Microsoft Surface user reviews

Ashkinda 3 December 2012

Good: Solid construction

Bad: Near enough everything else

Comment: I'm a big self confessed microsoft fanboy who only touches icky apple because I have to fix them at work occasionally (I'm an IT tech).

I was so looking forward to this - finally a device that can give ipad a run for its money. How disappointed I was!

Windows 8 itself has plenty of problems but I won't go into these too much as hopefully they will be fixed in the fullness of time. The hardware however cannot be fixed:

The kickstand that everyone is raving about has one serious flaw - Not only is it non-adjustable, but at normal desk height or on your lap the laptop is angled too low to be able to see it (unless you have a third eye in your belly-button). How this could pass by the eyes of MS designers and reviewers alike is beyond me. The kickstand is pointless.

The surface, whilst solidly constructed, feels like it weighs a ton. I can appreciate that the screen is slightly larger than an ipad but even still it feels like a small brick in my hands - which brings me to the next point. Like a brick, the surface has almost sharp corners when compared with other tablets out there. There is a reason that most if not all tablets have rounded corners - the surface's corners and edges almost feel sharp enough to use as a weapon.

Whilst I still have a meagre hope for windows 8 (albeit not its current iteration where you cant even set a proxy for the metro apps unless you run scripts in command line but that is for a differet discussion) I have sadly no more hope for the surface.

Until windows 8 is fixed, I will be putting my £400 surface into a drawer and using my £70 andriod tablet due to it being more ergonomic and user friendly (and working within an environment with a proxy setting on their wifi). Even when windows 8 gets sorted I will probably end up getting a tablet device that doesn't feel like a paving slab in my hand and perhaps has a method of standing that doesn't require me to use a second stand to be able to still see the screen.

I don't think the surface in its current state is worth even half the asking price at the moment. My honest recommendation is to try one of the other manufacturer's offerings such as the Acer or Dell if you are really desperate for the windows 8 experience like I was. If you are looking for a finished, reliable, useful product. Look anywhere else but here.

bobby.brot 22 November 2012

Good: Office, Touch keyboard, Build design, kickstand, Nvidia Tegra 3, magnetic keyboard, battery life, screen, camera

Bad: Magnetic charger not magnetically strong

Comment: Surface is the most amazing product Microsoft has made in over 30 years anniversary. This product has the names and the games that could become one of the biggest game changers out there.

The screen is a major plus (forget the resoloution 1366x768 because thanks to Microsoft screen technology like ClearType and Optical Bonding and less reflective and wide viewing angles the screen becomes a plus than a minus) and when working on it, you feel the innovation of Microsoft from the screen to the experience amazing.

Providing office 2013 (note for users who want extras like Access or Publisher, they won't be included only Word, PowerPoint and Excel and Onenote installed) and now final version release free of charge via updates will sort out most problems especially when you don't need to buy office.

Ok it is true that there are not enough apps being developed but everyone this is early days wait for 6 months then the media will change the reviews.

Nvidia Tegra 3 is also very good and powerful, there is an update established soon by Nvidia to Surface customers via Windows Update that will enable the feature '4-PLUS-1™ Quad-Core with a 5th Battery-Saver Core' which the compatibility for WIndows rt is still under development. There shall be improvements but we won't know until it arrives which is in a couple of weeks now being that it is in final development stage.

The Touch cover is the second buzz aside Surface, yes Surface is amazing by itself with integrated touch keyboard in Windows 8 however getting the Touch cover only improves on the experience. It has been 5-6 days since my delivery from America and I have nearly gotten used to it, the only thing I need practise on is the space bar, for touch typer's if you choose this keyboard and does not suit you don't worry just keep practising and sooner or later you will get better words per seconds as you practise. The trackpad is responsive and using geatures on it is amazing and take my word for it, the trackpad might look small but it is more than enough space when you need to get productive.

With Vapor Mag, it truly is a major part of this product, yes it can have finger prints but thanks to Vapor Mag metal the finger prints dissapear and if you have clean soft hands and not greesed it will not stain the Surface, the screen won't show fingerprints but in a certain angle of light you can so if you have a screen cleaner than good for you. Even without no vents just leave it charging or lying beside your bed and when you touch it in the morning delivers that lovely cold experience that makes it a breeze to behold.

Kickstand is amazing as well even though not adjustable it is still usable and very affective. I tried lying my Surface RT tablet on my lap and it did lay however when typing on the touch keyboard makes the tablet move a bit but not enough for making it unstable and fall off, it is usable on your lap so that is a good thing.

The magnetic charger is a good charger system however when you try to plug in to the Surface you have to adjust a little bit when the charger gets magnetic attraction and when you adjust it a little it will have a reassured click in and a light will glow on the top which give more reassurement of recharging.

I used my camera for video calling with Skype and the detail was fantastic, I did try the back camera a little bit and the same quality goes for the back camera.

If you like music, recommended to play with headsets as using inbuilt speakers will be good however you will end up putting much higher volume to hear properly.

That is all I have to say for my Surface RT, I was thinking of getting something else but believe me I have made the right choice and I will enjoy it for years to come.

dingydongy 16 November 2012

Good: Microsoft

Bad: Microsoft

Comment: I'm not really bothered about the platform. My iPad is enough for the moment. However, I have to say how annoyed I am by the constant reference CNET make about the amount of APPS available on this operating system compared to that. The vast majority of the apps available on the Apple platform are useless and are, frankly, not worth the amount of memory they take up on the App Store. The same goes for Android Play Store. Some are truly useful but having the trophy for the biggest gazillion apps means nothing. So, reviewers everywhere, get a grip, stop counting apps and let us know which store has the most useful ones, that would be information we cold use.

Anonymous 11 November 2012

Good: Portability, USB port, SD card

Bad: Availability

Comment: I have scoured the internet seeking reviews of this and it seems to me that a lot of the reviews are very early and only now, after the first update can I make a decision.

The software is clearly just reaching version 1.0.1 - The surface WAS laggy, the games were not smooth and the multi tasking under strain was not as good as it could have been - Android Buttery interface looked a lot smoother.

Just appearing now are reviews showing the performance after the new update - its as good as anything else and with the split screen its in my view better.

I'm a big fan of CNET and they can only review what they are given so I'm looking forward to an update here, on a trusted and informed site as to the new performance after the updates.

Microsoft released too early, but there will be incremental updates coming thick and fast and 6 months from now the lag will be forgotten about - by the few that aren't pushed elsewhere

Matt Smith 5 November 2012

Good: Beautiful Hardware, responsive, fast, Windows 8, keyboard & kickstand, Office

Bad: Poor speakers, lack of 3G/4G, some niggles with built in apps design

Comment: I've wanted a tablet for a long time now, but after owning an Android device previously, I had no wish to own a tablet powered by the OS and the iPad just never appealed enough for me to own one.

So the Surface was my number one choice and I couldn't be happier. The tablet isn't 'chunky', it's a refreshing change from rounded corners and aluminum. To me it's beautiful and for more aesthetically pleasing than many other tablets out there.

The screen, although of a lower resolution, really holds it's own. Everything is crisp and colours really pop on the screen. It's incredibly responsive and is a joy to use.

I'll not lie, but I've been using Windows 8 on my MacBook and Desktop for months now, so am perfectly used to the OS and it's way of doing things. Windows 8 does take some getting used too and won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I love it, so the Surface is easy for me to use and a pleasure too.

The Touch keyboard is so simple to use and I've had no issues getting used to it, however I am a big fan of touchscreen keyboards and have never had the usual problems with them that a lot of people have.

As for the lack of apps, people make it sound like the Windows Store is a barren waste land...it's not, there are thousands of apps and more and going live each day.

I can only assume the original reviewer used a pre-production version of Surface and also a pre-RTM version of Windows 8 as I've not experienced any of the performance issues noted in this review. This assumption is only further proved by the fact that the reviewer states that the desktop IE is version 9...it's not, it's 10 and as far as I'm aware has always been 10. It looks just like 9 though so maybe the reviewer just identified it by looks rather than actually checking the version number.

Anyway, speakers are poor, so I'm going to invest in a nice Bluetooth speaker for my home use and as much as I understand the reasons for not including built in 3G/4G it does at times feel like it's missing a key feature.

Amer A. Amir 3 November 2012

Good: Office ; Material

Bad: Price , Apps

Comment: This is not a tablet ... its LAPTAB !!!!

Anonymous 1 November 2012

Good: Windows 8 tiled interface

Bad: Price (especially large additional outlay for covers!); can't try it in shops

Comment: I was quite tempted by the Surface, but I am now finding myself put off by the price, the poor reviews and the lack of opportunity to go along and try it myself in a shop. A shame really; it has such promise.

peterjamesmorris 28 October 2012

Comment: First, I'd like to say that I haven't owned any Windows-based computer or phone in 10 years. I am most certainly not a Microsoft fan. However, I think the Surface is really promising.

Personally, I rather have 50 apps that are designed and developed from the ground up for the platform they are intended to run on, rather than the thousands of upscaled Android apps that were originally intended to run on cell phones. There's no way I'd choose an Android tablet over this.

I understand why people are comparing this with the iPad, but I'm not sure they are intended to serve the same market.

The iPad is about simplicity; something your mother can use to send an email. The Surface is clearly about productivity, and presumably is being aimed squarely a much more computer-literate crowd.

There're a bazillion people out there who are comfortable using Windows who might be interested in buying this instead of a cheap, nasty, ugly and clunky old netbook.

Edson Nascimento 28 October 2012

Comment: BEST TABLET EVER MADE

jax75 27 October 2012

Good: Very new looking, usb port without looking cheap, alot of possibilities.

Bad: The desktop functionality at the moment and the old windows apps are a step backwards in an attempt to renew a software system.

Comment: Ok, take this as you will I agree with Luke's review/preview, (for once), because he and the rest of cnet are no longer blinkered by apple products, maybe because of the fans criticisms maybe because android tablets really are a great alternative, whatever. That out of the way, I agree with this review even though i have not used it but by what i know of full fat w8 pro, as he said the legacies of former windows are really there and its confusing. I'm suprised that the games arent to par with other tegra products, maybe this is because windows 8 is a heavier system and this gets in the way. On the other hand this review gives me renewed hope, i mean the fact that there's a constantly empty programs folder in the control panel, but modders out there that might mean we can get past the limitation of not having full desktop programs at least ones that at least a tegra processor can run. I mean personally i have quite a few old pc games im not ready to part with, and this might mean we can get things like original halo or fable running on this guy or its successors. in short i think this has the potential to be another android, i mean remember when that came about? it took what 2 years before it became a good option for users because it could compare to ios. I think this is a good start. So yeah a thought on what is a fair and unbiased comparison guys so stop filling up these comments on fanboy wars and think of some ideas like mine ok? :)