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Tablets anyone here have experiance with the surface 2?

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isephmusic

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 31, 2012
416
0
has anyone owned or had experiance with it outside of the store ? im on my ipad air for 4 days now and cant really see how i can fit it into my studies... with no keyboard typing any assignments is a pain and i go back to my macbook for it. the facebook app sucks so much on the ipad so i just load the desktop site... a lot of people were saying the ipad is just a toy and i would be happier with a surface ( office suite pre installed for free) and it has sd card slot for 64gb memory.... on top of the 32gb being 450$ vs ipad air 16gb 499 lol

i know the screen and battery are going to be worse and apart from that im not really seeing where the ipad would suit me more for college/productivity point of view. suggestions ?
 
C

Conan86

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2012
353
156
Singapore
There are keyboards available for the iPad if that's what you need..

My recommendation would be to just get a real laptop
 
S

sleepyking

macrumors 6502
Oct 5, 2012
473
66
I had the Surface RT and then the Pro.
Personally like it better than the iPad, or to be more accurate more than iOS.

But everyone's got their own opinion. I'm currently heavily invested in iOS and didn't use the Pro for what I thought I would, so I went back to iPad for basic browsing and iTunes stuff.

Also hear Nokia is working on an 8" tablet for early next year. That may be really appealing
 
T

terrywfoster

macrumors 6502
Jun 15, 2009
283
251
I have a Surface Pro, 1st gen. It took 4 days till I tossed it in the desk drawer. Haven't touched it since.
 
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isephmusic

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 31, 2012
416
0
the way i see it here are my options

surface pro 2- 999 (128 gigs standard )

ipad air + 13inch macbook (2013 oct )- 1900

ipad mini +15inch mac (1599 refurb + 530 16gb lte model ipad mini retina = 2129)

my classic 2012 15' sold for $1300 so i have that plus like 500 cash to spend total. whats the best path for me if portability is a concern and preformance needed would be to play league of legends and Photoshop pictures/ run ableton
 
Scuba-EMT

Scuba-EMT

macrumors regular
Apr 19, 2010
162
3
Solomons Island, MD
I think the real question is what is your computing ecosystem? If you're 100% Apple (Mac, IPad, IPhone, iPod) then you are going to hate trying to bring Windows 8 into your mix, however if you are mixed or heavy into the Microsoft side, you may not care about the cloud and mail/music/calendar syncing....
 
macduke

macduke

macrumors G5
Jun 27, 2007
13,480
20,587
I used a first gen iPad and later iPad 2 while finishing out college. Of course I had my MacBook Pro when doing actual design work for class and clients, but for taking notes (used this app that recorded the lecture while I typed and if I missed something I could scrub through the text to find the associated audio). In my more intense classes I would use the Apple Bluetooth keyboard, but in my slower-paced lectures I would tap out some notes on the keyboard or just sit in the back and play games. Also used it to make sketches for design class. Found a couple books for class that I was able to buy on there but many weren't available. Overall it worked out pretty well, though people thought I was a weirdo, especially using it in Spring 2010 semester. Some people made fun of me saying it's just a big iPod Touch. They were just jealous. Now I work at a university and see them everywhere I go.
 
Krazy Bill

Krazy Bill

macrumors 68030
Dec 21, 2011
2,985
3
isephmusic said:
the way i see it here are my options

surface pro 2- 999 (128 gigs standard )

ipad air + 13inch macbook (2013 oct )- 1900

ipad mini +15inch mac (1599 refurb + 530 16gb lte model ipad mini retina = 2129)

my classic 2012 15' sold for $1300 so i have that plus like 500 cash to spend total. whats the best path for me if portability is a concern and preformance needed would be to play league of legends and Photoshop pictures/ run ableton
Click to expand...
I have a Surface Pro 2. Plus, I've been using my wife's iPad Air as I set it up for her.

I love the Surface. It lets me interact with the real world (i.e., the job that pays the bills). The iPad Air is compact, well engineered and much lighter but honestly... compared to my Surface it doesn't do anything worthwhile and I have to jump through too many hoops.

And don't listen to people who tell you to get a bluetooth keyboard for your iPad. Your arms will fall off after a while just reaching for the display. The surface has a trackpad (though not on the same level as we're used to on our macs).

Never understood why people throw so much money into an iPad and accessorize it when for about the same cost an 11" MacBook Air is within reach.
 
G

g808

macrumors regular
Oct 6, 2003
192
0
Bay Area, CA
As many would say it depends on what you need to use. I tried a Surface 2 and it's a great device, but I couldn't use it for my everyday work environment. My company doesn't allow the Surface to connect to their mobile Exchange server for email, and there's no WebEx support yet. Office works great and the multi-tasking side-by-side is nice. Coupled with the keyboard it's a great mobile device if the apps you need on a daily basis are supported. I personally wouldn't want a Surface 2 Pro because the battery life still doesn't seem to be there yet for a mobile device like that.

On the other hand, all the basic apps I need for mobile computing is supported on the iPad (work and personal email, real Jabber and WebEx). I don't need Office or any desktop apps on a tablet as I use the tablet as a supplemental mobile device.
 
I

isephmusic

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 31, 2012
416
0
so far we have one person who really got off well with the surface and one that said all he needed was an ipad. for school and productivity this 16gb ipad air is only at 2gb free after 3 games, the iwork and ilife thing that comes free now and polaris office ( my work around no microsoft office suite )

so obviously i can either get a really good laptop (15inch mbp) and a small tablet or something that tries to do both like a surface pro with 128gb of storage and 64 more on the micro sd. the last option is a semi good laptop (13inch mpb ) and a portable device like the retina mini comming our or the air that is still in my 14 day period of return...

i dont DJ anymore so i stopped using my 15inch macbook for professional things. now i just play league of legends and mess around ableton live. i started focusing on school (marketing major) and just want something i can take with me on trains, carry to library ect.
 
M

Macalway

macrumors 601
Aug 7, 2013
4,189
2,937
Since you ask.....:D

Awesome device. I own one. It's a TANK, but has the same quality as Apple stuff

You kind of have to own one to know. Also, I got mine for a huge discount and never would have paid retail initially, but after owning it.... Not sure

Anyway, it's heavy, very powerful, silent, and beautifully designed

Kudos MS

(It's Apple/Oranges, so take no offense )

Correction: it's not 'heavy' actually. It's actually rather light. It's just that we are seeing some very light fanless stuff. You have to put it into perspective
 
Last edited:
Ledgem

Ledgem

macrumors 68020
Jan 18, 2008
2,042
936
Hawaii, USA
Macalway said:
Kudos MS

(It's Apple/Oranges, so take no offense )
Click to expand...
I agree with this. The Surface is a really beautiful device. The problem with it is that it's something of a hybrid between a laptop and a tablet, and yet it gets compared to straight tablets (as defined by the iPad and Android tablets). As a pure tablet, it's not that great. The battery life can't compare and it's heavier. It has more potential than just that, but the potential is overlooked because that's not what most people are using their tablets for.

I use my iPad mini for work. Remote desktop, presenting Keynote presentations made on my Mac, note-taking applications, information lookup through dedicated app... it's all there. This is not a gaming device or a "toy." A Surface could probably perform those same functions, but the weight and relative lack of battery life make it a no-go for me. It doesn't help that it doesn't nicely integrate into the Apple ecosystem, either.

Honestly, if I were a college student today then the Surface would be a very compelling device. It can function as your primary system, yet it's portable and tablet-y enough to be used in that ultra mobile tablet-like fashion. It doesn't particularly excel at either, but when you don't have the luxury of storage space or money then it'll do quite nicely. On the other hand, if you already have a Mac system and an iPad then the two make for a very compelling combination that can accomplish quite a bit. It's personal preference.
 
E

erawsd

macrumors 6502
Jul 1, 2011
279
0
For school I wouldn't recommend an iPad or Surface. Do yourself a huge favor and get a real PC.

Surface Pro is ok, but its too expensive for what you get. It starts at $899 for the cheapest model, which doesn't come with the keyboard cover (+ $119) and only has around 32GB of usable space. For that amount of money you could get yourself an 11" Air with has ~115GB of usable space, a real keyboard, and better battery life.
 
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ibuyufo

macrumors 6502
Sep 22, 2007
324
76
I have a surface RT and love this thing! It's like the jack of all trade being able to do almost everything. I can use it to remote desktop if needed. I can use the keyboard to actually type in word or work in excel. I can watch a movie while I'm doing other stuff. The act of switching back and forth between apps seems so outdated the way apple is doing it It also has a built in kickstand! I thought this thing was a gimmick but it's very useful!
Tonight I bought my wife an iPad air. It's really nice and lightweight but I can't imagine how it would be in the same league as the surface in terms of productivity. The surface 2 with the new keyboard should be a nice improvement over the 1st generation.
 
tbayrgs

tbayrgs

macrumors 604
Jul 5, 2009
7,467
5,097
If what you're doing on your laptop now isn't too intensive, why not look at a 13" MacBook Air? No it doesn't have the retina display but you'll see ridiculous battery life and pretty good performance in the new models with the Haswell CPUs--the upgraded 13" model even fairs favorably to the 13" MBP w/retina, all in a more portable form factor. Keep an eye on the refurbished section (only watch for July 2013 models if you want the best battery life) and you can also save $200-$300. Apple refurbs are stellar, come with full warranty. With your budget, you could get both a MBA and later a Retina iPad Mini (for more leisurely use).
 
ChrisTX

ChrisTX

macrumors 68030
Dec 30, 2009
2,686
54
Texas
comatose81 said:
What kind of answer do you think you'll get on an Apple forum?
Click to expand...

This is the " Alternatives to iOS and iOS Devices" forum, plenty of people here use other non Apple devices. Have you not noticed any of the other threads in this part of the forum?
 
spinedoc77

spinedoc77

macrumors G4
Jun 11, 2009
11,488
5,413
isephmusic said:
has anyone owned or had experiance with it outside of the store ? im on my ipad air for 4 days now and cant really see how i can fit it into my studies... with no keyboard typing any assignments is a pain and i go back to my macbook for it. the facebook app sucks so much on the ipad so i just load the desktop site... a lot of people were saying the ipad is just a toy and i would be happier with a surface ( office suite pre installed for free) and it has sd card slot for 64gb memory.... on top of the 32gb being 450$ vs ipad air 16gb 499 lol

i know the screen and battery are going to be worse and apart from that im not really seeing where the ipad would suit me more for college/productivity point of view. suggestions ?
Click to expand...

It depends on what you need, if you need the windows ecosystem then a windows tablet is the way to go, but NOT the surface 2. It always amazes me how so many people miss the Atom powered tablets. They complain that the surface 2 doesn't run full windows programs, or they complain that the surface Pro 2 is too expensive, thick and heavy, but the Atom powered ones solve all of those problems.

You can get the Asus T100, for example, which comes with a keyboard dock making it act pretty darn close to a laptop for freakin $399, that's nuts. It's a FULL windows tablet where you can run any windows program you like, yes including photoshop, games, etc. It's got a USB port so you can hook up whatever you like to it. Battery life is very comparable to an ipad so no worries there. Screen is overhyped IMO, windows cleartype does a great job and you don't notice it's lower res. It also comes with Office 2013 included for that $399.

You should see more Atom tablets come out very soon for this holiday season. Make sure you look into the current generation called Baytrail and stay away from last years models.
 
C

comatose81

macrumors 6502a
Dec 17, 2009
585
0
ChrisTX said:
This is the " Alternatives to iOS and iOS Devices" forum, plenty of people here use other non Apple devices. Have you not noticed any of the other threads in this part of the forum?
Click to expand...

That's not where it was originally.
 
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