What do YOU see as the Best feature of the new Surface Book?

[erzhik]

Really?

The power cable for my Elitebook 2730p is quite long - maybe I'll use that instead when I'm travelling.

Only the wall outlet part. Not the power brick part.

 

[ParoleGA]

The display, it is truly awesome. I am not much up on current display tech specs, but I watched Gotham on Netflix last night, and was really amazed. The blacks and shadows stay dead black, even with brightness all the way up. Gotham is shot with some artistic flair, and looked amazing on this screen. When half of someone's face was lit, and the other half in shadow, the contrast between the two was really great; bright skin tones to utter darkness, not grey. Color reproduction, and lack of any pixel presence, is top notch, too. This is an amazing panel!

 

[MicrosoftTomBook]

I might have gotten one from a 'good' batch though these are my favourite things about the Surface Book so far:

1. The screen, oh my god the screen...The display on this thing is just absolutely gorgeous. I literally smile when I open this computer and I had to do a few double takes the first time I opened it up. I'm very impressed by it. The screen wobble for me is very minimal and nothing I didn't expect; the touch capabilities of this are awesome as well, really accurate and responsive.

2. Windows Hello. This was a bit tedious to setup at first, though only because I had no internet and the whole 'pin' thing. However, once it was working, it was working FAST. I mean, faster than typing fast. I sit down and it recognises my face and logs me in in under 2 seconds. Awesome!

3. The pen. I know, I know, a lot of people will say this and some may say "meh". But honestly, using the pen is nice and works the way it should. I've used Cortana with it and have written some notes already with it, it's just...good.

Obviously there are other things, like the keyboard, however so far these are my favourite things. I have to say I'm a firm believer in using the devices the way they advertise them and the way they sort of, "want you to" ? You know, trying to integrate the pen and Cortana etc...To the point where, I just use them all the time anyway. One of my biggest examples I tell people is with Cortana and here is why: I don't use anything else. I don't open the start menu, I don't search for programs or files, I only use Cortana. Okay, sure, I look for pictures and things in the explorer, but that's rare. I love embracing new features and technology and really encourage people to do the same until it becomes a regular, second nature thing, because its really useful!

 

[Gken]

1. Battery life, I now hardly ever have to even check if my laptop will last throughout the day. Kudos to Microsoft on that.

2. One thing that is really important to me is the keyboard. It is an absolute joy to type on this thing. They weren't joking that this was the best keyboard laptop ever.

3. Windows Hello. If people think this was a gimmick.....so did I at first. But I can't tell you enough that it is so great not having to press anything and it automatically unlocks.

 

[daddyful]

definitely the pen and writing/drawing experience for me. Although I wish there was a way to use the keyboard while the screen was flat.

 

[tedj101]

1. Battery life, I now hardly ever have to even check if my laptop will last throughout the day. Kudos to Microsoft on that.

2. One thing that is really important to me is the keyboard. It is an absolute joy to type on this thing. They weren't joking that this was the best keyboard laptop ever.

3. Windows Hello. If people think this was a gimmick.....so did I at first. But I can't tell you enough that it is so great not having to press anything and it automatically unlocks.

Windows Hello blows my mind every morning!

 

[orlbuckeye]

I imagine you could use a bluetooth keyboard while the screen was flat. I like the screen on the Surface Book. A note it's set and the reccommended DPI is 200%. I changed it to 175% and the letters looked blurry so I switched it back.

 

[Micropel]

I would have to say the Overall versatility of the device.. Let me give a small brake down from a designers stand point:

Wacom Cintiq: $999.95 ( Device that allows me to do full creativity on a screen + you still need a computer!) Stationary!
Desktop Tower: $700.00 (any computer brand on average) i5 4th Gen/ 8 GB / 1 TB HDD Stationary!
Bare minimum NVidia GeForce: $150 (1GB supported dedicated) Stationary!
Mouse and Keyboard bottom dollar: $50 for both (wired)
Standard monitor 19" VGA $120 (on average) Stationary!

Cost for above totals 2020$ and you are stuck to a Desk!
may I remind you everything above is low budget specs excluding the Wacom Cintiq.

so for an extra 80$ to that price tag you can get a

Surfacebook: i7 6th Gen/ 8GB RAM/ 256GB SSD/ dGPU 1GB RAM Built in Touch and pen response,
Portability, a Laptop that detaches from its base and still FUNCTIONS AS A LAPTOP at 3.34 Pounds!

final conclusion surfacebook is a no brainer!

 

[john_ferrier]

3:2 aspect ratio because I hate the 16:9 screen which looks like a beltfish for me!

 

[Motor_Mouth]

I'm sorry but the difference between 3:2 and 16:9 is hardly worth noting. It's 1.5:1 against 1.7:1. Yes, you can say you prefer one over the other but to say you love one and hate the other is just stupid. The number of pixels is infinitely more important.

Anyway, assuming that it will one day get to a stage where it works properly, there is no one thing that makes it good. What makes it brilliant is how well everything comes together to create an overall experience. It's the thought and care that has gone into creating it (which is sadly let down by the software/firmware at the moment) that makes it a joy to use.

Last weekend I mastered my band's new album on mine and it was so effortless. I installed drivers for my outboard audio gear and it all fit in perfectly. Switching from the realtime software sequencer we create everything in to our non-realtime audio editors (Adobe Audition and Sony SoundForge) where we master and check everything was super-slick, with no stuttering or freezes that I've experienced in the past. And yesterday I finished off a work project I had started on my old laptop, with a Quad-core i7 and serious Quadro graphics, and the difference in performance in Adobe After Effects really wasn't noticeable. Where the CPU/GPU might be lacking slightly, the super-fast SSD more than compensated. It's such a great balance of features, nothing else can touch it. It just needs a few things fixed properly and it will awesome.

 

[Richard Ryan Dort]

1. Being able to take the tablet off and even flip it around.
2. How smoothly and effortlessly it switches from touch, to pen, to keyboard input. It's actually really impressive.

 

[Cruachan 11]

I moved from a Surface Pro V1. I was looking at an SP4, but I use the tablet occasionally and more the laptop mode.

I chose the book over the SP4 for the form factor, the extra 4GB RAM on the base SB over the closest equivalent SP4 (I work in IT so being able to run a couple of Hyper-V VMs is useful for demos etc) and the larger screen. The extra USB port is also useful, I quite often need to use a wired connection and/or a serial connection.

 

[jmerrey]

I originally made the purchase for two reasons: the clipboard and build quality. The build quality has remained excellent of course, but the clipboard functionality, at least for me, hasn't evolved like I expected. I had envisioned using it to take notes in client meeting, but the quality of the ink to text in One Note has made it very time consuming. I was spending too much time correcting errors. It's possible my handwriting isn't up to par of course, but that doesn't solve the problem.

Interestingly, after all the firmware updates, I'd say the best feature is the battery life. I'm consistently getting 12+ hours now.

 

[emacalli]

Have you experienced any stops, hangs or pauses if you were to unclip the tablet flip it around and clip it back on? Just curious as I'm considering the laptop.

 

[Maksym Ovchynnikov]

Battery, it's first. It provides usage during almost the full day (if I don't use it for hard rendering).
Pen and touch screen, it's second. Before buying Surface Book I have to use many A4 paper for derivation of some formulas etc. But now I don't use paper anyway. I just use OneNote.

 

[maflynn]

New owner here, waiting for the delivery of my new baby.

I opted for the base model, since this will be secondary machine. I'm having a bit of buyer's remorse, but not because I bought it, but I'm hoping the low end model isn't too low end for my needs. I don't think so, since I've been rocking with a SP3, but I may be tempted once I get it all configured and put it through its paces to exchange it. I'll wait and see first.

 

[Lumious]

Best feature i have to say is:

Precision track pad by far! First of all the track pad itself is amazing, super smooth and large. I would have to say this is the best track pad i have ever used, i even find it slightly better than a Mac Book track pad.

I am mouse guy. For as long as i can remember i always refused to use track pads. They make simple quick tasks on a mouse take 2 or 3 times as long. I have always plugged in a wireless Logitech mouse accessory with my Dell Laptop and took it everywhere with me. I always used to use the sculpt comfort mouse with my Surface Pro 2 as well. I couldn't understand how people could even use track pads. The simplest things such as scrolling would require dragging the cursor all the way to the right of the screen, clicking the left button and dragging down when i could simply use a scroll wheel on a mouse.

All that changed when i got the Surface Book. I quickly learned almost all the gestures and find the track pad now to be just as fast if not faster than a traditional mouse. 2 finger scrolling is AMAZING, wow! It works so well its almost unbelievable. Three and four finger gestures to use the task switcher, bring up the action center, enter task view, just incredible. Pinch to zoom...I can go on and on.

Therefore, for me, the track pad itself (hardware) in combination with Precision (software) make it by far the best feature of the surface book.

The second best i would have to say would be either battery life or detachable screen. Totally cool.

 

[hopmedic]

Best feature i have to say is:

Precision track pad by far! First of all the track pad itself is amazing, super smooth and large. I would have to say this is the best track pad i have ever used, i even find it slightly better than a Mac Book track pad.

I am mouse guy. For as long as i can remember i always refused to use track pads. They make simple quick tasks on a mouse take 2 or 3 times as long. I have always plugged in a wireless Logitech mouse accessory with my Dell Laptop and took it everywhere with me. I always used to use the sculpt comfort mouse with my Surface Pro 2 as well. I couldn't understand how people could even use track pads. The simplest things such as scrolling would require dragging the cursor all the way to the right of the screen, clicking the left button and dragging down when i could simply use a scroll wheel on a mouse.

All that changed when i got the Surface Book. I quickly learned almost all the gestures and find the track pad now to be just as fast if not faster than a traditional mouse. 2 finger scrolling is AMAZING, wow! It works so well its almost unbelievable. Three and four finger gestures to use the task switcher, bring up the action center, enter task view, just incredible. Pinch to zoom...I can go on and on.

Therefore, for me, the track pad itself (hardware) in combination with Precision (software) make it by far the best feature of the surface book.

The second best i would have to say would be either battery life or detachable screen. Totally cool.

I have to agree with the trackpad. I've only had my SB for a day, but I'm already impressed. I have never had a laptop that satisfied me with palm rejection. I don't know what it is, but I always end up disabling the trackpad, because it will move and click something else while I'm typing. I haven't done a lot of typing on the SB keyboard yet, but not once has it moved the mouse on me yet, or taken the focus somewhere I didn't want it to be. I'm still going to be brining my Arc Touch Mouse with me everywhere I go, but it will be nice to be able to use the trackpad on those occasions when I want to.

 

[gautam kadan]

Water proof / spill resistant. Just found out the hard way. SpillEd half a bottle of water on it while it was on. Straight into the keyboard with dgpu. Still works

 

[hopmedic]

Water proof / spill resistant. Just found out the hard way. SpillEd half a bottle of water on it while it was on. Straight into the keyboard with dgpu. Still works

I most certainly wouldn't take that to the bank.