A quick hands-on preview: The Microsoft Surface 3 Pro

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Don Slesnick III

Having started as a childhood hobby in the late 80's and quickly turning into a career path, Don Slesnick has been working in the technology industry for over the past two decades. From building computers to custom website design and programming, Don has in-depth experience with most all facets of the IT landscape.

Latest posts by Don Slesnick III (see all)

• A quick hands-on preview: The Microsoft Surface 3 Pro - June 19, 2014
• Hands-on Review: The Dell Venue 8 Pro - June 9, 2014
• Product Alert: Dell Laptop XPS 13 [Developer’s Edition] - April 7, 2014

With the release of the Microsoft Surface 3 tomorrow, I was invited to attend a special preview event last night at the local Microsoft Store and provided some hands-on time with their new flagship device. The bottom-line: Microsoft has made some much needed improvements over the previous two iterations of the Surface while shifting focus of the design to serve more as a laptop replacement with strong note-taking capabilities. Specifically, the device adopts a larger 12″ display in a 3:2 aspect ratio that is better suited for business applications, note-taking (when vertical), and web browsing. The hardware specs are in line with most Ultrabook-class laptops available today with one glaring exception; as advertised, the Microsoft Surface 3 does not include a keyboard.

Dear Microsoft, If you are going to market the Surface 3 Pro as a laptop replacement, a keyboard is more of a requirement rather than an optional accessory.

Both Microsoft’s pricing and marketing strategies are a bit misleading at best. While you can purchase the base model of the Surface 3 Pro for $799 (sounds like a great deal), you will spend another $130 for the keyboard; a peripheral I think most would consider a necessity for a laptop replacement.  Taking a closer look at the base model, Microsoft pairs up a low powered i3 processor with a small 64GB hard drive that is rather limiting compared to the included hardware in a similarly priced Macbook Air.  On that note, a more realistic comparison between these two devices would be found between that of the Surface 3 mid-tier model priced at $1130 (w/keyboard) and the Macbook Air currently available for $899 (see table provided below.)

While my time with the device was limited, I can’t say I walked away overly impressed. It has solid hardware, good performance, a light and slim form factor, strong note-taking capabilities (for those that need that function), and yet it neither felt like a good tablet alternative or a true “laptop replacement”. The new Surface 3 Keyboard peripheral has been enhanced with better responsive feel while typing and a touch-pad that “clicks”. Having given some thought to possible uses, considering various every-day scenarios, I could certainly identify various situations and environments were the Surface 3 Pro would serve well if not shine. For a day-to-day workhorse, I think users would get a better performance and return on their investment by purchasing a normal Ultrabook or Macbook Air.

COMPARING APPLES TO APPLES SURFACE

While on one hand Microsoft is marketing the device as a “Laptop Replacement”, they seem to love comparing the device to the iPad Air (a tablet) in their marketing efforts and this was indeed the case at last night’s event. Below I have provided what I believe is a more honest comparison between two similarly spec’d devices.

This chart illustrates that there is $200+ premium charged for the form-factor and touch screen capabilities of the Surface 3; a device that falls short though in delivering a great laptop experience.

One last note: Having recently reviewed the Dell Venue 8 Pro, one would think that at these price-points, Microsoft could easily include a free version of Office; something Dell was able to accomplish on a $250 device.