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Why does the Surface Pro 3 get a bad rap in the media? My take.

jnjroach

Administrator
Staff member
My 13 year old son uses his SP3 (i5/8/256) in class to work on his writing assignments, and projects. His school bought into the Google Propaganda and rolled out Chromebooks, the students hate them and struggle getting their work done with them, my son has everything completed very quickly using Office 2013 Pro Plus, then they make him copy his work to a thumb drive and copy it to a Chromebook to upload to Google. He's like why do I need to do the extra step? I can upload it from my SP3, which his teacher shrugs and just says that is how we were taught to do it...

Since he's using it, other parents have purchased Surfaces for their kids (mostly Surface 2's and RT's).
 
When there is serious work to be done, you use Windows although Mac OS X is nicely polished, it doesn't do as much.

Tablet OS is for play and communications and Windows is incorporating that into the desktop.

The Surface Pro 3 is the showcase technology that bridges a serious work tool with play.
Not sure if you're agreeing with me or you misunderstood my post lol.
 

InspectHerGadget

Active Member
My 13 year old son uses his SP3 (i5/8/256) in class to work on his writing assignments, and projects. His school bought into the Google Propaganda and rolled out Chromebooks, the students hate them and struggle getting their work done with them, my son has everything completed very quickly using Office 2013 Pro Plus, then they make him copy his work to a thumb drive and copy it to a Chromebook to upload to Google. He's like why do I need to do the extra step? I can upload it from my SP3, which his teacher shrugs and just says that is how we were taught to do it...

Since he's using it, other parents have purchased Surfaces for their kids (mostly Surface 2's and RT's).
I think the Surface is great for students. I agree Chromebooks seem a weird choice based no doubt on price and robustness. I hope Microsoft do keep the cheaper Surface 2 running. To me this is the sweet spot . The SP3 is nice but pricey for giving to students.
 

GreyFox7

Super Moderator
Staff member
I think the Surface is great for students. I agree Chromebooks seem a weird choice based no doubt on price and robustness. I hope Microsoft do keep the cheaper Surface 2 running. To me this is the sweet spot . The SP3 is nice but pricey for giving to students.
High end ARM SoC's are at or approaching the level of performance where they could emulate x86 with reasonable performance for some workloads. Although that carries some additional risk.
 

mtalinm

Active Member
My 13 year old son uses his SP3 (i5/8/256) in class to work on his writing assignments, and projects. His school bought into the Google Propaganda and rolled out Chromebooks, the students hate them and struggle getting their work done with them, my son has everything completed very quickly using Office 2013 Pro Plus, then they make him copy his work to a thumb drive and copy it to a Chromebook to upload to Google. He's like why do I need to do the extra step? I can upload it from my SP3, which his teacher shrugs and just says that is how we were taught to do it...

Since he's using it, other parents have purchased Surfaces for their kids (mostly Surface 2's and RT's).

my kid's school bought Chromebooks for everyone and then abandoned them after a year. they were a joke. even though they still use Google Crapps.

my kid saved up his $$ to buy a Surface 2!
 

raqball

Active Member
I don't think Chromebooks are a joke. I had the Chromebook Pixel for a while and loved it.

If all someone does is browse the web, check email and do lite office tasks they are great.

I think schools buy them due to cost. They are on tight budgets and can get 3 or 4 Chromebooks for the price of one SP3..

I do think that some of the super cheap Chromebooks are garbage though but that can also be said of the ultra cheap Windows machines..
 

GreyFox7

Super Moderator
Staff member
I don't think Chromebooks are a joke. I had the Chromebook Pixel for a while and loved it.

If all someone does is browse the web, check email and do lite office tasks they are great.

I think schools buy them due to cost. They are on tight budgets and can get 3 or 4 Chromebooks for the price of one SP3..

I do think that some of the super cheap Chromebooks are garbage though but that can also be said of the ultra cheap Windows machines..
I'm sure schools are not buying the Chromebook Pixel, that was expensive and cost more than a Surface.
Although I'm not sure bargain basement Windows devices competing with bargain basement Chromebooks or anything else for that matter are a worthy purchase... sometimes you do get what you pay for. when you pay for nothing that's usually what you get. Hmm, maybe Schools shouldn't really be teaching you're kids if they fell into this trap.
 

raqball

Active Member

Genghis Khan

New Member
I'll get SP3 (i7 8gig ram 256gig SSD) next month. I'm not affected by media previews. I prefer to heed individual user views - accountants on spreadsheets, engineers on cad apps, writers / bloggers on word processing, artists / art directors on photoshop, gamers on games, etc. And I'll install desktop PC apps in it on account of their extensive processing power. It's the functionality that counts for professionals - not the aesthetics. Media previews can say all they want but the bottom line ends with the productivity of the end user with SP3 as tool.

One thing though - Microsoft's quality control (renamed Complaint section) sucks having released SP3 for retail with some defects. If this was a car there would be recalls and fines to be paid.
 

ptrkhh

Active Member
Because it came from Microsoft. The same entry by someone else would be wildly celebrated. :rolleyes:
The first time I got my hands on it, I remember that I said, "wow, the new MacPad Air is impossible." It packs Core i7 in a package that weigh WAY less than the previous generation MacBook Air. How would anybody pack Core i7 inside a tablet that's as thin as the iPad 4 while still providing the all-day battery life it deserves. It is the reason why people are still buying Apple products, theyre simply impossible by others' standard.

The optional keyboard is a smart accessory that turns an innocent iPad into a proper MacBook. Yes, that's right, you don't need a MacBook anymore. With just $130 for the keyboard, you already own a MacBook disguised in a tablet. More importantly, it still makes a better laptop than a craptastic $300 Windows laptop that you would buy otherwise.

The MacPad weighs 800gr, definitely heavier than the iPad Air 6, but practically, it is just as light. The reason behind it is because it packs a builtin kickstand. Lets be honest, your iPad is now enclosed inside a case because you need the iPad to stand somehow, but this MacPad kills it. You can now use a proper iPad without any additional cases. Since the kickstand opens to a variety of angles, it is just as versatile as the MacBook. In fact, it opens to larger angle than the MacBook, making it even more versatile in this particular case.

There's another reason why it weighs more than the normal iPad. Just like the iPad Air 6 that is heavier than the smaller iPad Mini 7, the MacPad Air is heavier for the same reason. The screen, at 12" is the perfect balance between 9.7" in the iPad Air 6 and the 13.3" MacBook Air. But thats not the thing that pushes the industry. The main star here is actually the aspect ratio. At 3:2, it is the perfect balance between the two. Even though it is smaller diagonally, it is actually taller than the MacBook, so it feels larger than my MacBook Air in landscape mode, yet it is as comfortable as my iPad Air 6 in portrait mode. Just after the Android OEMs have finished copying Apple's 4:3 aspect ratio, they pushed the industry with a new standard to be copied again.

But the MacPad Air is so much more than just a MacBook Air and iPad fused together. It is more powerful than both devices combined. The MacPad Air has the pen input functionality which was popularized by third-party accessories like the Adonit Jot Touch and Wacom Fineline. The implementation is now officially supported and perfected. It opens up a new possibilities that the iPad and MacBook haven't delivered. The pen features a smart button at the top that when you press it, opens the Notes app, ready for you to jot down notes. It streamlines the way that we are used to. Normally, you need to go back to the homescreen, launch the Notes app, and press a New Note button. Now, you only need one click to jot down your idea before you forget about it, whenever you are. Yes, even if the MacPad is in standby, pressing the top button would serve you with a blank Notes canvas to write on. It is just as intuitive as the real pen and paper. Apple showed the world how to make a device familiar for everyone, just like what they did with their original iPhone 11 years ago. The Notes app itself has received a massive update this year. It can now be organized like a real book with sections and pages, as well as the pen input that I just mentioned. It is now a proper book replacement. This is the tight integration between hardware and software that only Apple can deliver.

To put it short, if you can afford it, MacPad Air is simply the device that you have to buy right now.

Apple just set a new standard that Google and Microsoft would have to play catchup, again.
 
Last edited:

Snickers

New Member
The first time I got my hands on it, I remember that I said, "wow, the new MacPad Air is impossible." It packs Core i7 in a package that weigh WAY less than the previous generation MacBook Air. How would anybody pack Core i7 inside a tablet that's as thin as the iPad 4 while still providing the all-day battery life it deserves. It is the reason why people are still buying Apple products, theyre simply impossible by others' standard.

The optional keyboard is a smart accessory that turns an innocent iPad into a proper MacBook. Yes, that's right, you don't need a MacBook anymore. With just $130 for the keyboard, you already own a MacBook disguised in a tablet. More importantly, it still makes a better laptop than a craptastic $300 Windows laptop that you would buy otherwise.

The MacPad weighs 800gr, definitely heavier than the iPad Air 6, but practically, it is just as light. The reason behind it is because it packs a builtin kickstand. Lets be honest, your iPad is now enclosed inside a case because you need the iPad to stand somehow, but this MacPad kills it. You can now use a proper iPad without any additional cases. Since the kickstand opens to a variety of angles, it is just as versatile as the MacBook. In fact, it opens to larger angle than the MacBook, making it even more versatile in this particular case.

If you can afford it, MacPad Air is simply the device that you have to buy right now.

Apple just set a new standard that Google and Microsoft would have to play catchup, again.

Woah, this sounds way better than the SP3 - where do I get one from? Just take my money already g'dammit..
 
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