuration backup of one of your other Windows devices, then initializes things to match and installs any apps that you have previously installed from the store. Also, as usual, there is a big initial mandatory software update that delayed my first real hands-on use of the product. From day one, Windows has always run on processors using the Intel x86 architecture, which has undergone massive changes and improvements over the years, but keeps everything compatible from generation to generation. This new line of products, however, runs on the Snapdragon X processor family based on the ARM architecture that is completely different from Intel’s designs. This is what I really wanted to evaluate from the standpoint of speed and compatibility. My first impressions were very good indeed. The tablet boots up so quickly that I can hardly see it doing the logon validation. I use face recognition to sign onto Windows. On my older Surface I see messages such as “Looking for you” as it does its processing before signing me in; on the new one I’m signed in before I can read any intermediate messages. Even though Windows provides some sort of “emulation layer” that allows apps written for the Intel CPUs to work on ARM CPUs, it is also possible (and preferred) to modify and build an ARM-specific version to maximize performance. The Edge browser is one such app, and it really screams. The main thing I noticed is that it launches instantly the way that you expect smartphone apps to do. I haven’t been able to do any meaningful tests on battery life, which is supposed to be a big advantage of the Snapdragon CPU, but I can definitely say that this tablet stays much, much cooler than my older Surfaces did. Less heat has got to mean less battery being chewed up! There have been reports of some Intel-based apps not running correctly if at all on the new architecture, especially some of the more complex, technical apps. One such app that I really wanted to use is a cycling simulator that connects to my indoor biking setup and lets me “ride” roads all over the world while collecting data and providing a realistic video feed of the riding experience, sometimes shared with people around the world. I was therefore very pleased to see that this app is working on the new tablet, although I did send them a suggestion that they should produce a specific ARM version that would further improve its performance. In general, I have not yet tried an app that did not run fine or not perform well on the new Surface. So far I’ve had only limited need for the new CoPilot+ AI features on this device. The specs for the NPU are certainly impressive (40 trillion operations per second!!) and I wanted to give it a try. So I used the smart pen that came with the keyboard to draw a very rough sketch of a bicycle in the Paint app and then played around with CoCreator+ to see what I could do with it. For just a couple minutes of tweaking, the results were impressive, and someone with more artistic talent could undoubtedly refine it much further. I’ve included the beginning and ending graphics with this review. In summary, this is probably the biggest upgrade in the history of the Surface line of products and is well worth considering as a new or replacement tablet. The improved performance potential going forward is huge.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Power and performance in an elegant package
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I've owned several Surface Pro tablets over the years. Each felt like a step forward in power and capability. This one, however, feels like more of an event. The addition of the new Snapdragon X processors not only handle nearly everything you throw at them, they do it without sacrificing battery life. Emulation of x86 apps feels seamless, and for the most part, not like they're being emulated at all. It also feels like many developers are on board as well, with many of the more popular apps already having native ARM apps. I'm anxiously awaiting to see what the addition of AI will do throughout Windows as well. Cocreator and Live Translate are nice additions, especially Live Translate. It's impressive to just play any video and see translations appear as you're watching. Cocreator is a neat addition, and I can see how it would be a useful tool, especially for conceptual work. Giving a rough description of what you're doing, then watching as it updates and matches your sketch is pretty impressive. ** Hardware ** Surface devices are often very well designed and elegant. The new Surface Pro is no exception. The Dune color is very nice in person. It's kind of a newer take on gold colors in usual devices. It pairs well with the Surface type covers too. Another huge addition to this model is the OLED screen. And man, does It look beautiful. The inky blacks of OLED are pretty tough to beat. It's a very welcome addition to the Surface Pro. The thickness, weight and kickstand all feel comfortable to use, with the kickstand working well and keeping its position. I used it while sketching in my lap and was able to comfortably draw without the need for constant readjustment. I've also found that, even under heavy workloads, the fans aren't overly loud. You'll hear them, but they don't come close to previous Surface devices I've used. Speaking of sound, the audio is also pretty impressive on the Surface Pro. Things were sounding clear in my time so far. I was kind of shocked at how loud the speakers can actually get too. ** Performance ** I've already mentioned the new processor. If you're only using the tablet as a web browser, or Office work, you'll still appreciate its performance, but I wanted to try and push it a bit harder. I have tried using it with many different apps and games, just to see how and if it will be noticeable if it's being emulated. Photoshop, having a native ARM app, works flawlessly, as expected. So, I tried to put it through its paces a bit more using Rebelle 7. They don't have a native ARM version yet, but honestly, I couldn't tell. I was able to sketch, using a few layers, without any trouble. One downside to the processor architecture is games. If you intend to do some gaming on the Surface Pro, it's still somewhat early days of compatibility. I have every confidence that it will improve, but I did have some trouble getting games to run. Some do run, and some run well. But, as of right now, things are still pretty early. ** Battery Life ** Along with the performance, the huge benefit of the Snapdragon X processors is they are very efficient. Battery life will easily last you all day. And this is without regard to what you're doing. Sketching, browsing, watching videos, coding, whatever. The battery life is very impressive. With pretty steady use throughout the day, taking notes, sketching and browsing the web, the battery was around 50% by the end of my day. I'm pretty sure I could make it on a couple of days without the need for a charge. I also don't seem to notice any of the way previous Surface Pros would lose a bit of battery in standby. It seems like it keeps its battery life while not in use. ** Pros ** Excellent performance, battery life, OLED screen, app compatibility, nice sounding audio ** Cons ** Game compatibility is still a work in progress, I wish the pen and type cover were included
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
My go to device!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I just started using the Microsoft Surface Pro with Copilot+ PCs. It brings in a new age of AI-powered productivity and creativity. Its advanced tech improves my experience with its incredible features and unmatched performance. The design and display is just out of this world as this Surface Pro offers stunning visuals that features a stylish design with a 13" PixelSense Flow OLED display and has a resolution of 2880 x 1920 pixels. I was amazed by looking at the OLED panel that provides a 1M:1 contrast ratio and supports a dynamic refresh rate of up to 120Hz, ensuring sharp details and seamless transitions. The laptop has a 165-degree fluid kickstand that can be used at different angles to allows hands free access and let me view the screen as needed. Lastly, the Dune color not only is different but enhances the looks to the next level. Let me tell you that the Snapdragon X Elite (12 core) Processor works like lightning to deliver exceptional performance, intelligence, and power efficiency. With 45 Trillion Operations Per Second of NPU power, this laptop is perfect for influencers like me who require fast processing speeds and multitasking capabilities. I do not have any concerns when it comes to process multiple things at the simultaneously. The two cameras one at the front and the other one at the back along with speakers are of decent quality. The front facing camera has face tracking and is utilized for Windows Hello facial recognition. Both the cameras takes good quality photos and video and works nicely for video conferencing as well. Not to forget the new optimized Windows 11, the Surface Pro has a all-new Start menu with improved connectivity options. As with everything these days, we can't ignore AI and this has AI-Enhanced features that incorporates AI throughout its functions, from the Surface Studio Camera with automatic framing to the Surface Slim Pen enhanced by AI. These features empower me to turn ideas into artwork with generative AI tools. The battery life is unbelievable as it easily last up to 14 hours which is not common for a laptop but this one easily surpass that expectation. For connectivity, this comes with two USB-C 4 ports and support for up to three 4K monitors at 60Hz, the Surface Pro ensures versatile connectivity for peripherals and external displays. Overall I'm absolutely loving it! This laptop has truly become my go-to device for everyday use.I'm also really impressed with the battery life. The screen is stunning, the audio is top-notch, the processor is lightning-fast, and the AI features are a game-changer. Plus, it's the perfect size for on-the-go use. If you're looking for a Windows laptop in a compact size and travel-friendly then this Surface Pro with Copilot+ is definitely worth considering. It's a game-changer for productivity and creativity.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
Pricey but worthy upgrade over the Surface Pro 9
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I have always been a fan of the Surface - it's a great hybrid tablet and tablet combo. Because I have a lot of familiarity with the Windows OS, it's nice having a full featured desktop OS in a portable tablet form. This means many of the application you use on a Windows desktop can be used with the Surface. Of course there are limitations given the specs if you're trying to run graphically intensive games like Microsoft Flight Simulator or Dragon Dogma 2. What Microsoft hyped about the Surface Pro is it being a Copilot+ PC. Personally I think those features are mostly nice to have; it's the hardware changes that's making the Pro 11 worthwhile. Gone from the 9 are in the Intel processors, the 11 uses a Snapdragon X processor and a Qualcomm Adreno as its GPU. What this means is that 10 is plenty fast and powerful. You can do some light gaming on it though you obviously won't be playing at higher resolutions. That said it is great for emulation of older titles. I wouldn't doubt that the Snapdragon contributes to a better battery life too given that the processor is geared more towards mobile devices. A disadvantage with the ARM architecture as opposed to the Intel one is that there are some applications that might not be that compatible though this isn't bad as it used to be. Speaking of battery life, it's an improvement over the the Surface 9. I swear from real world hours usage I was only getting like 5 hours on the 9. The battery drain on the 11 seems to be lesser so I'm able to get a little bit more maybe like 7 hours. When I say "real world usage" this is from browsing webpages and streaming videos without resulting to any battery saving measures. Microsoft claimed that the 9 could do 15.5 hours, but that was never what I usually experienced much like Microsoft claims of the 11 doing 14 hours. Design wise the Surface hasn't changed much with having all the similar ports from the Pro 8.... and still lacking a 3.5mm jack. I do wish the bezels were made a bit slimmer though. Of course the biggest difference is the OLED screen, which is fantastic. Combine the OLED screen with the native HDR support and you have a beautiful screen especially when you're viewing blacks. The camera and WiFi connectivity have been upgraded too as expected if you look at the specs. Front camera is 1440p(compared to 1080p on the 9), while the rear camera is 10 MP. WiFi 7 is supported and the supported Bluetooth version is 5.3. How are the Copilot+ features? Honestly they are not that great with what's currently. The 11 features a dedicated NPU chipset to Microsoft's Copilot. This allows features like the Live Captions app to provide real time translations if you're watching a video or having a video call with someone. Unfortunately for image creation like Paint(there's a Copilot button in it) and Windows 11's photo app, you have to be signed in online because the images are sent to Microsoft's Cloud servers to make sure it's "approved" to be shown to the user. All in all, the Surface Pro 11 is a nice upgrade over the 9 or a good starting point for someone who needs a tablet/laptop combo. It's pricey, but the hardware specs and OLED makes it worth owning even if the Copiot+ features aren't much to write about. Unfortunately, I can't give this a 4.5 star so I'll round the score up to a 5.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
If this fits your need, you will be very happy
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.The Surface Pro 11th edition is the latest edition in Microsoft’s attempt to move away from the traditional Intel or AMD based devices. This Surface Pro runs on the Qualcomm-based Snapdragon X Elite chip that benchmarks in line with Apple chips. What that means is that this is an ARM-based processor, so you need to make sure what running an ARM-based computer means. Your “normal” laptop runs off either and x86 or x64 architecture which are based on Intel and AMD. With this offering of the Snapdragon processor, normal Windows programs are emulated on this Surface. With the typical Windows apps that everyone loves and uses, it does an excellent job running those apps without lag. Office apps such as Word, Excel, and Powerpoint run like a champ. Adobe line of products such as Photoshop and Illustrator run fine. Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Brave web browser also run no issues. Every typical productivity and entertainment app runs well on the Surface Pro Snapdragon X processor without an issue. What you might have issues with is with peripheral devices that need drivers. Certain printers, audio interfaces, capture cards that need more than your standard Windows drivers might have compatibility issues rendering them useless. So, if you are thinking about purchasing a Surface Pro with the Snapdragon processor, remember the use case of this computer, a lightweight, thin, long lasting productivity and entertainment device and you will not be disappointed. If you are looking to do absolutely everything you once could do on a regular PC, you might want to do some research to find out if all your devices will work. Another interesting thing about this Surface Pro is the addition of a Neural Processing Unit (NPU) that helps the computer process Artificial Intelligence (AI) instructions faster. What this really means is that when you use the Copilot feature on these new Copilot+ PC it executes the AI tasks much faster than relying solely on the internet. The most impressive feature of having the NPU on board is the Live Translate feature. All too common you pull up a video on YouTube or some other source where you cannot understand the language. Pull up the Live Translate feature and you get real-time captioning in your preferred language. Another cool feature is CoCreator in Microsoft Paint. You can describe what you want to create and then start drawing a sketch and then the AI artistically produces what it thinks you were thinking. Using the CoPilot button, you can ask the AI to help you write a product description based on a picture of an item and it saves you an hour trying to write something meaningful. One problem with the CoPilot camera is that only the camera facing you works, not the back camera. Perhaps a software update will enable that feature someday. Is all the AI built into this Surface Pro a gimmick? Maybe, but it’s nice to have at your disposal if you need it.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friendRated 5 out of 5 stars
A new gold standard in laptops/tablets!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.The new Microsoft Surface Pro Copilot+PC OLED is a thing of beauty! This is clearly a big move forward in the future of laptops/tablets. Externally, it really doesn't differ much from previous Surface models. That's not a bad thing as Microsoft already had a good thing going with the design. The changes from previous models are under the hood. Most notably the new Snapdragon X Elite chip. This new ARM processor is a game changer. A lot of hype has been made of this chip and it delivers. Incredibly fast and the battery life is simply amazing. 12+ hours of use is not out of the question. You heard me right, A Windows laptop that can do 12+ hours! Not sure I ever thought I would see the day. Everything I have thrown at this chip has worked great. Web browsing, spreadsheets, videos (4K at that) all work fast and without hesitation. I was particularly interested in the Surface Pro as a portable Photoshop/Lightroom station that I could fit in my camera bag. I've tried other small & lightweight tablets and laptops for this use and they all have left a lot to be desired. Not the case here. I can honestly say the full Windows versions of Photoshop and Lightroom run very well. In fact, better than others I have tried that cost more. The new OLED screen (a Surface Pro first) is beautiful with accurate color. Copilot is of course a big selling point. I'm still new to it, but so far I'm impressed with the abilities of Copilot. It is really an all around assistant. Using it for information search has worked well. I'm getting the hang of using it for photos as well. I wasn't really sold on the use of AI until now. Copilot has shown me enough so far to see its great potential. It can do a ton already and it's still new. Downsides. Well, keep in mind this is an ARM based machine. That means there are still some programs that may not run natively. However, the emulator works so flawlessly that it's not much of an issue. The only issues it has caused for me so far is that a few of my favorite Photoshop plugins won't work. But, these are also older plugins so that isn't surprising. Not a deal breaker in any way. It should be obvious, but I should mention this is for productivity and creation. There are games that will work with the Surface Pro, but this is in no way a gaming machine. The Surface Pro 11 Copilot+PC has finally closed the gap between PC and tablet and has clearly shown that ARM is the future and that's a great thing. I couldn't recommend this more highly.
This review is from Microsoft - Surface Pro - Copilot+ PC - 13” OLED - Snapdragon X Elite - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - Device Only (11th Edition) - Dune
I would recommend this to a friend
Rating 4.1 out of 5 stars with 6 reviews
(6 Reviews)- Tom's HardwareRating, 4 out of 54.0Andrew E. Freedman on July 15, 2024
Microsoft Surface Pro (2024) review: Copilot+ flagship is beautiful, but AI features are shrug-worthyIt's the hardware, not the AI, that makes the new Surface Pro sing.
Full Review - WIREDChristopher Null on June 24, 2024
Microsoft Surface Pro 11Th Edition 2024Microsoft's latest 2-in-1 Surface delivers good performance (if you don't play any games) and excellent battery life, but it's way too expensive.
Full Review - PCWorldRating, 4 out of 54.0Mark Hachman on June 27, 2024
Microsoft Surface Pro (2024) review: A tantalizing glimpse of the futureMicrosoft's first Copilot+ tablet, the Surface Pro (2024) 11th Edition, kicks butt while plugged into the wall. But the race for performance can leave battery life and software compatibility wanting.
Full Review - Laptop MagRating, 3.5 out of 53.5Claire Tabari on June 27, 2024
Microsoft Surface Pro (11th Edition) review: Great, but is it $1,949 great?The Surface Pro should be less expensive
Full Review - T3Rating, 5 out of 55.0July 13, 2024
Microsoft Surface Pro 11th Edition review: a Surface slam dunkThe 11th Edition Surface Pro wins not only because of Microsoft's built quality, but Qualcomm's processor finesse
Full Review - cnet.com.auRating, 4.2 out of 54.2Lori Grunin on June 27, 2024
Microsoft Surface Pro 11 Review: Snapdragon and OLED DeliverWe've been waiting for decent Arm-on-Windows performance and for a screen upgrade, and together they've made the new Surface feel like a new tablet.
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