Under the Surface

Microsoft is pitching its latest tablet as a replacement for the laptop and in the process, it is tackling Apple head on.

The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 has a bigger screen than the 11-inch Apple Macbook Air, yet it is 30 per cent thinner and 26 per cent lighter. Its screen also has a much higher resolution, 2,160 x 1,440, against the Macbook Air's 1,366 x 768. In addition, the Surface Pro 3 has a touchscreen and is bundled with a stylus, neither of which the Macbook Air provides.

Factually, the comparisons are accurate, except that these numbers consider only the bare Surface Pro 3. Add in the 295g cover-cum-keyboard Surface Pro Type Cover and the weight goes up to 1.1kg, which is comparable with the Macbook Air's.

Although the Surface Pro 3 is still thinner, it is relatively flimsier when you compare its detachable keyboard casing against a sturdy hinged clam-shell chassis. Because the electronic innards are housed in the screen instead of in the chassis, the Surface Pro 3 is, in essence, a tablet with a detachable keyboard.

Its natural peer should, therefore, be the Apple iPad Air or Samsung Galaxy Tab S. However, it is not difficult to see why Microsoft is not choosing to pick a fight with them.

The iPad Air and the Tab S each weigh about 470g, which is about 40 per cent lighter than Microsoft's new slate. Add to this the handicapped app library of the Windows Store and it is obvious the Surface Pro 3 does not stand a chance as a premium tablet.

Hardware Zone gave the Surface Pro 3 a 9/10 rating. Find out why here. 

Choosing a worthy foe

But why focus on the Macbook Air instead of other thin-and-light laptop brands? Apart from the popularity of the Macbook Air, there is also business prudence. Microsoft is already causing ripples by creating its own hardware to compete against its partners, such as Asus, HP, Dell and Lenovo. To engage in a marketing comparison would be business suicide.

As a thin-and-light laptop, the Surface Pro 3 deserves attention. At 1.1kg (with the keyboard cover) it is among the lightest in its class and so well constructed that its weight is evenly distributed.

At 9mm thick (11mm with the cover on), it is thick for a tablet, but thin for a laptop. In fact, I can slip it into my iPad sling bag and carry it around quite effortlessly.

The first Surface was announced two years ago amid much fanfare. It was the first tablet with a built-in kickstand for stability and it conveniently did not need a fold cover to prop it up. The kickstand mattered then because the early Windows tablets were top heavy and would topple over at the slightest encouragement. Microsoft also created the protective covers which doubled as a keyboard at the back, revolutionary in its time.

With the Surface Pro 3, Microsoft has created the best Surface device ever and is in the running for the best Windows hybrid on the market. It shaved off 4.4mm in thickness and 100g in weight from the Surface Pro 2, despite having a larger screen.

The kickstand can now be adjusted to any angle up to 150 degrees, where there were only two fixed angles before.

The latest Type Cover has a much larger and more responsive touchpad. Though thin, the keyboard is relatively firm though it is still inferior to a standard keyboard as it flexes under pressure. The full-sized keys have better depth, or travel in geek speak, for a better typing experience. They are even back lit, automatically lighting up when ambient light is low.

The cover has an additional magnetic strip at the top of the keyboard which can be folded backwards so that the double-fold hinge attaches to the lower bezel of the tablet. This automatically props up the keyboard for better ergonomics and an improved typing experience.

From 10 inches, the screen is now 12 inches. The improved real estate makes it a better device for doing work. The high-resolution 2,160 x 1,440 screen, with its wide viewing angles, is stunning, bright and a treat for the eyes.

But I am uncertain about its unusual 3:2 aspect ratio, which Microsoft said was selected so that documents look more natural, like their paper counterparts. Bear in mind that most programs and apps are now designed for the 4:3 ratio (iPad and old computer monitors) or the modern 16:9 (new TVs, computer monitors, Android tablets and most smartphones).

For connectivity, the Surface Pro 3 has a full-sized USB 3.0 port, a microSD card slot (hidden under the kickstand), a mini-Display port to output video to a TV or monitor, plus a standard audio jack. However, it lacks cellular ports for 3G or 4G wireless connectivity.

For a laptop, battery life is good, lasting about eight hours in Digital Life's standard video looping test (half brightness, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and audio turned off).

But if you think of it as a tablet, it does not do so well. It lasted only 5hr 30min in our tablet video looping test (full brightness, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on, audio set at maximum volume). The Samsung Galaxy Tab S tablet, for instance, lasted 11 hours in the same test.

The Surface Pro 3 has no built-in LAN port, but you can purchase the optional USB-to-LAN adaptor. But this means you lose the use of the device's only USB port.

The good news is that there is a cool-looking dock ($288) which adds an extra five USB ports and a LAN port when you are deskbound. It also has a magnetic surface at the side for storing the Surface pen. The digital pen is the size of a typical ballpoint pen and clicking its top button automatically launches Microsoft's One Note note-taking software.

The Surface Pro 3 comes in five configurations. The cheapest costs $1,108 and comes with an Intel i3 processor, 64GB flash storage and 4GB RAM. The top-end model boasts an i7 processor, 512GB flash storage and 8GB RAM but it will set you back $2,698.

These are prices for the "body" alone, and you will need to spend another $183 for the keyboard cover and more if you want the dock too.

A laptop or...

At just 1.1kg (body plus keyboard cover), the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 is among the lightest in the 11-to-13-inch category in the market now.

With options for an i3, i5 or i7 processor and up to 8GB RAM, its performance is a match for any existing thin-and-light rival.

Microsoft has made many improvements to its third-generation device, adding a flexible kickstand and a more ergonomic keyboard cover. The device is also thinner and lighter than before, while boasting a bigger screen.

Technically, however, the device is more a tablet with a fantastic detachable keyboard than it is a good old clamshell laptop.

The biggest problem with this tablet-plus-keyboard form factor is that it is not ideal for using on the lap.

For normal laptops, the screen is balanced at the hinge, so it works as long as you can fit the base of the laptop on your thighs. It is even possible to extend the laptop slightly over the knee as long as 90 per cent of the base is still resting on your thigh.

Adding a built-in kickstand to the Surface line solves the stability problem of hybrid tablets which use detachable keyboards. But this also requires the user to have extra thigh room to support the kickstand.

Using this device on my lap was a rather cramped and uncomfortable experience. The "lappability" of the Surface Pro 3, while improved is still a work in progress.

It is not a problem if you expect to use the device on a desk. Here, the kickstand really earns its keep by letting the user prop up the screen at an angle that works best for him.

The razor-sharp screen of the Surface Pro 3 is a feast for the eyes.

However, the lack of a discrete graphics card limits its gaming ability. While multiplayer online card strategy game Hearthstone at the maximum 2,160 x 1,440 resolution played silky smooth, the more demanding Diablo III single-player campaign was too laggy, hitting single-digit frame rates at the maximum resolution. It was playable only at 1,280 x 960, where it achieved about 25 frames per second.

The bigger issue for me is the 3:2 aspect ratio. All screens today (laptops, smartphones, tablets and TVs) now adopt one of three established aspect ratios - 4:3, 16:9 and 16:10. Software makers create programs to look and work on one or all of these established proportions.

Diablo III lets you choose from 20 different screen resolutions covering these three aspect ratios. But with the Surface Pro 3, I could use only the 3:2 ratio when set at the device's native 2,160 x 1,440 resolution. Having to switch to a lower resolution to make the game playable meant I had to deal with stretched images or the letter-box effect of black spaces.

Having only one USB port is also a let-down, as it will not let me connect a mouse and a USB flash drive at the same time.

...a tablet?

I decided to give the Windows Store another go while testing the Microsoft Surface Pro 3's usability as a tablet.

Unfortunately, the variety of apps on the Windows Store remains a disappointment. No native YouTube or Gmail app is available. Nor are Candy Crush, Clash Of Clans, Hearthstone, Minecraft, Plants Vs Zombies 2 and Subway Surfers, among other popular touch games, available in the Windows Store.

The bigger problem of this device when you think of it as a tablet is its weight. At 800g, it is more than 40 per cent heavier than modern premium tablets such as the Apple iPad Air, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S and the Sony Xperia Z2. I had been thinking of upgrading from my iPad 4 (652g) ever since the iPad Air (469g) surfaced and cannot imagine even considering a device which weighs 800g.

To be fair, the Surface Pro 3 has a larger screen but there is a good reason why there is only one other 12-inch tablet in the market.

Today's users demand light tablets because many will be holding the device with one hand while navigating apps with the other.

The Surface Pro 3's full-sized USB port is an advantage for a tablet because you can transfer files easily via a common USB flash drive and even attach an optical drive to read DVDs and or a Blu-ray disc.

However, not including 3G/4G cellular connectivity is not good because tablet users these days demand any time anywhere connectivity.

The Surface Pro 3 also heats up easily, particularly at the right side on the bottom, when it is held in portrait mode.

For creative folks, being able to run the full-bodied versions of Adobe PhotoShop and Microsoft Office is a big deal on a tablet device. And that the bundled digital pen works smoothly is another plus.

BACKGROUND STORY

TECH SPECS

Price: From $1,108 (version tested was $1,348)

Operating system: Windows 8.1 Pro

Processor: Intel Core i3, i5 or i7

Display: 12-inch 2,160 x 1,440 touchscreen

RAM: 4GB or 8GB

Storage: From 64GB to 512GB solid-state drive

Connectivity: One USB 3.0 port, microSD card reader, headset jack, mini-Display port, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth

Weight: 800g

Accessories: Surface Pro Type Cover ($183), docking station ($288), LAN adaptor ($58)

RATING

Features: 4/5

Design: 4/5

Performance: 4/5

Value for money: 3/5

Battery life: 4/5

Overall: 4/5

 This article was published on Aug 27 in Digital Life, The Straits Times.

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