Considering Surface Pro - Some Questions...

[Bes]

Hi there

I'm in the market for a new machine to replace my ancient 2009 Macbook Pro... I am considering an Apple machine of some sort, but I question how good value they are and I already have a spiffy new Macbook Pro as my work machine anyway (I do need a personal machine though due to not being allowed to use it for non-work-related projects, blah blah blah...)

I'm weighing up a Surface as a potential. I would probably buy a s/h one for now and then replace it with a new one when (if!) the big refresh happens in 2019 with USB-C, etc. My main criteria are:

- Something super portable and light
- Good battery life
- Ability to plug in keyboard, mouse, screen, etc. as if its a laptop (Rules out the iPad Pro)
- Ability to run/ dual boot Linux well
- Easy to use as a 'laptop' on a plane/ train
- Main tasks are light photo sorting/ editing, general MS office work, and coding/ development.

No real requirement for games, etc. apart from the odd bit of Civ 6 or something on a long haul flight maybe!

Has anyone made a similar move? Is the Surface Pro a good option for this? How do people find the keyboard and trackpad? (The one thing I really like about this ancient Macbook Pro is the keyboard)

Thanks!

 

[Bes]

I've owned a number of Surface Pros (a 1, 2, 3 and a 4) and to be honest, whilst they are decent machines, they do actually fail at the "easy" to use on a train/plane part, they need a decent amount of space behind the screen for the kickstand, and if the keyboard overhangs the tray table too much then it can hinge off the Surface.

I've since got a Dell XPS 13 (i7-8550U, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, 4K screen) and I use it a lot more than I ever did any of my Surface Pros. That said, the battery life of my Lenovo X260 (i5 6300U, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, 1080p) is better, but it's a heavier/bigger package and doesn't have a 4k display. The only thing I really miss from my Surfaces is the USB port on the charger which was useful whilst travelling), as a productive device, my XPS is much more travel friendly.

Thanks... looks like it’s back to the drawing board then!
Cheers