Microsoft surface 4 , to buy or not.

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#1743177 18-Mar-2017 10:14

Noel Leeming currently has 15% off Surface Pro 4 with 12 months interest free incase anyone is looking..

http://products.noelleeming.co.nz/search?w=surfpro4supp&view=grid&utm_source=Facebook&utm_campaign=surfpro4supp

Do whatever you want to do man.

Hammerer

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#1743220 18-Mar-2017 11:50

We've got two Surface Pro 3s (i5 4/128GB, i7 8/512GB) for university use. I'd buy a second-hand 3 rather than a new 4, given that most people don't need high-end processing power and there is a significant price differential between the two models.

The reliability and design issues are much more of a problem with the Surface Pro 1 and 2.

I was originally sceptical about (actually very anti) the Surface Pro because I thought it had insufficient utility at a high price. But when we looked at competing products from HP, Lenovo, Toshiba, Dell, etc. we found that we preferred the Surface Pro. The Surface Pro form factor and design features have largely won in the market which is why, for example, Lenovo dropped their Helix line in favour of a Surface-like model. Buying second-hand mitigated the price-performance issue for me.

loceff13

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#1743334 18-Mar-2017 14:39

They are nice units but after buying a keyboard/pen/cover etc you are better off buying them an ultrabook for the $1800 etc imo.

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#1743422 18-Mar-2017 16:41

If you want to use it as a laptop don't buy this. If you want to use it as a tablet, but this. Simple.

Trouble with these things is they are top heavy ... not very ergonomic keyboard (no weight on it, all the weight is on the screen), trackpad too small.

That's me though.

JaseNZ

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#1743426 18-Mar-2017 16:45

Still love my pro 4 , been 5 months for me. over the top for what i use it for but meh love it.

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blackjack17

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#1743427 18-Mar-2017 16:45

sidefx:
MikeB4: Very good device however with the keyboard attached it is not as lap friendly as a traditional notebook.

This. I still use my surface pro 1 frequently for content consumption, but I found if I want to use it for real productivity type work, in my case software dev, a bluetooth keyboard\mouse (actually I just have a cheap logitech set with usb receiver) works a lot better than the flip keyboard cover, and then I use it at a table\desk, sometimes with an external screen. If you want something to do productivity type work literally on your lap, a surface is not great; but for pretty much everything else I found it really good.

For the OPs usage "Use is just for home on the couch pretty much , Video's and browsing etc" I'd say the surface is pretty much perfect though... EDIT: Though indeed the model you've linked does seem like overkill for this usage! :)

You can't really compare a surface pro 1 with a 4. Using my wife's old 2 was horrible compared with my pro 3. And the difference between the pro3 key board and pro 4 keyboard is considerable. It is just so much nicer to type on.

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Taubin

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#1743671 19-Mar-2017 08:19

How are you finding the Pro 4 for lap use? I'm weighing my options. I'd love to have a convertable for taking notes and using it at the library, but most of the time it would be on my lap watching videos and browsing the web.

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Dingbatt

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#1744629 20-Mar-2017 16:44

loceff13:
They are nice units but after buying a keyboard/pen/cover etc you are better off buying them an ultrabook for the $1800 etc imo.

The units I was looking at were on special for $934 at JBHiFi (Core M3 4GB/128GB SSD) without the pen. Add the pen at full retail for $109 and the keyboard at $240 (and quoted less as I'm buying two) and it is well below $1800. Since they are only for uni, the $1250 price tag started to appeal, and brought it into line price wise with it's direct competition (basically clones) from Acer, Lenovo, etc and some of the 360 degree hinged convertibles from the likes of Dell. Some of the convertibles don't seem to have full Wacom digitizers and lack palm rejection features, and the clones lacked expansion slots or ports or (according to reviews) had compromised battery life.
While a lot of the work generated from the machines will be typed, I do like the ability to handwrite or annotate using the stylus. I have seen videos of some reasonably impressive demonstrations of what can be achieved using MS OneNote on a Surface Pro. While I recognise OneNote is available on any PC (or Android or Apple product), it seems to be optimised for the Surface.

I have read some reports of our reliability when initially released, but that seems to have gone quiet. Any feedback on specific reliability issues would be appreciated.

And I can definitely see that they would not fit as comfortably on your lap as a conventional laptop.

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dafman

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#1744724 20-Mar-2017 18:55

Taubin:

How are you finding the Pro 4 for lap use? I'm weighing my options. I'd love to have a convertable for taking notes and using it at the library, but most of the time it would be on my lap watching videos and browsing the web.

No, don't do it. I'm typing this on a SP4 on my lap and it ain't a great experience. If it's a lap, you want a laptop.

dafman

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#1744727 20-Mar-2017 19:00

Per my post above, I would not recommend the SP4 for lap use. It's great on a table, but just not comfortable on the couch.

On reliability, I opened a post some months back urging people not to buy the SP4 due to unreliable performance. I'm pleased to say that, following numerous firmware updates, the last few months have been issue free, so it looks like MS have got on top of their SP software issues (though it took them long enough).

JayADee

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#1745067 21-Mar-2017 09:44

dafman:
Per my post above, I would not recommend the SP4 for lap use. It's great on a table, but just not comfortable on the couch.

On reliability, I opened a post some months back urging people not to buy the SP4 due to unreliable performance. I'm pleased to say that, following numerous firmware updates, the last few months have been issue free, so it looks like MS have got on top of their SP software issues (though it took them long enough).

Except my pen. :(

JaseNZ

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#1745079 21-Mar-2017 09:53

Yeah I have the same issue on my SP4 , the pen sometimes for no reason disconnects. I just give a quick un-clip battery wise and re-twist and brings it back. Does not happen all that often but then again I only use it at home in the evenings.

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Guv

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#1745085 21-Mar-2017 09:57

I have the i7 512Gb 16Gb model and its awesome.

Was not good when first came out, there were issues with external screens but all of that appears to be behind us now.

Would buy again.

timmmay

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#1745088 21-Mar-2017 10:01

Guv:

Was not good when first came out, there were issues with external screens but all of that appears to be behind us now.

Mine's still not good. Every time I boot it knows which monitor is primary, but always puts the controls on the other screen. I have to set it to my secondary screen then my main screen to get it going.

When it wakes from sleep windows move around.

IMHO it's an ok laptop for anyone who needs an ultra portable, but its a rubbish desktop and a rubbish tablet.

dafman

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#1745242 21-Mar-2017 15:55

JayADee:
dafman:

Per my post above, I would not recommend the SP4 for lap use. It's great on a table, but just not comfortable on the couch.

On reliability, I opened a post some months back urging people not to buy the SP4 due to unreliable performance. I'm pleased to say that, following numerous firmware updates, the last few months have been issue free, so it looks like MS have got on top of their SP software issues (though it took them long enough).

Except my pen. :(

I've never used the pen, on either my previous SP3 Pro or my current SP4 Pro.

So am curious ...

JayADee and Mspec - what programs do you put the pen to use?

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