Returned the SP4 but not because of issues

[Because Racecar]

Doesn't matter what you call them, they are the same thing.

Pretty sure that was the joke...

 

[RicKaysen]

Shortly after my return window expired, I came to the conclusion that I would have been better served by a lightweight laptop at half the price...sigh.

 

[Closingracer]

Shortly after my return window expired, I came to the conclusion that I would have been better served by a lightweight laptop at half the price...sigh.

Most people are......you can get better specs for less money. You're getting a premium device at the price point

 

[Steveborough]

I'll be returning mine this week before my window closes, I have too many doubts whether Microsoft will release timely firmware patches to address the various bugs. My SP2 took literally 6 months before Microsoft patched a critical day 1 SD card bug, I'm not willing to wait that long before my SP4-i7 truly feels like a premium device. As it stands now, every time my Surface gets hot and the fan kicks in while just watching youtube or my battery is at 75% by the time I make it into the office, or I have to hard reboot it to wake it, the notion of a well spent $2000 becomes laughable and quite infuriating. I'll try my luck with another brand; if its the same story, i'll try another.

 

[Because Racecar]

Most people are......you can get better specs for less money. You're getting a premium device at the price point

This. It seems to work as a primary device for some, but not for others. I guess it still need work.

 

[Because Racecar]

I'll be returning mine this week before my window closes, I have too many doubts whether Microsoft will release timely firmware patches to address the various bugs. My SP2 took literally 6 months before Microsoft patched a critical day 1 SD card bug, I'm not willing to wait that long before my SP4-i7 truly feels like a premium device. As it stands now, every time my Surface gets hot and the fan kicks in while just watching youtube or my battery is at 75% by the time I make it into the office, or I have to hard reboot it to wake it, the notion of a well spent $2000 becomes laughable and quite infuriating. I'll try my luck with another brand; if its the same story, i'll try another.

Long commute? That all sounds bad...

If you're a fan of the pen, you don't have too many choices. A couple from lenovo. Other that that, I have a Yoga Pro and it's fantastic.

 

[Closingracer]

This. It seems to work as a primary device for some, but not for others. I guess it still need work.

For me it was intended at a secondary device but I can see this as a primary device assuming you want to pony up the money for it.

For me the deal breaker was battery life which os quite sade because I loved the device

 

[Because Racecar]

For me it was intended at a secondary device but I can see this as a primary device assuming you want to pony up the money for it.

For me the deal breaker was battery life which os quite sade because I loved the device

That is sad...

 

[ryankelsey7]

After much debate I ordered a Surface Pro 4. After heavily using it I returned it.

I was apprehensive about it based on the problems I read people having with the device. I am happy to report that I did not experience any of the issues. Though the battery life was not great I was expecting much worse.

I actually liked this device but before I get into why I did i'll list my impressions.

- Keyboard/Trackpad - Both were good. I really like the soft material used to make the type cover. It was easy to type on and while the trackpad is smaller than what is on my MBP it did not make me want to go back to the MBP.
- Apps - The most common knock on Windows 10 is the lack of apps. I'm pretty simple and only used the web browser, office, FB/Twitter, Amazon, and ESPN...very basic. Some apps like FB/Twitter were not great but others like Amazon and ESPN felt natural on that form factor.
- Windows 10 - When in desktop mode I have nothing major to complain about. I'm use to Windows 7, OS X, iOS, and Android.

Here is the worst thing about the Surface Pro 4, imo.

- Using it as a tablet

You will notice the weight of the Surface when holding it and using it like a traditional tablet. The iPad and Android tablets are much better to use being a little smaller and lighter. I noticed a weight difference much more than I anticipated.

I also feel that the overall tablet experience just isn't that good on Windows 10 yet. It is really made with the mouse/keyboard in mind first and then given some touch capabilities on top. I'm sure this gets a lot better over time with updates but if you are looking to use this for things tablets have been optimized for (Netflix, e-Books, Social Media, etc) I think you would enjoy the iPad or an Android tablet much more.

The tablet mode isn't even the reason I returned it. I returned it because I just don't need it right now. $1,500 is a lot of money for something I would like to have but don't need. I haven't even had my MBP 2 years and (so far) nothing really wrong with it.

If you are comfortable spending the money or are in need of a new device then I would certainly consider the SP4. I'm just too much of a tightwad right now to spend the money.

I understand the money thing. But I don't get the tablet weight thing. Maybe it's because of my hulking manly hands, but the tablet feels great in tablet mode to me and not really heavier than my ipad4.

As far as apps, I don't get that either. People make the distinction between apps and applications, but really they are the same. No platform has more applications than Windows. The only question is will you be poking at it or clicking at it. Either works well on the SP4.

Also, In my experience, there is nothing that an app can do that can't be done through a webpage in a browser. And a lot of webpages are now being built as web apps and work really well even when you want to poke at it with your fingers. Also, apps are cumbersome compared to a web browser since you can visit multiple sites at once in a browser and bridge your work. Flipping between apps in iOS and android is a pain.

Anyways, just sharing my two cents.

 

[ryankelsey7]

I for one loved the device itself. Just that battery life was poor and needed something better. I loved tablet mode since I found it easy enough to hold to watch a movie and even if I didn't I could use the included kick stand. I was sad that I sold the device but needed something to last longer then 4 hours and this based off my tests would last barely more than 4 hours. Hopefully they improve the battery life in later releases because I would love to own one

I'm literally getting 10-11 hours out of my SP4. It lasts a whole day of work for me. Typing, blogging, reading and few YouTube videos here and there.

 

[Davidz]

I'm literally getting 10-11 hours out of my SP4. It lasts a whole day of work for me. Typing, blogging, reading and few YouTube videos here and there.

How is that possible when everyone else is getting about 4 to 7 hours?

 

[Steveborough]

I'm assuming he's crippled it and disabled everything from sleep to windows hello and limited CPU... most don't want to; we come here to complain because most don't feel they should have to. I love the work arounds, I do, I think you guys are brilliant... just hope that as more people complain, Microsoft gets their act together and fixes what is obviously a systemic software problem

 

[Davidz]

I'm assuming he's crippled it and disabled everything from sleep to windows hello and limited CPU... most don't want to; we come here to complain because most don't feel they should have to. I love the work arounds, I do, I think you guys are brilliant...

Yes, I assume he's made some tweaks. But from everything I've seen, tweaks can only get you an additional hour or two. He's claiming an additional 4 to 6 hours, so I'm asking him what tweaks he's doing to achieve that.

...just hope that as more people complain, Microsoft gets their act together and fixes what is obviously a systemic software problem

I agree.

 

[ryankelsey7]

Nothing really. I changed the battery settings to hibernate instead of sleep. I still use hello to sign in. I have brightness set to medium-low. The most I've gotten is 11hours and 30+ min.

 

[decider]

I myself usually get between 4 and 6 hours on battery. If I compute smartly I have gone for 10 hours on my SP4

 

[inthisidrown]

Right?! I really miss the Win 8.1 UI. I never thought it was bad, but the majority of people did not like it. Something I never understood, but I have a touchscreen on everything, from my desktop to my laptop, so I could see where without the touch it could be confusing.

You can set the start menu to go full screen for the same, well better because I dig the hamburger menu in the upper left, experience as 8.1. Additionally the action center menu is by far much better.

 

[ryankelsey7]

The all apps menu is a step back from 8.1 for touch. We should have an option for full screen like 8.1 and have the sorting features.

 

[inthisidrown]

The all apps menu is a step back from 8.1 for touch. We should have an option for full screen like 8.1 and have the sorting features.

We do, go to Settings --> Personalization --> Start and turn on "Use Start Full Screen". Anything pinned to start can be moved to existing groups, new groups, tiles can be resized or removed.

 

[decider]

We do, go to Settings --> Personalization --> Start and turn on "Use Start Full Screen". Anything pinned to start can be moved to existing groups, new groups, tiles can be resized or removed.

But it is still lacking. Still don't have the same tablet functions like you did with 8.1 and the one I miss is being able to swipe between the apps I may have open. They don't swipe like that in win 10 tablet mode

 

[zkyevolved]

Here's my story with my Surface Pro 4(s)

• Preordered mine, and MS wouldn't let me preorder Complete, but they said I could after it's shipped. So I did that. MS Complete was then available, and they wouldn't let me get it. I returend it.
• Second SP4 with MS complete this time gave me some bugs... I had to reformat it MULTIPLE times... and Surface team was retarded and actually messed it up A LOT WORSE than it was before! BAH! Returned it.
• Got the third SP4 and it worked JUST fine! Loved it ... I used it SO much that I returend the i5/4gb/128 model
• for the i5/8gb/256 model !!!!!!!!!! Been using it, not many issues. Battery life for me is ALWAYS above 6 hours. I can't complain about anything. It runs well! Well, that's not true, battery drain during sleep. I don't even know if it's an issue any more since I have mine set to sleep only for 30 minutes and then hibernate....