Microsoft Enters Laptop Market With Surface Book

[dthx]

It's not everyday that you see a truly innovative design in the laptop area. Kudos for Microsoft for trying this !
As for the price, of course it's dead expensive, but it's not worse than Apple's pricing scheme while Microsoft's target is probably somewhat different than what Apple achieves with the Macbooks.
Microsoft is not traditionally a hardware vendor although they do it on several occasions. I think that this computer is more a proof of concept of an ideal Windows 10 computer. Microsoft has probably no intention to frustrate or compete with his good customers, the OEMs. The Surface book is a trigger. If this product achieves respectable sales figures, it will demonstrate to the OEM's (who are now exploring the pixel book and chromebook areas) that they can remain confident in Window 10's wow factor and that producing quality products and going for original designs pays off (vs most of the half baked and metoo products we see those last years).

 

[Ed Chombeau]

I like my Samsung 13.3" Ultrabook; it was just under $1,000 in 2013. Now, I would need a 15.4" version ; We take laptops traveling; need something closer to a desktop replacement and this would do fine , My old eyes need the biggest and best display available. Integrated graphics are just fine ,and with a 256 SSD; is all I would need. ----i don';t game or download movies, just post travel photo's and watch internet sports live;----- my wife would do her Print and Photoshop -----and use external storage. Looking to 2016/17 to buy--probably the next generation will be out then?

 

[chicofehr]

I hope they don't screw it up like the zune. The surface products are some really nice hardware. Microsoft has some really good hardware products but they need to make sure their suits don't screw it again.

 

[realnoize]

How strange, and the price is a bit high who do they think they are Apple? That's right they want to be Apple I forgot.

Find me another product available right now that has all the features of the SB in the same size and weight and quality of chassis that sells for less. It's ok, I'll wait.

Well, I agree that if you care about ALL the features it has to offer, there's no other thing out there featuring them all. But then again, if you don't care about some features, its price makes it way too high compared to alternatives.

For instance, about two years ago, I bought a Yoga 2 Pro, which was about, more or less, as powerful as the entry level SB. Paid about $1000 for it. Now the only things that would interest me in the SB is the stylus and the integrated Nvidia GPU (even if we still don't know which one is it). So living in Canada, I'd have to pay at least $2500 for the middle of the road version, which is $1500 more than the Yoga 2 Pro I've bought. Does the integrated GPU and pen input worth paying $2500 for ($1500 more than the Yoga 2 Pro)???

If I can live without the Nvidia GPU, the regular Surface pro 4 (or even an older Surface pro 3) would be ok. And I'd save about $1000.

If I can live without the pen input, I can probably get a much more powerful laptop with a better Nvidia GPU in it for a lot less.

So I agree that there's only, for the moment, a single device that has all of this. And it seems like a very great one too. But the price, especially in Canada ($2000 for the base version), makes it very, very difficult to consider as a potential buy.

 

[littleleo]

Your imagination is telling you that MS is telling that notebooks are dead. MS is actually telling that Windows is OS for all form factors, from IoT to HolloLens, with everything in between.

No the MS commercials on TV told me the SP was the notetbook killer that is why I find it so amusing they are making a notebook.

So you can not imagine SP3 user who would like to have dGPU while he is docked to the bigger screen. I have SP3 and I would really like that, while I have no use of dGPU without big screen, keyboard and mouse. You see, while OEMs and resellers have no vision, MS have.

Well that isn't what this is the screen stays the same size when it detaches from the keyboard and the killer 1GB dGpu. It doesn't dock with a bigger screen or magically increase in size, but that would be cool if it did.

How hard is to imagine a potential buyer who likes everything about SP3/4 but keyboard or simply needs more power. How hard is to imagine ultra book user who would like to detach screen for browsing or reading comics?

Hey if you are spending $700+ on a tablet I would think you just about love all the features on it or why spend that much on it? And if you want to use said $700 tablet to read comics more power to you bud, I'm a little cheaper I'll use a less expensive way to read them when I'm in the mood to.

With that said, SB is not "one size fits all" product. It just adds diversity to windows offering. It doesn't kill anything but it looks like a great product.

I agree like their tablet it doesn't kill anything but adds to the options for buyers.

 

[surphninja]

Seriously, what is up? The past few months there's been a serious uptick in Microsoft die-hard, apple-level zealots on these boards going through every single Microsoft article and down voting every single criticism, and calling everybody liars for pointing it out.

Is Microsoft paying people to monitor tech forums now? Because the uptick seemed to coincide with the Windows 10 testing and release.

 

[littleleo]

Strange isn't it, you make a comment and your a hater, lol.

 

[mrmotion]

Love this little guy. Plan on picking up one soon. This will be great for meetings and when im on the road. The added GPU horsepower was what I was waiting for from something this size.

Side note: Funny phones are getting bigger again and laptop/notebooks are getting smaller...

 

[littleleo]

Love this little guy. Plan on picking up one soon. This will be great for meetings and when im on the road. The added GPU horsepower was what I was waiting for from something this size.

Side note: Funny phones are getting bigger again and laptop/notebooks are getting smaller...

Its like a circular thing the 1st model mobile phones were big then they got smaller and smaller until the iPhone came out and now they are getting bigger and bigger again.

 

[woodscrews]

not bad, now give me it in 15" with a nice red nipple and 3 physical buttons to go with it

 

[g-unit1111]

Love this little guy. Plan on picking up one soon. This will be great for meetings and when im on the road. The added GPU horsepower was what I was waiting for from something this size.

Side note: Funny phones are getting bigger again and laptop/notebooks are getting smaller...

True, I used the new Macbook last night and I felt like I could have broken it just by typing on it. :lol:

 

[EWDB]

I find the idea of Windows having to be cheap really strange. The hardware is what determines the price and some people need more power, therefore some devices will be more expensive. The comment posted in the Community Roundup “It's premium, sure, but very expensive for a Windows laptop” is in my opinion inane and demonstrates a total lack of awareness of the broader IT market.

This device is clearly not meant for the average consumer, it would be totally wasted on many of my friends and family. However, Microsoft has a range of devices from the less expensive Surface 3 up to the Surface book, each aimed at a different customer base. Believe it or not plenty of folks, besides artists and gamers, need high spec devices.

I think Microsoft’s strategy is spot on, it is basically exactly what I was expecting, ditching the i3 processor in favour for a Core M, while retaining the i5 and i7 specs and the inclusion of a more beefy device (although I did not expect the Surface Book – which is awesome!). Microsoft's strategy clearly points towards a divergent market where we have fewer devices which each do more. I can fully see that in the next couple of years I will go from several devices (Phone, Tablet, Smart TV, PC, and games console, down to only two or three devices) ultimately this will be good for my pocket and good for the environment.

 

[sirsanio]

Microsoft took things to a whole new level with a brand-new device that the company has never produced before: a laptop, dubbed the Surface Book.

Microsoft Enters Laptop Market With Surface Book : Read more

Somehow everybody is missing the point of the device, only looking at the $$$
I see it as the first real business laptop that can actually fully function as a tablet as well without performance drops.
You pay the price of a workstation laptop (if you fully spec it out) but you get more out of it.
In my profession (Architecture) we need to be able to work our productivity software with ease.
That requires a powerful processor, 16GB ram, a ssd and a dedicated graphics card.
This hybrid device has all that AND you can also use it as a tablet, by folding or detaching.
There is no other device currently on the market that offers this function at the same performance level.
Is it a niche device? sure. Is it pricey? definitely.
But if you need performance and want the option of a well functioning tablet as well, this is great and worth the investment.

 

[littleleo]

Microsoft took things to a whole new level with a brand-new device that the company has never produced before: a laptop, dubbed the Surface Book.

Microsoft Enters Laptop Market With Surface Book : Read more

Somehow everybody is missing the point of the device, only looking at the $$$
I see it as the first real business laptop that can actually fully function as a tablet as well without performance drops.
You pay the price of a workstation laptop (if you fully spec it out) but you get more out of it.
In my profession (Architecture) we need to be able to work our productivity software with ease.
That requires a powerful processor, 16GB ram, a ssd and a dedicated graphics card.
This hybrid device has all that AND you can also use it as a tablet, by folding or detaching.
There is no other device currently on the market that offers this function at the same performance level.
Is it a niche device? sure. Is it pricey? definitely.
But if you need performance and want the option of a well functioning tablet as well, this is great and worth the investment.

Well buy one and use it awhile and let us know how it works out it might be great, we'll know after someone takes the plunge and lets everyone know how it performed.

 

[thatbrainiac]

Does this device look awesome? Yes. Is it innovative? Yes. Is it expensive? Yes!!! The issue I have is why spend so much money on something that will be outdated and considered overpriced in 6 months??? I will wait to get a user perspective on this device before I waste $1200. Besides, I am pretty sure the other manufacturers will copy the design while making improvements. This could be a consideration once the price is affordable.

 

[Ed Chombeau]

My old eyes need a bigger display; why not offer a 15-16" version??? I need a desktop replacement not a tablet.

 

[TechyInAZ]

Surface book has some awesome stuff in it, but there's one big problem.

The surface was created to compete with Macintosh right? Well if that's so then why does the surface book look so much like a macbook? White is everywhere and the keyboard looks almost identical to the macbook pro (except for the black keys of course).

Microsoft, if your going to make a product to compete with another, then don't make it look like a copy cat. The Surface tablets are great, but the surface book is far too close to a macbook.

 

[EWDB]

Its metal and more or less cuboid... like most high end laptops/tablets. There is not that much room for differences other than different coloured keys. As it is I think they have done a great job, the new hinge looks great and is a fresh interpretation of such devices. Short of making it plastic, covering it with paint or making it a deliberately strange shape I am not sure how you expect them to make it so different?

 

[littleleo]

How can MS make it different they have been trying to copy Apple forever where do you think Windows came from, the Mac. The Zune, the iPod, and Cortina is a copy of Siri. MS did come out with the tablets 1st and they flopped. It must of really pissed them off that the iPad launch was so successful.

The interesting thing today is the biggest growth area today is the smart phones segment and the two big powers in computing the last 40+ years MS & Intel are insignificant in it, and it is scaring them to death.

 

[italiandragn]

LittleLeo, I really think you are missing the point of this product. I left IT as the Portland market was flooded and now work in commercial construction. Taking a desktop computer out to a job site is problematic so most take laptops or tablets. The problem with a Tablet is the limitations from the simpler software, the advantage of a tablet is being able to hold it or put it in a sling while working. A laptop needs a surface to put it on, and when the deck is covered in rebar and other materials... constantly pulling it out of a bag isn't very efficient either. A lot of contractors have been using the Surface Pro (2&3) and finding it does a pretty good job a meeting needs, but the contractor I was talking to today is going to go back to the office and push for the Surface Book as it will do an even better job of meeting their needs as it is both a laptop and a tablet. When using a device like the Trimble or Topcon it will be very useful to be able to jump back and forth between laptop and tablet modes.

 

[sirsanio]

Microsoft took things to a whole new level with a brand-new device that the company has never produced before: a laptop, dubbed the Surface Book.

Microsoft Enters Laptop Market With Surface Book : Read more

Somehow everybody is missing the point of the device, only looking at the $$$
I see it as the first real business laptop that can actually fully function as a tablet as well without performance drops.
You pay the price of a workstation laptop (if you fully spec it out) but you get more out of it.
In my profession (Architecture) we need to be able to work our productivity software with ease.
That requires a powerful processor, 16GB ram, a ssd and a dedicated graphics card.
This hybrid device has all that AND you can also use it as a tablet, by folding or detaching.
There is no other device currently on the market that offers this function at the same performance level.
Is it a niche device? sure. Is it pricey? definitely.
But if you need performance and want the option of a well functioning tablet as well, this is great and worth the investment.

Well buy one and use it awhile and let us know how it works out it might be great, we'll know after someone takes the plunge and lets everyone know how it performed.

we are buying one as soon as the warranty of our current Lenovo x230 runs out, which is mid 2016.
i'll come back here and let you know how it does.
i mean you can talk against the product as much as you want but it is the only laptop on the market that can run production software like Autodesk Revit, Autocad, Sketchup, The Adobe CS Suite etc while also doubling as a tablet that you can use with Bluebeam and similar programs to mark up pdf's on the fly or use it for sketches etc.
There is no comparable device with that kind of computing power at the moment.
My employer is an Apple freak who early adopts anything they throw out, but apple doesn't have a comparable product yet.
You just fail to see that this is an innovative device. It totally fits our need!

 

[littleleo]

LittleLeo, I really think you are missing the point of this product. I left IT as the Portland market was flooded and now work in commercial construction. Taking a desktop computer out to a job site is problematic so most take laptops or tablets. The problem with a Tablet is the limitations from the simpler software, the advantage of a tablet is being able to hold it or put it in a sling while working. A laptop needs a surface to put it on, and when the deck is covered in rebar and other materials... constantly pulling it out of a bag isn't very efficient either. A lot of contractors have been using the Surface Pro (2&3) and finding it does a pretty good job a meeting needs, but the contractor I was talking to today is going to go back to the office and push for the Surface Book as it will do an even better job of meeting their needs as it is both a laptop and a tablet. When using a device like the Trimble or Topcon it will be very useful to be able to jump back and forth between laptop and tablet modes.

I understand the issue, one of my customer's services the contractor market and offers a replacement notebook in 24 hours with all their programs and data if their current model is lost or damaged. What you seem to miss is the point of my 1st post which is after MS's big marketing campaign that the Notebooks is dead via the surface tablet, they come out with ............................ a Notebook. I just find that extremely amusing.