Soon to be new owner

maflynn

New member
Apr 6, 2014
202
0
0
Visit site
Well, I pulled the trigger on the Surface Book.
I've been contemplating this for a very long time, heck, when they rolled this out last year I wanted one, but then reports trickled in about the issues.

Anyways fast forward to 2016 and my 2012 rMBP isn't up to snuff, for extended usage (The battery is finally giving out), and my SP3 has had its share of wifi issues that I don't feel confident about it on my next trip.

I opted for the base model, i5/8gb/128GB of storage. I'm a bit hesitant about the 128GB but I think it will be good. Its purpose as a secondary machine and not for all of my heavy lifting.

Office apps, some temporary image storage (until I get back hope to off load them), remote access to my work network and note taking.

The thing that drove me to get this over the weekend was MS' promotion. I save a lot of money because of the back to school pricing and promotion to get the accidental coverage and a year of Office for 50 bucks.

Thanks to 30 day return policy, I can put the laptop through its paces and see if its a good fit for me or not.
 

raziel

New member
Feb 2, 2005
10
0
0
www.blackhaloinc.com
Hey good to see a fellow Macrumors user here. I also did the same thing and pulled the trigger on the i7/16gb/512gb using the student discount, on sale for $200 off, $100 best buy rewards, and I might add on the year of geek squad for $79.

Heard there were a bunch of issues too but thankfully best buy elite gives you 45 days to return :)
 

orlbuckeye

New member
Mar 19, 2015
477
0
0
Visit site
The one problem with remote access to your work computer is scaling. The text is super small because of the resolution on the SB. There was a fix that scaled the resolution but the AU broke that. You may have to drop down the resolution when you VPN and remote to work PC.
 

maflynn

New member
Apr 6, 2014
202
0
0
Visit site
Hey good to see a fellow Macrumors user here. I also did the same thing and pulled the trigger on the i7/16gb/512gb using the student discount, on sale for $200 off, $100 best buy rewards, and I might add on the year of geek squad for $79.

Heard there were a bunch of issues too but thankfully best buy elite gives you 45 days to return :)

As I mentioned, I opted for the base model, due to its intended usage, but also I'm very budget conscience. I have a 5k iMac, and that will remain my main machine so I cannot justify the higher price tag that the dGPU/higher storage models were going for.

I have no regrets over the base model, and I can't wait for to arrive (bought it online) :D
 

raziel

New member
Feb 2, 2005
10
0
0
www.blackhaloinc.com
Ton of issues right out of the box.

Froze right after logging in for the first time
USB ports stopped working
Chrome keeps crashing

I am force installing the anniversary update. See how that goes.
 

avivzan

New member
Nov 19, 2012
5
0
0
Visit site
As I mentioned, I opted for the base model, due to its intended usage, but also I'm very budget conscience. I have a 5k iMac, and that will remain my main machine so I cannot justify the higher price tag that the dGPU/higher storage models were going for.

I have no regrets over the base model, and I can't wait for to arrive (bought it online) :D

don't you find it confusing working with two different operating systems? or are you using windows on your mac as well?
 

ananve

Member
May 22, 2016
190
0
16
Visit site
For Windows machine right out of the box, you have to let it update itself for some times (can be overnight or a couple of days). This includes more than one restarting.
After the system settle itself down, it should run well.
 

raziel

New member
Feb 2, 2005
10
0
0
www.blackhaloinc.com
Ok so I installed the Anniversary Update and the USB ports are working again.

Chrome 64-bit will absolutely not work on the Surface Book, and neither will Chrome Canary / Beta. I tried the 32-bit version of Chrome and it has been working so far.

No crashes yet, knock on wood.
 

maflynn

New member
Apr 6, 2014
202
0
0
Visit site
don't you find it confusing working with two different operating systems? or are you using windows on your mac as well?

I split my time between OS X and Windows on my iMac. I have Windows installed on the internal SSD, and OS X on an external SSD. The only confusing part is the key combinations I use, i.e,, Ctl-c vs. cmd-c Win+r for run vs. cmd+space

I like windows and I'm finding myself in that environment more then OS X, but there are things I like OS X that I'd rather not do without for the long term.
 

maflynn

New member
Apr 6, 2014
202
0
0
Visit site
How's the performance of the SurfaceBook sans dGPU. I'm a little concerned now that I may have been penny wise but pound foolish. I'm not too worked up over the 128GB of storage but as I over think things, I want to be sure that the model I picked will have decent performance.

Office Apps, and maybe a tiny bit of Lightroom, only used to store images that I shoot while traveling, I'll then push them over to my desktop
 

maflynn

New member
Apr 6, 2014
202
0
0
Visit site
Wonder why the Chrome only works @ 32Bit version ???
There's another thread where someone else was having significant issues with Firefox and lo and behold, he had the 32bit, his issues disappeared with the 64bit. Different browser I know, but yet it that just makes even more confusing.
 

tgp

New member
Dec 1, 2012
4,519
0
0
Visit site
don't you find it confusing working with two different operating systems? or are you using windows on your mac as well?

I'm not the OP, but it is not a problem working with different OS's. Once you learn them, switching gears becomes instinctive.

I use, on a regular basis, Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Mac OS (Sierra), Linux (Ubuntu), ChromeOS, iOS, and Android. Depending what I'm doing at work, you can even throw in Windows 7 and WP/W10M. I have used all of them for awhile, and I learned them quite well. It is easy to move around once you know them.
 

michsad

New member
Aug 26, 2016
15
0
0
Visit site
Basically in the same boat, expect that I've added the Surface Pro 4 to an all Apple ecosystem. I really liked it.

In fact, I liked it enough to order the Lumia 950XL which will be arriving today. I'm giving Windows a serious try... I'm sure you guys will hear all about it on macrumors :)
 

raziel

New member
Feb 2, 2005
10
0
0
www.blackhaloinc.com
Installed the August 30 updates on my Surface Book and everything has been smooth sailing.

Aside from having a rocky start out of the box... the Surface Book so far has been absolutely fantastic.


  • Keyboard is excellent. Best I've used on a PC and I like it better than my Macbook and Macbook Pro's
  • Track Pad, again best I've used on a PC. Comes in a VERY close second from my Macbook's Force Touch trackpad
  • Performance is very impressive. OS is fast and smooth, productivity apps like Office launch and run quick. Highly considering keeping this at the moment and putting my Razer Blade Stealth for sale
  • Transition between laptop mode and tablet mode, so far Zero issues. Execution has been perfect so far
  • Surface Pen, just as good as the iPad Pro's. Great palm rejection and works great on Evernote and One Note
  • Battery Life (in laptop made) - too early to say but can go 7-8 hours. Tablet mode... dies after 2.5 hours, yikes.
  • This is a very well designed device and well constructed. Feels like a premium product. That hinge is a bit weird but I got used to it in a matter of minutes.

Just remember for all new Surface Book Owners... Install all the updates first and DO NOT go through the aggravation in trying to install Chrome 64-bit. If you have to use Chrome, use the 32-bit version which runs perfectly (so far).
 

maflynn

New member
Apr 6, 2014
202
0
0
Visit site
So my SurfaceBook came yesterday, I was too busy to do anything with it, but I opened it up this morning and one thing I wanted to post is the horrible job MS did in packing. The box in which the computer came in, (not the fancy white box but the shipping one), had only one hunk of brown paper stuff into the side to inhibit (notice I didn't say prohibit) lateral movement. There was no packing material under or over the laptop and the amount of free space in the box meant it probably was bouncing around :(

There was no visible damage to the box, but still, I'm not very happy with how it was packaged.
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
322,901
Messages
2,242,866
Members
428,004
Latest member
hetb