Would you use a Surface Pen on the Surface Laptop?

[Zachary Boddy]

hey there zachary, i totally agree with this statement. the demographics are different for both devices. its cool that the screen is a touch screen but a traditional laptop is used differently than a tablet. the laptop was not built for people to draw and write on with the surface pen. on the plus side, its great that consumers have one more option when buying a surface product.

I agree it's still cool that the Laptop still has a touchscreen, because even on a laptop that can still be useful, but the Pen just isn't built for the Laptop. As is clearly evident by the fact that the Laptop doesn't support any of the Pro's pen features such as the increased pressure sensitivity and reduced latency.

 

[Jeffery Holderness]

I would probably use it every once-in-a-while but not as much as I use it on my SP3. Touch screen yes. Pen support, occasionally.

 

[k1s23]

I agree it's still cool that the Laptop still has a touchscreen, because even on a laptop that can still be useful, but the Pen just isn't built for the Laptop. As is clearly evident by the fact that the Laptop doesn't support any of the Pro's pen features such as the increased pressure sensitivity and reduced latency.

hey again, yeah i agree with you. even though the surface laptop screen is not 100% fully supported by the pen, i think the surface brand was built partly on touch, so having a surface item without touch capability and pen support would be totally out of place. its not 100% pen support as like you said there isnt reduced latency etc. but a surface product that you cant interact with like other surface products is just weird.

 

[k1s23]

I would probably use it every once-in-a-while but not as much as I use it on my SP3. Touch screen yes. Pen support, occasionally.

hey jeffery i agree with you. if i had the pen, i can see myself drawing on charts for work but thats occasional. i am more a keyboard and mouse user than touch user.

 

[jmork]

I wouldnt buy a pen for the Laptop, but if i had it around already i might use it every once in a while. Does anyone know if the pen from the surface pro 4 will work on the Laptop (or new Surface Pro)?

 

[k1s23]

I wouldnt buy a pen for the Laptop, but if i had it around already i might use it every once in a while. Does anyone know if the pen from the surface pro 4 will work on the Laptop (or new Surface Pro)?

hey yeah the olden pens will work on the laptop. im with you; if i had the pen already id try to use it on the laptop, but i wouldnt buy a pen.

 

[Harshvardhan Sahay]

Yes! Indeed. The surface pen is really amazing. It would allow me to do various calculations without having to waste any paper.

 

[BryanMahendra]

For point [2] like posters above, I wouldn't specifically buy-one but if it is available to me; I would try it. With the Surface Family and some 2-in-1 convertibles (mostly the Yoga/360 design), the general consensus for Pen Usage/Viability seems like this:

Surface Pro > Surface Book > x360/Surface Laptop.

For me, there are two primary inking factors: angle & sturdiness; others not included (lightness/portability of device and battery-life) since it's personal preference.

a. The Surface Pro does it best because it's: sturdiness at infinite angle (thanks to Kickstand). It's versatile whether it's low-angle or high-angle needs.

b. Surface Book is second, it's the same 130 angle as Surface Laptop, but the draw-mode when you flip it over proves to be a great mechanic.

c. The Surface Laptops/x360 [e.g. HP x360, Lenovo Yoga]. Now, as we know; this is the debating point--and generally I view this category as unsure/toe-to-toe since it's new.

The SL: has a maximum 130-angle, but it's ultrabook light (1.25 kg). The way I see people who uses the pen is optimally exactly as Panos Panay demoed it. That is you hold the screen-panel and write on a high-angle.

The only usage I think is: quick-jotting/annotating, because it is quite uncomfortable to hold it at that angle. Only thing unique is the 3:2 aspect ratio, since the extra height helps

The x360/Yoga: Seems like they have the edge, since it flips to be a tablet and in 2017 most of them are light-enough (1.3-1.4 kg)--like the HP Spectre 13.3/15", Lenovo Yoga 720, and the Dell XPS 13" 2-in-1.

The only redeeming factor for the Surface Laptop are probably better builds: like 3:2 screen, light--weight, and better battery. Other than that OEMs beats everything including price. And yeah, for OP's point [3], I just wish they also decrease $100 so it would match the SP4 price--it's risky owning a high-end device and if it breaks, you're out of luck.

What do you guys think over: Surface Laptop/Book 130-degree design vs. Yoga/x360 design for pen/inking ergonomics?

Personally for me if either MS makes a lighter Surface Book or OEM device like Lenovo Yoga 910 would mature (maybe a 920: with 3:2 aspect, keep the 79Wh battery, Pen-support, maybe lighter--basically larger Yoga 900s).
http://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/4980/g/lenovo-yoga-910-nw-g04.jpg​

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtOiFuEvNsE

 

[veromeo ramirez]

Well it doesn't come with the pen so probably not. I don't know, maybe its something we got to try and experience for a while before we can make any judgements.

 

[k1s23]

Yes! Indeed. The surface pen is really amazing. It would allow me to do various calculations without having to waste any paper.

its nice to know the surface laptop has touch capability and in situations like you said im sure its a handy device to use, but the real question then becomes: would you buy one to use on the laptop? i wouldnt buy one to use on the laptop, but if i had one then id try to use it.

 

[k1s23]

For point [2] like posters above, I wouldn't specifically buy-one but if it is available to me; I would try it. With the Surface Family and some 2-in-1 convertibles (mostly the Yoga/360 design), the general consensus for Pen Usage/Viability seems like this:

Surface Pro > Surface Book > x360/Surface Laptop.

For me, there are two primary inking factors: angle & sturdiness; others not included (lightness/portability of device and battery-life) since it's personal preference.

a. The Surface Pro does it best because it's: sturdiness at infinite angle (thanks to Kickstand). It's versatile whether it's low-angle or high-angle needs.

b. Surface Book is second, it's the same 130 angle as Surface Laptop, but the draw-mode when you flip it over proves to be a great mechanic.

c. The Surface Laptops/x360 [e.g. HP x360, Lenovo Yoga]. Now, as we know; this is the debating point--and generally I view this category as unsure/toe-to-toe since it's new.

The SL: has a maximum 130-angle, but it's ultrabook light (1.25 kg). The way I see people who uses the pen is optimally exactly as Panos Panay demoed it. That is you hold the screen-panel and write on a high-angle.

The only usage I think is: quick-jotting/annotating, because it is quite uncomfortable to hold it at that angle. Only thing unique is the 3:2 aspect ratio, since the extra height helps

The x360/Yoga: Seems like they have the edge, since it flips to be a tablet and in 2017 most of them are light-enough (1.3-1.4 kg)--like the HP Spectre 13.3/15", Lenovo Yoga 720, and the Dell XPS 13" 2-in-1.

The only redeeming factor for the Surface Laptop are probably better builds: like 3:2 screen, light--weight, and better battery. Other than that OEMs beats everything including price. And yeah, for OP's point [3], I just wish they also decrease $100 so it would match the SP4 price--it's risky owning a high-end device and if it breaks, you're out of luck.

What do you guys think over: Surface Laptop/Book 130-degree design vs. Yoga/x360 design for pen/inking ergonomics?

Personally for me if either MS makes a lighter Surface Book or OEM device like Lenovo Yoga 910 would mature (maybe a 920: with 3:2 aspect, keep the 79Wh battery, Pen-support, maybe lighter--basically larger Yoga 900s).
http://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/4980/g/lenovo-yoga-910-nw-g04.jpg​

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtOiFuEvNsE

awesome post bryan on trying to write with the pen on the surface laptop, and thanks for posting the video of the artist drawing on 4 different devices. like you i noticed how the artist was holding the surface book, which was by supporting the monitor from behind while drawing. the screen wobble is inevitable since nothing is supporting the back of the laptop screen when pressure is being applied, so it just wont be fun to draw without that second hand supporting. if youre carrying the surface pro 4 id say thats the best because of its weight. the yoga is the most ergonomic to draw on from how that artist used it. he was using a stand to place the computer in and draw, had it in tent mode and with the keyboard on the desk and the screen at an angle. its a shame to see how laggy that thing was though.

 

[starkey001]

Microsoft has stated that tilt will come to earlier versions of the Surface Pro in the future. That has more to do with a software/pen combination than the display.

Interesting! Thanks for clearing that up.