Help deciding whether to buy an SP3

[phositadc]

I've been reading this forum for the past week or two and am pretty close to buying an i5/8GB SP3. Main uses would be PDF reading and annotating, and occasional note taking at meetings. Trying to go as paperless as possible. I would also use it as a laptop replacement when I travel (I currently own a Vaio Pro 11 and love it, thanks to its tiny size and light weight). So onto a couple of specific questions:

1) Lapability. I often sit in lazy boy type chairs or sprawl out on a sofa with a laptop. The design of traditional laptops allows me to generally find a comfortable position for the laptop, almost regardless of how slouched or strangely I may be sitting/laying. Understanding that an SP3 probably won't be quite as flexible as a laptop in terms of its ability to be positioned comfortably, have people generally found that they are able to use an SP3 in all of the same positions/chairs/sofas on which you previously used a laptop?

Obviously it will work fine sitting on a table or sitting in my lap if I am sitting rigidly with good posture, but I'm curious to hear from people who sit in comfortable chairs, recliners, on sofas, etc., and simultaneously try to use their SP3.

2) PDF reading/annotating/handwritten notes. Are people generally happy with it for this purpose? I played with an SP3 yesterday at an MS store for about 10 minutes and was extremely impressed with its handwriting capabilities. Are there any hidden frustrations/annoyances that I might not discover in 10 minutes of toying with it that would only become evident to me after prolonged use (for instance, how often do the batteries in the pen have to be replaced?)? Or is the experience consistently truly as good as I found it to be yesterday while playing around with one at the MS store?

My alternatives for this purpose would be getting a tablet like an iPad or a Galaxy Note, and keeping my Vaio Pro 11. If I went this route, the tablet would be used for PDF reading/annotating and handwritten notes, and the Vaio Pro 11 would be used for laptop purposes. My concern with iPad is that it has only capacitive stylus, and I like to rest my wrist/palm on the surface of the tablet while I write. This would totally kill productivity on an iPad, right? My concern with something like a Galaxy Note (which I understand does use a digitizer, so palm/wrist resting shouldn't be a concern) is availability of decent notetaking and PDF annotating software. Would love to hear from folks who have gone through a similar decision making process.

Thanks to all for any advice.

 

[malberttoo]

Phositadc,

The SP3 will work well for what you stated you that you want to do on it.

As far as how it fits into your life or the lapability aspect, only you can really judge that.

You should take advantage of the 30-return period and buy an SP3 and see how you like it! I love mine.

 

[wynand32]

A quick observation about "lapability"--the Surface Pro 3 has two points of articulation, i.e., the kickstand and the Type Cover, as opposed to the traditional notebook that only has a single hinge between the screen and the base. And so, it's actually far more flexible, in my experience (and no pun intended) than, say, my MacBook Air. I've found it more comfortable to use in more instances than any notebook I've owned. And stability isn't an issue once you get used to it (and learn to trust that it's not going to just randomly fall over).

As far as note-taking goes, I used a Tablet PC (the old, Windows XP Table Edition versions) for over six years while a sales engineer at Ricoh. I took thousands of notes in OneNote with handwriting, diagrams, etc. I was incredibly productive, and could easily search all of my notes and usually find whatever I was looking for--something my colleagues couldn't have dreamed of doing.

Long story short, my SP3 is even better. Inking is at least as good, and the form factor, performance, and battery life is orders of magnitude improved. I can't imagine a better tool for anyone (student, salesperson, etc.) who needs to take notes during meetings, classes, training, etc.

 

[GreyFox7]

Lapability or loungeability one mustn't forget its a tablet... or you can use the kickstand or keyboard or all together.

 

[wynand32]

Lapability or loungeability one mustn't forget its a tablet... or you can use the kickstand or keyboard or all together.

Yes, exactly. I forgot that aspect in my post, which otherwise doesn't make as much sense. The fact that the Type Cover can be flipped all the way around when using as a tablet is a pretty powerful feature.

 

[phositadc]

Thanks to all for the replies!

 

[hughlle]

depends what you want to do when you have it on your lap.

It's really a non-issue for me. I adapted to using a tablet on the sofa etc ewithout any issue so for my needs, that is to say basically internet while i watch a film, onscreen keyboard and kickstand will be perfect. If you want to watch a film while bashing out a dissertation, then it may or may not be for you.