Will the base model of the Surface Laptop be a good buy?

[Rainar Angelo]

Can the base model be my 'go-to' laptop for around 3 years? (if not more?)

Potential needs:-
Normal Student Activity
Movies
Light Gaming (Football Manager)
Photoshop (Basic editing)
Studying (4-5 hours) (In college, without a charger)

Might also need:-
Basic Video Editing
Audio Editing (Adobe Audition)

 

[Photonsym]

I'm sure you could get away with it but for things like editing you would really benefit from 8 gigs of ram. Even everyday use like having mutiple tabs and programs open could possibly cause issues with 4. Thats just the case from my point of view because it really depends on your use habits.

 

[Rainar Angelo]

I currently have 4GB in my system as well but I was wondering if the processor mattered more or the RAM (for editing)...

 

[xandros9]

I'd personally find something with little more horsepower for editing and gaming.

Also, we're talking about an ultrabook here so the processor is technically lower-power and you are going to want 6 GB of RAM minimum.

 

[Keeptechcoolandsimple]

i personally think the base model is serviceable for students needs if you only plan on doing editing occasionally or for fun. if you know editing is going to be huge part of your college experience, opt for higher configurations if you can afford it.

 

[kaktus1389]

If I had the same needs as you I'd buy the Core i5 with 8GB RAM model. If you are planning on doing some hard core video editing and you specifically want to buy Surface Laptop, then it would make sense if you went with the Core i7 version for slightly better graphics.

 

[anon(10237065)]

For basic editing of photos and audio, 4 GB RAM are just fine. Regarding video editing, it would have to be very basic and not too demanding (aka 4K) as well. I've been able to edit video on 4GB RAM on Surface Pro 4 but it was totally basic. 8 GB would be good also for Football Manager. I don't know about new versions, but I remember a few years back this game always preferred a lot of RAM!

 

[DCW1000]

I tend to regard the base version of any computer line as barely adequate for most users, just as the high end is complete overkill for almost everyone. But as the wisest have often noted, too much is always enough, and barely enough is at some point likely to seem too little. I don't doubt that you could manage to do what you want to do with the base laptop, but I fear the process might over three years prove to require more patience than you would need if you could get yourself a faster processor and more RAM. I agree with the suggestion that an i5/8GB machine would be a better minimum configuration for what you want to do.

 

[k1s23]

For basic editing of photos and audio, 4 GB RAM are just fine. Regarding video editing, it would have to be very basic and not too demanding (aka 4K) as well. I've been able to edit video on 4GB RAM on Surface Pro 4 but it was totally basic. 8 GB would be good also for Football Manager. I don't know about new versions, but I remember a few years back this game always preferred a lot of RAM!

Ayrton01CZ i agree with you. every "basic" job can be done with 4 gb of ram, but if youre doing anything very demanding like video editing then 8 gb will be better. my current laptop has 8 gb of ram and that has been great for my more advanced video editing. if youre going to play pc games, a surface book would be a better computer.

 

[Rainar Angelo]

i personally think the base model is serviceable for students needs if you only plan on doing editing occasionally or for fun. if you know editing is going to be huge part of your college experience, opt for higher configurations if you can afford it.

For fun of course... Not regularly.

 

[Rainar Angelo]

I tend to regard the base version of any computer line as barely adequate for most users, just as the high end is complete overkill for almost everyone. But as the wisest have often noted, too much is always enough, and barely enough is at some point likely to seem too little. I don't doubt that you could manage to do what you want to do with the base laptop, but I fear the process might over three years prove to require more patience than you would need if you could get yourself a faster processor and more RAM. I agree with the suggestion that an i5/8GB machine would be a better minimum configuration for what you want to do.

Thanks... Makes sense really!

 

[techiez]

Thanks... Makes sense really!

check XPS13

 

[Rainar Angelo]

check XPS13

Love the product. That display is topnotch!

 

[Ali Jradeh]

if you want to stick with win 10 S it will be okay but if you want to upgrade for the pro version u'll need a better specs.also for video editing u'll need more then 4gb of ram for sure.

 

[Keeptechcoolandsimple]

in regards to "future-proofing" being a factor, and thus getting higher configurations solely for that reason, my opinion may differ from others. i used to be always about the "get the top of the line no matter what" because i realized something about computers. although i use computers alot - and i mean alot - a) computers may have longer life cycles than phones, but at the same time when new computers come out they are generally more significant upgrades. b) i use both desktop and portable versions like a laptop or hybrid c) regardless of how often i use computers, it's not always with me.

To explain those 3 points, I'll compare to phones. I always get the most current, top spec'ed phone but its because I ALWAYS have my phone with me at all times and gets ALOT of use (even as an emergency work device if I'm out without a computer, and as a hotspot device even when i am out with a computer). as a result, regardless of the platform and brand, I've noticed cell phones age rather poorly in terms of performance. top specs, in the case of phones, help to mitigate that issue significantly and thus worth spending the money to future proof.

with computers, like let's say my surface pro 4, performance ages rather well and as a result should last a few more years without significant loss of performance, especially if your computing uses are divided amongst different devices (ie., desktop and laptop/hybrid). by the time performance issues become noticeable, or your situation changes to demand higher/different functionalities, a new computer will come out with significantly more options and upgrades that you will want.

so unless, you laptop will be your only computer (ie., no desktop), get the configuration that will be sufficient enough for you uses now and one that best fits your budget. like i said, unless your usage patterns demand higher specs, i think the base model will suffice.

 

[Rainar Angelo]

in regards to "future-proofing" being a factor, and thus getting higher configurations solely for that reason, my opinion may differ from others. i used to be always about the "get the top of the line no matter what" because i realized something about computers. although i use computers alot - and i mean alot - a) computers may have longer life cycles than phones, but at the same time when new computers come out they are generally more significant upgrades. b) i use both desktop and portable versions like a laptop or hybrid c) regardless of how often i use computers, it's not always with me.

To explain those 3 points, I'll compare to phones. I always get the most current, top spec'ed phone but its because I ALWAYS have my phone with me at all times and gets ALOT of use (even as an emergency work device if I'm out without a computer, and as a hotspot device even when i am out with a computer). as a result, regardless of the platform and brand, I've noticed cell phones age rather poorly in terms of performance. top specs, in the case of phones, help to mitigate that issue significantly and thus worth spending the money to future proof.

with computers, like let's say my surface pro 4, performance ages rather well and as a result should last a few more years without significant loss of performance, especially if your computing uses are divided amongst different devices (ie., desktop and laptop/hybrid). by the time performance issues become noticeable, or your situation changes to demand higher/different functionalities, a new computer will come out with significantly more options and upgrades that you will want.

so unless, you laptop will be your only computer (ie., no desktop), get the configuration that will be sufficient enough for you uses now and one that best fits your budget. like i said, unless your usage patterns demand higher specs, i think the base model will suffice.

That's pretty good reasoning imo.
The thing is I currently use my laptop for basic purposes, but the cause of that is because its low powered. I'd like to do what I mentioned at the beginning of the post. Will it be good enough for that ?

 

[Keeptechcoolandsimple]

That's pretty good reasoning imo.
The thing is I currently use my laptop for basic purposes, but the cause of that is because its low powered. I'd like to do what I mentioned at the beginning of the post. Will it be good enough for that ?

if you're fairly sure you're only going to be using it for basic editing, and very light gaming, i honestly think the base model should suffice. when Microsoft says the surface laptop is geared towards students, i'm sure they had a usage pattern similar to yours in mind and came up with configurations based on that. and windows 10s issupposed to be lighter anyways.

keep in mind that on tech forums like this, alot of us - to varying degrees - love tech, so for us the more power the better. but for majority of people who need a computer only for basic tasks and aren't tech fiends, alot of power isn't always necessary.also to keep in mind, more power also may mean more noticeable effects on battery life as well ( though i can't vouch for what battery life will actually be like on the surface laptop until it's various configurations have been in the wild for a bit). also, if being away from an outlet for extended periods of time is a major thing for you, you're probably going to keep things light anyways.

in a few years, when you're editing education comes further along and starts demanding power editing tools, a new computer with newer technology will come out that will probably better serve your needs at that time. until then, i say it doesn't hurt to just stick with what you know for sure you'll need now and save some money in the mean time.

give the base model a test run at a brick and mortar store if you can, to make sure it feels like it'll suit you.

anyways, just an advice from a frugal shopper.