Microsoft has officially introduced the Surface Pro 4.
Interestingly, there is no Surface non-Pro which accompanies the main device as
usual; Microsoft precisely releases a brand new device named Surface Book.
Previously, we knew that the line-up of Microsoft is the Surface
and Surface Pro. But now the line-up has changed to be Surface Pro and Surface
Book. In a way, both of these devices are brought by Microsoft to compete
against Apple; Surface Pro 4 to compete with iPad Pro, while the Surface Book
to compete with the MacBook Pro.
Microsoft Surface Pro 4
Surface Pro 4 is the direct successor of the Surface Pro 3
which was released last year. By design, not much has changed from the Surface
Pro 4, only the thickness that's shrunk to be 8.4 mm. Its casing is made of
magnesium, while the weight ranges from 766-786 grams (depending on
configuration).
In the display sector, the Surface Pro 4 relies on 12.3 inch
screen with a resolution of 2736 x 1824
(267 ppi). The screen bezel is made very thin, so it gives an impression that
almost the entire front of the device is a screen. Microsoft describes that the
Surface Pro 4 is a tablet that can replace your laptop.
There are several configurations that can be selected from
the Surface Pro 4. The most standard configuration is offered for $ 899,
includes an Intel Core M, 4 GB RAM and 128 GB SSD. For those who don't want to
compromise at all, the Surface Pro 4 also comes in higher configuration which's
priced at $ 2,699, this configuration includes an Intel Core i7 processor, 16
GB RAM and 1 TB SSD. The processor used is the Intel's sixth-generation
processor, aka Skylake. So it's not surprising if Microsoft claims that Surface
Pro 4 has 30 percent faster performance than the Surface Pro 3.
Just like the previous generation, the Surface Pro 4 is also
accompanied with a Type Cover accessory; the latest version now has thicker
keys and is equipped with a fingerprint scanner sensor. At the same time,
Microsoft is also proud to introduce a new version of Surface Pen stylus.
Microsoft even doesn't hesitate to say that Surface Pen is better than Apple
Pencil.
On paper, Surface Pro 4 sounds promising, especially since
it has been running with the Windows 10 OS by default. One of the advantages of
Surface Pro 4 than the iPad Pro lays in the availability of software - the
Surface Pro 4 can run the Adobe Photoshop desktop version, while the iPad Pro
is still stuck in Photoshop Fix that has been released recently.
Microsoft Surface Book
This is the first time Microsoft has its own laptop, but
because it still carries 'Surface' name, the screen can be removed from the
keyboard to be used as a tablet.
Surface Book is claimed twice powerful than the MacBook Pro.
It is not surprising, because the price of Surface Book itself ranges from $
1,500 to $ 3,000, depending on the configuration chosen.
But the specification is not enough to describe the privileges
of Surface Book. The design is different from the other laptops; it's relying
on a solid curved hinge to prop up the screen in any position. You can use the
Surface Book in three modes: tablet, laptop and canvas. The screen itself has a
size of 13.5 inch, with a resolution of 3000 x 2000 pixels (267 ppi).
Interestingly, when in laptop mode, you will gain faster
performance of graphics processing, it may happen because Nvidia graphics card
has been implanted into the keyboard part. So the idea is like this: when you
just want to read news or watch videos, remove the Surface Book from the
keyboard and then use it in tablet mode. When you're about to type, edit
videos, play games or doing other tasks that need a high performance of GPU,
you only need to plug the Surface Book to its keyboard.
You can also position the Surface Book screen upside down -
still connected to the keyboard, but the screen facing out. This canvas mode
can be used when you want to do something using Surface Pen - because it is
still connected to the keyboard, then the graphics processing performance can
be better than when in tablet mode.
Microsoft itself calls the Surface Book as "the
ultimate laptop". This is reasonable because the Surface Book almost has
all the criteria of a modern laptop: a thin and premium design, glass-coated
trackpad, high-resolution touch screen, high performance, a battery that can
last up to 12 hours, and complete connectivity.