Microsoft has brought out many new products at the previous Win10 hardware conference. The most attractive estimate is the Surface Book of the surface product line, or SB for short (it is better not to use this abbreviation in China). However, it has not been launched in China yet, so I have to go to see how the experience of foreign media is. Here is from Love to play computer games Translate and organize.
As an editor, I hope I can use my notebook to write articles comfortably in various places. The product line of Surface, from Surface RT to Surface Pro 3, is a mixture of notebook and tablet, but it never meets the demand: the touch pad and keyboard are uncomfortable, and the battery life is not ideal. They can be put on the desk for normal use, but once they need to be used on the move, it is annoying because they are not real notebooks.
Microsoft now thinks it can provide a good solution, and the result is the Surface Book. Microsoft claims this is the "ultimate" laptop, competing with Apple's MacBook Pro and other flagship products. At first glance, it looks like a notebook, but actually it can be divided into a tablet and a keyboard. In terms of price, from $1499 to $3199, there is no doubt that the surface book is a high-end product. Is it an excellent laptop or just a mixture of laptops and tablets?
Since Microsoft calls Surface Book a notebook, let's start with the form of notebook. At the first sight of the Surface Book, it is easy to associate it with the MacBook Pro, the same big touch panel, beautiful keyboard and the overall silver black combination. However, Microsoft did not copy Apple, which has its own design: like the Surface Pro 3, it uses magnesium aluminum alloy, which is very comfortable to touch, and is completely different from the MacBook Pro using aluminum alloy. Microsoft's attention to detail is aimed at those people who are dedicated to Apple's exquisite design.
Opening the Surface Book requires two hands. In order to ensure that you can walk around with it, the magnetic interface is designed closely, which not only prevents the part of the upper plate from falling, but also protects the hinge. After opening, the 13.5-inch screen of the Surface Book looks a bit "weird". For the first time, it looks a bit high and inconvenient, because this screen does not have the design of 16:9 or 16:10 like ordinary laptops, but has an uncommon ratio of 3:2.
It took a few days to get used to the Surface Book, which reminds people of using Google's Chromebook Pixel before. The reason for the screen size is that there are many black edges for watching movies, but it is very suitable for reading. The content displayed on the web page can be greatly increased. The author (Editor of The Verge) loves this special screen. The color restoration and visual angle are very good. The 1700:1 contrast makes the black theme of Win10 display beautifully on this screen.
Microsoft has put a lot of effort into the touchpad this time. Compared with the original cumbersome and narrow touchpad on the Surface Pro 3, this time the glass covered touchpad on the Surface Book can experience the same touch as the MacBook. Using the touchpad is very smooth, but there is a small problem on Chrome and Edge: similar to other Windows laptops, using the touchpad to scroll pages on Chrome will get stuck, and Edge also performs poorly. Microsoft promises that there will be an update to solve this problem, and hopes that it can also be solved on other Windows.
The first time I typed on the Surface Book, I felt very strange. The key stroke was not very long, and I felt quite hard. After a few hours of adaptation, I switched to another notebook and felt that typing was a bit fleshy. The keyboard spacing is just right. I hope other notebook manufacturers can learn from it. Microsoft's experience in making keyboard and mouse peripherals for so many years has been well applied to its first notebook keyboard.
The Surface Book is positioned at the high-end, and its configuration should also keep pace. In the minimum configuration version, the Core i5+8GB RAM is very fast. Basic web browsing, a small amount of photoshop processing and general X86 programs perform very well. Compared with the high configuration version (Core i7+16GB RAM), there is no difference in basic work and use. However, in the game, the high configuration version of Nvidia's graphics card can significantly open the gap, even if the drivers have not yet matched, The old games on Stream also run normally. This is enough to meet the minimum requirements of most games, but those transformations before the Surface Book are difficult to meet.
The most unique part of Surface Book must be its new fulcrum hinge. The snake shaped design looks great, like a product from an alien movie. The folding extension allows the user to adjust the screen angle. Although the adjustment range is limited, it has met the usage habits in different situations. Also because this is not a simple notebook, the strength of the hinge is still lacking. When you put it on your lap to type or touch the screen, the Surface Book will bounce and shake a little. Many two in one notebooks also have this kind of problem. Microsoft may be the best, but it is still not perfect. In some cases, it may appear top heavy, and the Surface Book has already performed well in daily use.
The design of the hinge also brings obvious disadvantages. When closed like a general notebook, the surface book will leave a gap on the side, and the keyboard and screen cannot be completely closed. Dust, hair and various small sundries will get stuck on the keyboard through this gap, which is not conducive to cleaning, and it looks ugly, really ugly. This design is a compromise for Microsoft to switch from notebook to tablet.
A release button is set on the keyboard. After pressing it, the screen can be removed for use as a tablet. The 3:2 ratio, ignoring the weight, is like holding a piece of paper in your hand. This mode is generally good for taking notes. Whether playing games or watching movies, it will make your hands very tired, or combine it with the keyboard in the opposite direction, which will become a more cumbersome tablet.
The new Surface Pen has higher performance, but there is still a slight delay in actual use. It is very comfortable for taking notes, and it is also equipped with an eraser function. Pressing and holding the button on the Surface Pen can activate Cortana, but the recognition success rate is not high. The Surface Pen can be magnetically attached to the side of the screen, but this guy is often found in the schoolbag.
After the tablet is removed, there are not only the keyboard and touch pad, but also two USB ports, an SD card reader, a mini DisplayPort and Nvidia graphics cards integrated on some models. It is also the backup power supply of the panel. Once the panel is used to complete the work, it can be directly combined back to support hot plugging. However, this function depends on the battery, and splitting is not supported when the power is less than 10%. Of course, splitting is OK after the power is turned off.
The Win10 system also allows the Surface Book to switch freely between touch control and keyboard and mouse operation. If you like, you can take it apart and turn it into a tablet, or use it as a notebook. However, Win10 is not perfect in the Surface Book. Occasionally, when using the pen, it is found that it cannot be recognized; For a period of time, blue screen problems almost occur every day; The program used for separation operation also occasionally crashes; The touch pad gestures and scrolling operations also fail. Compared with the surface book hardware, Win10 software seems not ready yet.
The battery life is very important for a laptop. Microsoft said that it can use it for about 4 hours on a tablet, and it can use it as a laptop for 12 hours after linking the keyboard. This is not a lie. Using the low configuration version (no independent graphics card) to test with Chrome, we found that the Surface Book can last for about 13 hours, and can work all day, which is incredible for a Windows laptop. In the case of mixed use, including watching high-definition movies, using photoshop and Twitter, it takes about 7 hours. In terms of charging, it takes 2 hours to fully charge the tablet alone, and 4 to 5 hours for two devices together.
Is the Surface Book the ultimate laptop? Only close. Due to the consideration of tablet and notebook, Microsoft has chosen to use hinge link, which has brought some small problems. The screen is excellent, the battery life is good, and the keyboard and touch pad feel great. If they all appear on a regular notebook, then this notebook should be the ideal target for everyone. But the Surface Book is not. Because there is no universal app optimized for Win10 touch, the tablet mode is almost redundant, and users have to prepare another iPad.
Microsoft clearly needs to compete with Apple's MacBook Pro, which also has superior materials and excellent design, but Microsoft has to find a better way to combine tablet and notebook. The Surface Book is impressive. As a combination of tablet and notebook, it may be the best at this stage. If Microsoft launches an orthodox notebook, perhaps the best Windows notebook at present, but Microsoft does not do so, insists on the hybrid form of tablet and notebook, and hopes that Microsoft can launch a perfect surface in the future.
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