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kalex

macrumors 65816
Oct 1, 2007
1,336
56
Very impressed with the presentation. Even presentation looked better than Apple's one. Devices also look very very interesting. Phone, sp4 and book. All look good. All touch enabled and all running windows 10. Very interesting to see reviews
 
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LouisLoh

macrumors regular
Sep 26, 2010
235
1,322
I'm super enticed by the Surface Book/Surface Pro 4, but the Mac and iPad remain viable choices due to their operating systems.

My dream portable machine:
  • Surface Book 2-in-1 form factor including touchscreen + pen support
  • Size/weight/performance of a 12" MacBook
  • OSX with iOS apps
One can only dream, 'cos Apple will NEVER do that, for the sake of profits.....

I guess the closest would be a Surface Book hackintosh + iPad/iPhone for the iOS lovers.
 

tbayrgs

macrumors 604
Jul 5, 2009
7,467
5,097
I've only read a couple of quick announcements about the Surface Book and haven't seen any specifics regarding specs/pricing---has any of that info been announced?

My guess is $1499 doesn't get you a heck of a lot, that moderately spec'd models are closer to $1800-$2000. Anyone have links to more details?
 

LouisLoh

macrumors regular
Sep 26, 2010
235
1,322
Very impressed with the presentation. Even presentation looked better than Apple's one. Devices also look very very interesting. Phone, sp4 and book. All look good. All touch enabled and all running windows 10. Very interesting to see reviews

I have to admit, the Surface Book reveal was SO sleek..

The moment he called for a second viewing of the 'same' product video - it really out-Apple'd Apple on One More Thing...
 
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Robstevo

macrumors 6502
Jun 7, 2014
472
722
I have to admit, the Surface Book reveal was SO sleek.. The moment he called for a second viewing - it really out-Apple'd on One More Thing...
Indeed, their presentation today was better than anything google And apple have put out in years.

I wasn't expecting the screen to come off at all, I shouted holy s*** to myself, something I haven't done before when it comes to technology. Or at least I haven't in years.
 

LouisLoh

macrumors regular
Sep 26, 2010
235
1,322
Indeed, their presentation today was better than anything google And apple have put out in years.

I wasn't expecting the screen to come off at all, I shouted holy s*** to myself, something I haven't done before when it comes to technology. Or at least I haven't in years.

The thing is, we have seen this form factor before - the Lenovo Helix.

But hell.. How effective was this presentation (initial introduction as an unsuspecting laptop, then BANG). I was truly floored..

I can only imagine the excitement boiling within Panos when he had to stick to the laptop cover of the Surface Book during the first half of the presentation.
 

Will0827

macrumors regular
Aug 11, 2008
155
17
Its crazy that microsoft will have this device out before the iPad Pro and the macbooks didnt get updated to skylake, im sure the macbook pros will get a redesign next year but tim cook recently said they have no plans of hybridization for the OS's, so this kind of product doesnt seem to be in apples future. Due to the iPad pro and retina macbook.
 

Lobwedgephil

macrumors 603
Apr 7, 2012
5,792
4,757
Surface Book

128 GB Intel i5 8 GB 1,499.
256 GB Intel i5 8GB 1,699

256 GB Intel i5 8GB/dGPU 1,899
256 GB Intel i7 8 GB/dGPU 2,099
512 GB Intel i7 16 GB/dGPU 2,699
 

tbayrgs

macrumors 604
Jul 5, 2009
7,467
5,097
Surface Book

128 GB Intel i5 8 GB 1,499.
256 GB Intel i5 8GB 1,699

256 GB Intel i5 8GB/dGPU 1,899
256 GB Intel i7 8 GB/dGPU 2,099
512 GB Intel i7 16 GB/dGPU 2,699


Thanks, appreciate it.

And as I suspected, not cheap if you want moderate specs. Not saying it's not a spectacular looking device but you're shelling out some serious coin. A similarly spec'd top end 15" rMBP is $200 less. If you have a need for a stylus, I can certainly see why this is appealing but I'm still not a fan of Windows and not ready to trade OS X for it just yet.

Can't wait to read reviews. I really liked the phones though. Overall, pretty great day for Microsoft.
 

Kiwikat88

macrumors regular
Aug 16, 2015
249
384
Texas
This didn't make my SP4 vs IPP decision any easier. The SP4 configured the way I want it is $1300 and the IPP $1050 (w/pencil). The IPP is thinner, lighter, and has a bigger and higher res screen, albeit only slightly.

The SP4 is going to be a much better laptop than the IPP, but the IPP is likely going to be a much better tablet than the SP4. I think that is going to be the deciding factor for me. I already have an incredible laptop. I want an incredible tablet.
 

spinedoc77

macrumors G4
Jun 11, 2009
11,488
5,413
SICK!! I'm just amazed at what a trouncing Apple is taking on this, of course it probably won't affect their sales.

surface pro 4: Decent upgrade, I'll probably grab one just to burn money, but I'm not convinced it's worth it to upgrade from the SP3, especially seeing how the new keyboard works with the SP3. I disagree with Panos about the stylus needing to be stored, the magnetic solution isn't enough and people will still lose their styli, it needs a silo. My biggest disappointment is there is no 14" SP, sigh I was really really waiting for that (yes I know the surface laptop, but see my comments below). ipad pro? What is that?

surface laptop: insane, what an innovative company, and that's for a company not used to making hardware 5 years ago. I WISH they had a type cover for this and you could buy the hard keyboard separately as I'd rather have a larger tablet with type cover. It's just a wild laptop and the grumblings Apple hears about not having touchscreens on their laptops is about to become a deafening roar.

Lumia 950XL, holy crap, continuum is great, finally a full PC in my hand. Instead of going backwards like Apple, MS is going forward. That camera looks incredible. It's a bit boring with the polycarbonate back, but we get our removable battery and SD card back!!! I'm tied to google voice so it's going to be tough to make a decision, but if Google ever makes a GV app then I'm long gone. I'm impressed they fit all that into something the same size and thinness of the newest iphones, and that's with a larger and more dense screen. I was hoping for a "surface phone", vapor mag, kickstand, etc though, but I suppose it's not in the cards.

Hololens, jeez pretty incredible. I can't wait to have that experience in my living room.

Microsoft is running on all cylinders!!
 
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Will0827

macrumors regular
Aug 11, 2008
155
17
Thanks, appreciate it.

And as I suspected, not cheap if you want moderate specs. Not saying it's not a spectacular looking device but you're shelling out some serious coin. A similarly spec'd top end 15" rMBP is $200 less. If you have a need for a stylus, I can certainly see why this is appealing but I'm still not a fan of Windows and not ready to trade OS X for it just yet.

Can't wait to read reviews. I really liked the phones though. Overall, pretty great day for Microsoft.

The difference being in the the surface book using Skylake processors and the MBP's still using broadwell, i can't find anywhere whether the processors are dual core or quad core so the direct competitor for the surface book would be the 13" retina macbook, which if similarly spec'ed cost less but doesn't offer the dedicated graphics card.
 

spinedoc77

macrumors G4
Jun 11, 2009
11,488
5,413
This didn't make my SP4 vs IPP decision any easier. The SP4 configured the way I want it is $1300 and the IPP $1050 (w/pencil). The IPP is thinner, lighter, and has a bigger and higher res screen, albeit only slightly.

The SP4 is going to be a much better laptop than the IPP, but the IPP is likely going to be a much better tablet than the SP4. I think that is going to be the deciding factor for me. I already have an incredible laptop. I want an incredible tablet.

How do you figure? I think the biggest thing the ipp has is battery life, although we haven't seen any official benchmarks or comparisons. At first glance the SP4 pen looks better, but I don;'t think we have enough specs yet for a comparison. So far the SP4 looks like a much better tablet than the ipp, but I am too lazy to pull up all the specs and do a side by side.
 

Kiwikat88

macrumors regular
Aug 16, 2015
249
384
Texas
How do you figure? I think the biggest thing the ipp has is battery life, although we haven't seen any official benchmarks or comparisons. At first glance the SP4 pen looks better, but I don;'t think we have enough specs yet for a comparison. So far the SP4 looks like a much better tablet than the ipp, but I am too lazy to pull up all the specs and do a side by side.

If you compare them specs-wise, the SP4 might have superior processing power (not sure how well you can actually compare them due to the architecture differences, iOS vs W10, etc.), but the IPP has countless tablet-optimized applications, with more to come. Thinness and lightness also give the IPP the upper hand. Most people I know with SP3 complain about its usefulness as a tablet due to availability of apps. I've not heard anything good about the MS software keyboard either. I did not see anything today with SP4 that would drastically improve on those complaints. It is likely the number of MS tablet apps will increase though with the new hardware announced today, so it could change...
 

rmsanger

macrumors regular
Jul 23, 2014
119
27
Not going to lie, it definitely feels like MS just dropped the mic on both Apple and Microsoft this morning. And that's good. Healthy competition is a good thing for whatever products/companies everyone supports.

does one simply just drop the mic on themselves?
 

jamezr

macrumors P6
Aug 7, 2011
16,077
19,076
US
If you compare them specs-wise, the SP4 might have superior processing power (not sure how well you can actually compare them due to the architecture differences, iOS vs W10, etc.), but the IPP has countless tablet-optimized applications, with more to come. Thinness and lightness also give the IPP the upper hand. Most people I know with SP3 complain about its usefulness as a tablet due to availability of apps. I've not heard anything good about the MS software keyboard either. I did not see anything today with SP4 that would drastically improve on those complaints. It is likely the number of MS tablet apps will increase though with the new hardware announced today, so it could change...
The thing about IPP is that it only has one port. You can't charge the IPP and connect it to anything else....not even the Pencil. I was dead set on getting the IPP after the Keynote until I looked at my use cases. I want to be able to hook it up to a monitor and use it as a semi desktop replacement sometimes. Not my main function of course but occasionally. The SP4 just offers a ton more functionality and options.
 

Oohara

macrumors 68040
Jun 28, 2012
3,050
2,423
From a pure design perspective I'm almost getting chills here... Because this is the first time in years that it feels like someone is actually breathing life into the Microsoft brand.

The Surface Book looks great, IMO finally a laptop that's on par with Apple's level of design. And I love how they manage to maintain the business edge while reaching a level of cool which is that tiny bit more scifi than the Apple design ethos.

I also actually really like this ad. Much more crisp than Apple's smarmy clips:


All I can say is YAY, competition! Looking forward to seeing where this goes.

Also I want a Surface Book :oops:
 

Leonard1818

macrumors 68020
Nov 15, 2011
2,460
403
I was really scoping the surface pro 3 since they dropped the price a bit... but then I saw the iPad pro and was wow'd. Today, I decided that I will be getting either a surface pro 4 or the surfacebook as my next machine (literally my first brand new computer that I've bought, ever).
 
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spinedoc77

macrumors G4
Jun 11, 2009
11,488
5,413
If you compare them specs-wise, the SP4 might have superior processing power (not sure how well you can actually compare them due to the architecture differences, iOS vs W10, etc.), but the IPP has countless tablet-optimized applications, with more to come. Thinness and lightness also give the IPP the upper hand. Most people I know with SP3 complain about its usefulness as a tablet due to availability of apps. I've not heard anything good about the MS software keyboard either. I did not see anything today with SP4 that would drastically improve on those complaints. It is likely the number of MS tablet apps will increase though with the new hardware announced today, so it could change...

Ahh the old app argument. It all boils down to how you use your tablet I suppose. If it's more of a consumption device then yes apps make a difference. This was broken down before and others were very hard pressed to come up with apps that are not also on windows in some shape or form. Certainly there m ay be quality differences, and of course UI differences, but the chasm was nowhere near as wide as many make it out to be. But once again I'm not disagreeing, it all depends on how you use the device. For my uses it's a MUCH better tablet than any ipad, no comparison.

MS software keyboard is about the same as ios, better in some aspects IMO with things like swipe for numbers. Thinness and lightness, definitely important but once again you make the decision to lose functionality for thinness and lightness so that's a personal thing. I never noticed my SP3 was heavy or thick though and have a hard time imagining why people have an issue with it. Are they really holding it up at arms length to read it? Don't a persons arms weigh MUCH more than the tablet itself?
 
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tbayrgs

macrumors 604
Jul 5, 2009
7,467
5,097
The difference being in the the surface book using Skylake processors and the MBP's still using broadwell, i can't find anywhere whether the processors are dual core or quad core so the direct competitor for the surface book would be the 13" retina macbook, which if similarly spec'ed cost less but doesn't offer the dedicated graphics card.

Sure, but I believe rumors point to updated MacBooks this quarter as well and they'll likely be priced the same as they are now. And according to those previously posted prices, you don't get discreet graphics until the $1899 price point--about $400 more than similarly priced MBP. Of course personal needs will dictate if that's worth the extra cost.
 

zhenya

macrumors 604
Jan 6, 2005
6,931
3,681
I just can't get over how nearly every one of my hopes has been filled by one or both of these devices.

The SP4 can be configured from a Core-M entry level device that'd be a great stand-alone tablet, to a core -7/16GB/1TB.

The keyboard and trackpad on the type cover look to be massively improved in just the ways I've been hoping (better keys, and some physical space between them to help locate the keys better, bigger track pad, etc.)

Bigger screen in a 3:2 aspect ratio paired with a REAL keyboard and trackpad, not to mention the option of a dedicated GPU!

Replaceable tips for the stylus. And (hopefully, since not all photos show this) a pencil-like stylus that is more comfortable in the hand.

Finally, other than the totally unrealistic Chromebook Pixels, what other laptop can you get that is in anything other than 16:9 or if you are lucky, 16:10? 3:2 on a 14" notebook? How many years have we been waiting for these manufacturers to come to their senses?

The only thing they didn't say anything about is reducing screen glare - the SP3 is REALLY bad in this regard. I hope they've fixed that as well.
 

Leonard1818

macrumors 68020
Nov 15, 2011
2,460
403
Microsoft has done an amazing job with these products. I'm most excited about the SP4 and SB... I think they nailed it w/the presentation too. I'm not a gamer but the Hololens looks incredible.

People complain about lack of innovation around here (MacRumors). I don't think that could be said about anything in this Microsoft unveiling. Microsoft, like it or not, is truly innovative.
 
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