Surface Pro....

[maxaroni]

My co-worker asked our IT department about the Suface Pro as a "computer" for her DS, as he is entering college this year. He is staring at CC and hasn't decided, as of yet, what he wants to do. Our IT department advised her to NOT get a Surface Pro as a computer as she will be replacing before her son will get through college.

Is this a good choice for her DS?

I have been trying to help her along with some of this as they are a bit lost in navigating all of this

 

[low-key]

after the invention of "pong" I quite moving forward, knowing nirvana has arrived

 

[amberpi]

I've honestly not kept a computer 4 years in a long, long time due to an ex husband with a very short temper. I've now had this one almost 2 years and it's still great though - so here's hoping. I'm strictly a mac girl. I'm not sure a tablet is a great replacement for things like excel, project, Visio, etc., if he should need to use those programs. They're pretty typical in corporate America though.

 

[maxaroni]

I've honestly not kept a computer 4 years in a long, long time due to an ex husband with a very short temper. I've now had this one almost 2 years and it's still great though - so here's hoping. I'm strictly a mac girl. I'm not sure a tablet is a great replacement for things like excel, project, Visio, etc., if he should need to use those programs. They're pretty typical in corporate America though.

That's exactly what I was thinking. We are a Mac/Apple family as well, but use PC's at work. There are things that just can't be done on tablets, IMO. DS24 had an Mac Pro and loved it.

 

[sam_gordon]

I use one for work.

Pros
Light, easily transportable
Good battery life (9-10 hours of use)
VERY quick to boot
Decent specs (speed, RAM, HD)
Can be used as a tablet if you have that need, but it's not required.

Cons
No card reader
Small screen if using it for a long time (I have it hooked to a dock w/dual external monitors at work)
Cost


To correct amberpi... a Surface Pro is NOT a tablet. I use it for Excel, Word, and Outlook everyday. Others in my company use it for those and Powerpoint. It can run Photoshop also (although I haven't tried that yet).

 

[amberpi]

I use one for work.

To correct amberpi... a Surface Pro is NOT a tablet. I use it for Excel, Word, and Outlook everyday. Others in my company use it for those and Powerpoint. It can run Photoshop also (although I haven't tried that yet).

Welp, you're right. Sorry for the poor info OP. I'd still vote Mac, but I obviously have a slavish devotion to Apple.

 

[tcufrog]

I would find out what the school recommends. If she's in a tech heavy major such as engineering or computer science I would ask the department if there are specs the computer needs to have to run the software.

 

[maxaroni]

Sounds like it may work out for them. I hope so as they are fairly clueless and seem to be "winging it" on so many issues. I recommended renting text books and she didn't know that one could do that. I gave her some places that my DS used and she was grateful for that.

 

[tvguy]

No, get a real computer. We started to use Surfaces at work for our anchors to read scripts (when we went paperless) and they are okay for that, but the anchors are always running to their desks to use their desktop for any real computer work.
Find out if the college has a recommended computer, they would know what works best.

 

[tvguy]

Welp, you're right. Sorry for the poor info OP. I'd still vote Mac, but I obviously have a slavish devotion to Apple.

My daughter had a slavish devotion to Apple also. Used a Mac Book Pro for college, but after 5 years, and multiple(frustrating) trips to the Genius Bar, It suffered a lot of hardware failures during warranty. it gave up the ghost, so be bought her a new one for graduation. That one has completely turned her off Apple. Something to do with all the junk they put on them, trial versions of software that should have been included and the fact that it needs all these updates. And this one is going down the same road of hardware failures (optical drive). She says she's done with Apple.
She was so hard core Apple that I am still in shock how she feels.

 

[sam_gordon]

No, get a real computer. We started to use Surfaces at work for our anchors to read scripts (when we went paperless) and they are okay for that, but the anchors are always running to their desks to use their desktop for any real computer work.
Find out if the college has a recommended computer, they would know what works best.

The Surface IS a real computer. Why are the anchors going to their desk? Is it to have a keyboard? The Surfaces we got have keyboards with them (that provide a cover when not in use). I don't mind people saying they don't like Surfaces, but at least stick to facts.

Don't get me wrong, a Surface may not be the best choice, but so far the reasons others have given have no basis in fact.

 

[tvguy]

The Surface IS a real computer. Why are the anchors going to their desk? Is it to have a keyboard? The Surfaces we got have keyboards with them (that provide a cover when not in use). I don't mind people saying they don't like Surfaces, but at least stick to facts.

Don't get me wrong, a Surface may not be the best choice, but so far the reasons others have given have no basis in fact.

We don't have a set, we do our newscasts from the newsroom, much of it on a handheld camera without a teleprompter. So they keep the surfaces on the script software. Really, that is the only way they convinced the company to buy them. I don't use them, but they say they are a pain to switch from the script software to anything else. So getting to a desk top isn't an issue. And after a year of 6 charge cycles a day during the week, they need new batteries at $50 a shot. All to save about $25 on paper!

 

[sam_gordon]

We don't have a set, we do our newscasts from the newsroom, much of it on a handheld camera without a teleprompter. So they keep the surfaces on the script software. Really, that is the only way they convinced the company to buy them. I don't use them, but they say they are a pain to switch from the script software to anything else. So getting to a desk top isn't an issue. And after a year of 6 charge cycles a day during the week, they need new batteries at $50 a shot. All to save about $25 on paper!

I would say you're using them wrong IMO.
1) Buying a Surface simply to be a script replacement is silly. You can do the same thing with an ipad.
2) It shouldn't need 6 charge cycles a day. At the most TWO.

If all you're saving yearly is $25 on paper, that was a bad investment. Someone didn't do their homework.

 

[Pacolovestacos]

To correct amberpi... a Surface Pro is NOT a tablet. I use it for Excel, Word, and Outlook everyday. Others in my company use it for those and Powerpoint. It can run Photoshop also (although I haven't tried that yet).

Disagree somewhat. The Surface Pro is a "hybrid tablet" so Amber wasn't wrong.

I looked at it briefly before ultimately deciding to go with a different product. The product itself has minimal connectivity for external devices and doesn't have a USB Type-C which is kind of silly in 2017. So when TVguy says to get a "real computer," I see where he's coming from.

 

[sam_gordon]

Disagree somewhat. The Surface Pro is a "hybrid tablet" so Amber wasn't wrong.

I looked at it briefly before ultimately deciding to go with a different product. The product itself has minimal connectivity for external devices and doesn't have a USB Type-C which is kind of silly in 2017. So when TVguy says to get a "real computer," I see where he's coming from.

It depends on what you want to do. There's a single USB3.0 port, a mini-HDMI, the power connection, and a headphone jack. It is a full PC though. It runs Win10, is beefy enough for most applications (Excel, Powerpoint, Word, Photoshop), is extremely light weight and very portable. I would have liked to see a card reader and a second USB port. BUT, if you're going to hook it up to a printer, a display, external keyboard/mouse, hardwired ethernet, etc regularly, you can get a dock for it that just gets connected to it's USB.

 

[tvguy]

1) I don't disagree. ipads were what was requested, and there was a reason I am not aware of why Surfaces were purchased. Other than the usual "we don't deal with Apple" issue. We are getting all new desktops and laptops this weekend, going with HP because they undercut Dell on price. Of course, a bunch of the HP's failed right out of the box while IT was getting them ready for installation, so Monday will be interesting.
2) They are a year old, and don't have the battery life they had. They are on 4 am to 7 am....get charged....on 8 am to 10 am...get charged....on 11 am to Noon...get charged......on 4 pm to 7 pm....get charged....on 10 pm to 11 am, get charged.
3) It was more the boss didn't want paper scripts on air anymore, although it also meant they didn't have to replace 5 worn out laser printers.

I would say you're using them wrong IMO.
1) Buying a Surface simply to be a script replacement is silly. You can do the same thing with an ipad.
2) It shouldn't need 6 charge cycles a day. At the most TWO.

If all you're saving yearly is $25 on paper, that was a bad investment. Someone didn't do their homework.

 

[Domo]

Go Linux from Dell



That's the GNome desktop, like the interface in Windows or Mac OS X. It's faster, more secure, prettier (IMO) and MUCH easier to use.

 

[pumpkinmomma]

It depends on what you want to do. There's a single USB3.0 port, a mini-HDMI, the power connection, and a headphone jack. It is a full PC though. It runs Win10, is beefy enough for most applications (Excel, Powerpoint, Word, Photoshop), is extremely light weight and very portable. I would have liked to see a card reader and a second USB port. BUT, if you're going to hook it up to a printer, a display, external keyboard/mouse, hardwired ethernet, etc regularly, you can get a dock for it that just gets connected to it's USB.

A bit off topic but do you have a dock for your surface and if so, which one? I have a pro 4 and am looking for a dock for it so I can easily connect to my printer and document camera.

I like my pro 4. I use it in my classroom and can connect wirelessly to my projector and write with the stylus so I can walk around the room while going over examples with my students.

 

[sam_gordon]

A bit off topic but do you have a dock for your surface and if so, which one? I have a pro 4 and am looking for a dock for it so I can easily connect to my printer and document camera.

I like my pro 4. I use it in my classroom and can connect wirelessly to my projector and write with the stylus so I can walk around the room while going over examples with my students.

I do have a dock. However, it's not the Microsoft one. We tried that out and it didn't work. I'm pretty sure this is what we have... https://www.startech.com/Cards-Adap...3-laptop-docking-station-dual-dvi~USB3SDOCKDD.

ETA: How do you wirelessly connect to the projector? I might be able to use that feature.

 

[pumpkinmomma]

I do have a dock. However, it's not the Microsoft one. We tried that out and it didn't work. I'm pretty sure this is what we have... https://www.startech.com/Cards-Adap...3-laptop-docking-station-dual-dvi~USB3SDOCKDD.

ETA: How do you wirelessly connect to the projector? I might be able to use that feature.

You'll need a wireless adapter and your projector has to have an hdmi and USB port.

https://www.microsoft.com/surface/e...less-display-adapter?os=windows-10&=undefined

It's pretty great. Works really well if you have a smart tv.

Edit: thanks for the docking station info. The microsoft dock was expensive and bulky.