Microsoft - Surface Book 3 13.5" Touch-Screen - 2-in-1 Laptop - Intel Core i7 - 32GB Memory - GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q - 512GB SSD
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Description
Features
Unleash your best ideas
With the fastest graphics on any Surface, powered by the latest NVIDIA GTX GeForce GPU, Surface Book 3 13.5" has 40% more graphics performance than Surface Book 2 13.5".
Power when you need it
Get up to 15.5 hours¹ battery life — plus get back to work when you’re ready with improved standby that extends battery life when you’re away.
High-resolution PixelSense display
Breathe new life into your creations on the vibrant, PixelSense touchscreen display that combines Surface Pen,* touch, and Surface Dial.* Also available in 15”.
Show them what you’re made of with the most immersive gaming on any Surface laptop
Pair your Xbox Wireless controller* to enjoy the latest titles with Xbox Game Pass for PC.* *Some accessories and software sold separately.
Video calls and virtual meetings come to life
With spectacular audio and video with far-field Studio Mics, Dolby Audio sound, and HD cameras.
Robust laptop, powerful tablet, and portable studio in one
Home office, kitchen table or living room couch, choose the way your work best with three versatile modes of use.
Get productive with a robust laptop, sketch and write with a portable studio at the perfect angle, and detach the touchscreen to share your ideas on a powerful tablet.
Laptop mode
Get productive with a robust laptop featuring full keyboard and large, responsive trackpad, while navigating naturally on the touchscreen.
Studio mode
Draw, write and sketch with precision using Surface Pen* with Surface Dial* and high-end graphics, at the perfect angle for you.
Tablet mode
Detach the touchscreen to swipe through photos and browse the web with a powerful 13.5” tablet.
From music and podcasts to movies
Experience movies, music, and virtual meetings with astonishing detail, richness, and depth with Dolby Atmos sound.
All the connections you need for multiple devices and accessories
Includes USB-A and versatile USB-C ports, plus a full-size SD card slot.
Do more with the Windows you know
Comes with Windows 10 Home, giving you familiar features, trusted security, and automatic updates.
Surface Book 3 13.5" connected to keyboard base Up to 15.5 hours of battery life based on typical Surface device usage.
Testing conducted by Microsoft in April 2020 using preproduction software and preproduction configurations of Surface Book 3 15” Intel Core i7, 256GB, 16 GB RAM. Testing consisted of full battery discharge with a mixture of active use and modern standby.
The active use portion consists of (1) a web browsing test accessing 8 popular websites over multiple open tabs, (2) a productivity test utilizing Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook, and (3) a portion of time with the device in use with idle applications.
All settings were default except screen brightness was set to 150nits with Auto-Brightness disabled. Wi-Fi was connected to a network. Battery life varies significantly with settings, usage and other factors.
²Surface Pen tilt functionality is available with Surface Pro 5th Gen, Surface Pro 6, Surface Pro 7, Surface Pro X, Surface Book 2 (15"), Surface Book 2 (13") (when using updated firmware), Surface Go, Surface Studio (when using updated firmware), and Surface Studio 2.
³System software uses significant storage space. Available storage is subject to change based on system software updates and apps usage. 1 GB = 1 billion bytes. 1 TB = 1,000 GB. See Surface.com/Storage for more details.
⁵Customization requires download of the Mouse and Keyboard Center and is not available on devices running Windows 10 in S mode or Mac OSX. ⁶Smart Switching not available on devices running Windows 10 in S mode or Mac OSX.
What's Included
Microsoft Surface Book 3
102W Surface Power Supply w/USB-A (7W) charging port
Quick Start Guide
Safety and Warranty documents
Energy Ratings
Key Specs
- Screen TypePixelSense
- Screen Size13.5 inches
- Screen Resolution3000 x 2000
- Touch ScreenYes
- Processor ModelIntel 10th Generation Core i7
- Storage TypeSSD
- Total Storage Capacity512 gigabytes
- System Memory (RAM)32 gigabytes
- GraphicsNVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q
- Battery Life (up to)15.5 hours
- Battery TypeLithium-ion
- 2-in-1 DesignYes
- Backlit KeyboardYes
General
- Product NameSurface Book 3 13.5" Touch-Screen - 2-in-1 Laptop - Intel Core i7 - 32GB Memory - GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q - 512GB SSD
- BrandMicrosoft
- Model NumberSLK-00001
- Year of Release2020
Display
- Display TypeLCD
- Screen TypePixelSense
- Screen Size13.5 inches
- Screen Resolution3000 x 2000
- Stylus InputBuilt for Windows Ink (Active)
- Touch ScreenYes
Processor
- Processor BrandIntel
- Processor ModelIntel 10th Generation Core i7
- Processor Model Number1065G7
Storage
- Storage TypeSSD
- Total Storage Capacity512 gigabytes
- Solid State Drive Capacity512 gigabytes
Memory
- System Memory (RAM)32 gigabytes
- Type of Memory (RAM)LPDDR4X
- System Memory RAM Speed3733 megahertz
Graphics
- Graphics TypeIntegrated
- GPU BrandNVIDIA
- GraphicsNVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q
Compatibility
- Operating SystemWindows 10 Home
Connectivity
- Number of HDMI Outputs (Total)0
- Number of DisplayPort Outputs (Total)0
- Number of Thunderbolt Ports (Total)0
- Number of VGA Ports0
- Number of USB Ports (Total)3
- Headphone JackYes
- Number Of Ethernet Ports0
Power
- Power Supply Maximum Wattage102 watts
- Battery Life (up to)15.5 hours
- Battery TypeLithium-ion
Camera
- Front-Facing CameraYes
- Front Facing Camera Megapixels5 megapixels
- Front Facing Camera Video Resolution1080p
- Built-In MicrophoneYes
Features
- 2-in-1 DesignYes
- Backlit KeyboardYes
- GPS EnabledNo
- Media Card ReaderYes
- Audio TechnologyDolby Atmos
- Speaker TypeStereo
- Security FeaturesFacial recognition
- Cable Lock SlotNone
- Stylus DockNone
- Casing MaterialMagnesium alloy
Dimensions
- Product Height0.91 inches
- Product Width12.3 inches
- Product Depth9.14 inches
- Product Weight3.62 pounds
Certifications & Listings
- ENERGY STAR CertifiedYes
- EPEAT QualifiedYes
- EPEAT LevelSilver
Included
- Included SoftwareMicrosoft Office 365 30-day trial
- Optical Drive TypeNone
- Numeric KeypadNo
- Stylus IncludedNo
Warranty
- Manufacturer's Warranty - Parts1-year limited hardware warranty
- Manufacturer's Warranty - Labor1 year
Other
- UPC889842597110
Customer reviews
Rating 4.4 out of 5 stars with 251 reviews
(251 customer reviews)Rating by feature
- Battery Life4.3
Rating 4.3 out of 5 stars
- Speed4.3
Rating 4.3 out of 5 stars
- Display4.4
Rating 4.4 out of 5 stars
Customers are saying
Customers praise the Surface Book 3 for its fast performance, stunning screen, and versatile design. They appreciate its long battery life, making it ideal for those on the go. The detachable feature and powerful processing power are also highly regarded, especially for video editing and gaming.On the downside, some customers express concerns about its high price, occasional overheating issues, and underwhelming speakers.
This summary was generated by AI based on customer reviews.
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Well worth spending the extra $$$
||Posted . Owned for 3 weeks when reviewed.This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Full disclosure, I’m a Mac guy. Mac OS is far better than Windows. I had a virtual machine running windows because a few of my content authoring applications only run on the OS. I am an instructional designer/director at my college. I have a MacBook Pro, i7, 16 GB of Ram. It’s Ok. I have a command center that is a gaming pc desktop. I wanted to be more mobile, so I bought the surface book 3. It’s an i7, 32GB RAM, 500GB hard Drive with a GTX 1650. I like to take notes so the fact that is a touch screen helps out. I am a lefty, so I have the claw when I write. It works extremely well. There is no bloat ware, as it’s a pure Microsoft product. The laptop is VERY fast. I am extremely happy with it. All zoom sessions run so well The only issue I had was the warranty. Best Buy wanted over 200 bucks for one year. I bought two years directly from Microsoft. I like the surfacebook’s keyboard. It’s not the crappy flimsy keyboard. I can recline and work on it, as the keyboard is more like a traditional laptop. You will love this laptop. It’s a bit expensive, but well worth the $$. If you go low end, you’ll be lucky to get one or two years. Spend the extra money. You won’t be disappointed!
I would recommend this to a friendBrand response from MicrosoftOutreachTeam
Posted .Hi – Thank you for sharing your thoughts and feedback on your new Surface Book 3. It's great to hear that it’s a good fit for your needs. We hope it continues to serve you well. Best, Erica Surface Customer Care
- Pros mentioned:Battery life
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A Versatile Powerhouse!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I have been in the Best Buy Tech Insider program for about a year now and have had the opportunity to field test and review multiple consumer products. Some good, some great and some like the Microsoft Surface Book 3… world class! As a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider program, I did not purchase the Surface Book and it was provided by Best Buy in return for an honest unbiased review. The Best Buy Tech Insider program has never pressured me or suggested that I give anything but an honest and thorough test and review. Nor would I ever do that, as I too heavily rely on honest consumer reviews in my purchasing of items. User reviews are critical to me! The first thing that struck me as I unboxed the unit was how well and sturdy the unit feels. I was curious to see, due to the 2-in-1 nature, that the connection between the screen and the keyboard body portion would feel flimsy and would easily break. It feels a 100% like a laptop when it’s in laptop mode. The connection has a strong magnetic locking mechanism and feels 100% solid and secure! That’s important to me. When I’m using it in the laptop mode, I want it to be a laptop. I don’t want to feel like I have to settle because it’s a 2-1 and a flimsy connection between the tablet and the keyboard is the price you have to pay for a 2-in1. Not so with the Surface 3! I turned the unit on and was pleasantly surprised when Cortana’s voice chimed up and began walking me though her guided set up! I had flash backs to the movie “Her” as Cortana used her friendly and off the cuff and slightly humorous tone to guide me through the set up. One such line that made me actually smile was when Cortana said, “Next up… The legal stuff… You can decline it… but…you know… no Windows.” Really clever. It made other voice assistants seem so 2007. Now to be fair after the set up was complete, Cortana went back to sounding and acting like all the other assistants and her life like and natural tone went back to being as useful as all the other voice assistants we all have. It does show the potential these assistants have and that Microsoft is leading the way to utilize it to make a great set up experience that made this new laptop integration into my digital life seamless and easy. I utilize both windows and MAC OS and the setup was easy cross platforms for things like email and for linking my Microsoft account to my iphone ect. With the Surface 3 , I really love how everything is so intimately integrated with the Windows software and with the Microsoft built Surface hardware. Microsoft OEM software and Microsoft OEM hardware working in perfect harmony!! After getting through the initial setup which was again, easy and fun. I could not wait to get started to see what this hot rod of a 2-in1- could do. The specs are off the chart! First up was to download Adobe Creative Cloud CC 2020. In my vocation, one of the hats I wear is to film, edit and produce training videos and milestone events for our organization. Most of the videos are 10 – 15 minutes but some can get as long as 30-45 minutes and require multiple camera angles, photographs, music and many many short intense action shots. Editing, previewing and rendering, adding filters and transition effects is very computationally demanding! These kinds of projects are the most intense tasks any computer can do. THIS SURFACE Book 3 2-IN-1 DELIEVERS THE GOODS!!! The i7 Intel 10th gen processor is just a powerhouse and when you have the 32mb of ram it’s off the hook. The SSD HD keeps the highspeed info pipeline flowing. I would highly recommend a 1 to 2TB external SSD HD to keep all your working files on and keep your internal HDD clean. With my external SSD, I had zero lag manipulating the videos ect. This unit also has an awesome Nvidia Geforce GTX 1650 Max-Q for the graphics. In addition to the video editing and photo editing, I also tore it up with some of my favorite games as well. So smooth and crisp and the Surface screen looks amazing! So, I got so caught up in this as an incredible laptop that my excitement was reignited as I got ready to take it for a spin as a tablet! I pressed the tablet disconnection button located on the main keyboard and it light up and I felt the magnetic lock disengage. Presto…I had an incredibly beautiful, lightweight, powerful tablet in my hands. Note: when disconnecting it will not save any work in programs you are running so save all your work prior to disconnecting and when you reconnect it, the programs will have been closed. The 2-in- 1 tablet mode is so awesome and versatile, It was so cool because after I put together a video and rendered it, I was able to pop off the tablet and take it into my wife and show her the video in tablet mode. So easy and functional! And the render times are just amazing!!! This Surface has some horsepower under the hood!!!! My boss was also impressed, I foresee more Surface books 3's in our office soon! Another example of just how powerful this Surface is, is in Adobe Premiere CC 2020 the standard quality setting in the preview window is usually 1/8 to ¼ to have smooth playback especially if you have a lot of filters or effects or complex transitions from one seen to another. I cranked the preview quality to full and the Surface just hummed along at light speed….SO MUCH POWER!!! After video editing, I also do a lot of Adobe photoshop CC 2020 and Adobe illustrator in my line of work to fine tune logos, portraits and branding items along with creating hilarious meme’s. The first thing I realized as I began exploring photoshop with this tablet was that a Surface Pen is a must have accessory! Now it’s awesome without one but it is phenomenal with one!!! After a quick trip to my local BestBuy to buy a Surface pen, I was ready to really see what this 2-in-1 could do with Photoshop CC. Note, you could buy an off brand pen but the Surface pen magnetically attaches to the tablet where others will not and the benefits of having a product that was specifically designed to work flawlessly and seamlessly with this particular Surface unit created by the same people that made the pen…well it’s worth the little extra for the Microsoft pen. I also have had a pencil for another pad that was not attached and guess what… whenever I needed my pencil it was at home in my desk or not charged ect. With the Surface pen… it’s always with the tablet 2-in-1 and ready to go. The Magnet is strong enough that I am able to place the laptop in my case and retrieve and the pen stays put!! I really like that. Although you don’t have to have the pen and the touch sensitivity with a finger when it’s in laptop or tablet mode is phenomenal, the pen really takes it to another level for working on the tablet! So easy to remove flaws in Photoshop ect! I also love that I can open word and just start handwriting! You can also hold the cap of the surface pen down and bam sticky notes!!! One click gets you the whiteboard program instantly and two clicks gets you snip and sketch which is super cool! Literally world class laptop and tablet that stand alone in their respective modes but when you put them together, well the magic really happens!!!! I also love that such a powerful multimedia studio 2-in-1 is available to handle the most system intense programs and it’s Windows based! Windows is so dominant in corporate America and it felt to me that you had to choose Microsoft for business and MAC for multimedia… I don’t have to anymore! This Surface will do it all! That’s a real eye opener for me and I love it. Frankly, I love this laptop. The fact I can do big league multi-media projects and still seamlessly integrate with my organizations Windows dominant world is huge! From tech support to utilizing Microsoft TEAMS. I have it all with this Surface 2-in-1. So all this tremendous processing power and it tears through the toughest projects so what about the battery life? Well the specs say 15.5 hours. I worked 10 hours today and here I sit after work (so 11 hours) of hard use and the battery is at 51%. Granted I had a meeting and it was in sleep mode some throughout the day here and there. But I was working…all day. Emails, video project, word docs, excel, a little social media and Youtube ect. Just incredible in such a small form factor You cannot go wrong with this Surface 3, so versatile and powerful, well-built and ultimately work enhancing unit. Then there is the fun side as well. If it can blow through high-end video editing, it is also great at high end gaming as well! 5 stars all the way. I will still keep my skills up on other platforms but no longer just consider Microsoft as a “word and excel” platform. Microsoft has truly crushed it with the Surface 3 platform and then the versatility of the 2-in-1! INCREDIBLE!!! I can’t recommend it enough. The Surface Book 3 is now my go to platform for all my work and play!!!
I would recommend this to a friend - Pros mentioned:Battery lifeCons mentioned:Speakers
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Just as good as my Ryzen 7 desktop
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.“Reviewers in this invitation-only program are provided products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased reviews.” The model I’m reviewing is the 13.5” Intel 10th edition i7-1065G7 @130GHz w/ 32GB memory, and the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 4GB w/ Max-Q Design. Opening box: Opening the well-constructed box includes the Surface 3 laptop and the power cable. The charging cable includes a brick, but it’s very small when compared to other current laptops that I own or have looked at. It’s also magnetic, so it’s easy to connect, but also easy to pop off. I do like this option though because it’s not like the connection of old where it’s possible to snap the connector. I’ll gladly reconnect the cord rather than having to buy a replacement or fix the charging port down the road. The brick is fairly light and measures 4 3/8” w x 2 1/8” h x 1 1/8” thick. That said, the laptop itself feels stout and heavy. Stated weight on Microsoft’s webpage is 2.79 lbs. If so, it’s a solid 2.79…not that I’m complaining. It feels well built, so I’m not afraid of using it as it should be used and not having to baby it. The casing is magnesium alloy or is it aluminum? I’ve read both and I’m not sure, but the color is platinum if that helps, lol. Turning it on for the first time is exactly what I expected, except for the lack of bloatware (thank you Microsoft). After going through the initial setup and getting my Wi-Fi network connected, I expect to go to the Apps settings and start the tedious task of removing unwanted programs. But I only removed Office 365 setup because I already have an existing account. I may have removed an anti-virus program, but if I did, it was so quick that I don’t really remember. I immediately installed Bitdefender which I use on my desktop PC, Mac mini, and my Android phone. I had one install left, so I emailed myself a link and setup was uneventful. I also installed Bitdefender’s VPN which I also have an account for. After that, I installed Office 365 and the applications my account is signed up for. Obviously, Microsoft Word was needed to work on this review, and it works as it should. Once I signed into my Microsoft account, all my shared documents were available to me and I was able to work on this review from any of my PCs, which is so handy. Oh, did I mention it has facial recognition software for signing in? It worked well until I installed Bitdefender and clicked to fast to let it control the camera. Now I need to go find out how to disable that, so I don’t need to use my pin or password to log in. Edit: I found the camera/mic settings in Bitdefender and a simple click to allow Windows access and a restart got it working properly. Did I mention it has a camera on each side of the tablet? I’m guessing they are considered front facing since the tablet can be used either way, normal, or in the 2 in 1 mode. So, what to install to test out this Surface Book 3. I’ll start with Photoshop. Installation was simple and it has no issues loading. I added a few filters to the application, but no brushes yet. I clicked on a CR2/raw file and the Surface Book 3 w/ Windows 10 loaded the application and photo into Camera Raw in 15 seconds. To compare, my Ryzen 7 2700 Eight-Core 3.2GHz with 16GB memory and a Radeon RX580 took 78 seconds to load the same raw photo into Camera Raw. I then chose a black and white filter and tried them on both machines. The desktop took 22 seconds to process the filter and the laptop took 27. That’s great considering it’s a laptop vs. a desktop. Also, the Surface is a quad-core and the desktop is eight (4 core plus 4 virtual vs 8 core plus 8 virtual) and it loads faster and almost performs as well! Then I just used the Surface Book 3 and tested what I feel is Photoshop's most demanding included filter, liquify. The Surface Book 3 can process the filter with little to no problem if the strokes aren’t very large. After about 3-4 swirls, the process hesitates as it tries to keep up. The lag is very short and acceptable. As I said, it’s a pretty demanding filter/process. All the user needs to do is watch the cursor. It will stay an arrow as it’s processing and then revert to the Photoshop circle to begin the next task. I wanted to try a game that uses a lot of resources. I chose Civilization VI because my desktop fan whirls when I play a long game. I installed the game on the Surface Book 3 via the Epic Games app and copied my latest save to the My Games folder in Documents. I opened the city which is on the largest map, I already won, and I’m finished with all tech upgrades. I just like playing to see how much of the map I can take once the game is over. The Surface Book 3 had no issues running the game. It appears to have the same wait time between turns, and I didn’t notice any hesitation or stutter in any of the movements such as the light spinning in the lighthouse. Except for the size of the playfield (not the 13.5 screens fault) the game is totally playable. I just prefer it on a larger monitor, yeah, I’m old! Windows Update is amazingly fast installing system updates. Downloading was fast too via my Wi-Fi home network. It took 2 restarts to complete the needed updates including the windows 1909 update. Speakers…well laptops aren’t the best when it comes to speakers and the Surface Book 3 lives up to that. The speakers do what they need to do and that’s about it. I listened to a few mp3’s and they sounded clear but lack any kind of bass. I wouldn’t say tinny, but like I forgot to turn on the subwoofer on my 5.1 home theater. Still, for doing daily tasks that require sound, the spoken voice should be above acceptable in my opinion. The Surface Book 3 does include Dolby Atmos for both the speakers and headphones, but it only offers on/off in the sound settings. No other options or app is installed. I did check full-range speaker option, but whether that did anything could be up for debate. I think it helped a bit, so it stays checked for now. Using a good set of headphones (I used a wired Rig set) through the port on the tablet and it sounded much better. Adding that bit of bass worked. I imagine it would be the same for gaming. I’ll add it in once I install and play a game on the laptop. Reading Epub’s and PDFs: Reading Epub’s on the tablet works great. If you have the screen attached, you can use the arrow keys in Calibre to scroll pages back and forth. You get a two-page view like a dead tree version. I tried getting Windows to default to Edge for reading Epub’s, but it wasn’t a listed app and I couldn’t locate the right .exe file in the Windows system app folder, so Calibre it is. It works very well for a 3rd party app. Also, if the screen is attached or detached, you can swipe or touch to turn pages, just like an e-reader. Page turns are nice and fast with no lag. For whatever reason, Edge was still the default PDF reader (I guess I clicked make Calibre the default for Epub’s) and it works. It only shows single page view and I haven’t figured out if I can change that to a two-page view. It is very snappy with page turns and looks great like a PDF should. Edge does give me the option to stretch the PDF to full page width, thus making it easier to read and enjoy the pictures. The detachable tablet has an awesome connection between the keyboard and the tablet. Very sturdy and the release key with the green notice on screen makes it very simple. This is the first detachable tablet/laptop I’ve had, and it works great. I wondered if Windows would work just as if it were docked/attached. Yup, I inserted a USB stick to see if it would show up in explorer and tada, no problem. Windows worked as it should. Edit: I read after typing this that Microsoft engineered everything except the batteries and GPU into the tablet, that’s why Windows 10 can operate with all its functions. It makes a great e-reader also. I have a paperwhite e-reader and several other e-ink readers and using this is nice and big. What else? Well, the unit I was sent has 2 USB-A ports, an SD card reader, a USB-c port, and a headphone jack. It’s a bummer it doesn’t support thunderbolt USB-c, but from what I read, Microsoft feels Thunderbolt has security issues that haven’t been fully fixed or addressed. Battery life seems good. I’ve had this on and off all day doing this review, installing and running apps and it still has 51% life with 77% on battery 1 and 42% on battery 2. My battery setting is leaning towards best battery life, but not all the way to the left. Maybe about 60/40. So overall impression. This 2 in 1 has several pros, including the reversible tablet when attached to the keyboard. Better yet, being able to use the tablet stand-alone with Windows 10 fully operational. The connection between the keyboard and the tablet is solid and doesn’t feel like I need to worry about it falling off. The green disconnect/attached popup is a welcome sight for new convertible tablet users like me. The charging cable is a 2 prong (nice) lightweight cord with a small brick making it nice and portable. The lack of bloatware was an unexpected and welcome surprise. The speakers being hidden behind the bezel and up on the tablet make for a better laptop listening experience, but with no subwoofer, the sound is less than ideal for any type of music. As for watching videos, presentations, or other spoken-word uses, they are up to the task. Nice that they didn’t put the speakers under the keyboard. I guess that wouldn’t work well with the tablet unless the keyboard was in the same area as the user. I do wish it could use Thunderbolt 3 so I could try out some of my adapters, such as additional ports or USB-c to projector, but I get that security issues must take precedence. If left to a short answer, I’d recommend the Surface Book 3 to my friends, especially the creative types, ones who need a touch screen or pen for work or school or those who f
I would recommend this to a friend - Pros mentioned:Screen
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Powerful machine with few compromises
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.tl;dr Overall, this is a great option for those looking for serious desktop power in a laptop sized case with touch screen. There are very few compromises made with this clearly premium 2 in 1 laptop. If you’re heavy into graphics and are tired of being chained to a desk, this should be near the top of your list. A couple of annoyances bring it down a star. The Surface Book 3 is the machine I’ve finally been waiting for. I’m an avid hobbyist photographer who likes to touch up my work from time to time. I’ve been using Photoshop and Lightroom for a number of years to organize my pictures and tweak the ones I really like. Up until now, I’ve accepted that I had to use a desktop to manage some of the more compute intensive tasks such as panorama and blurring, two of my favorite techniques. I’d switch to a laptop with a pen for fine line edits, only my laptop didn’t always have the memory to edit files without them being flattened first. The Surface Book 3 is powerful enough to perform all my edits, with a large, sharp screen. This version also packs 32GB RAM which helps a lot when editing larger files. There’s virtually no lag at all when moving to different areas of a photo. I couldn’t even always say that on my desktop with 12 GB of RAM and a dedicated graphics card! Merging photos was significantly faster than the ultrabook I have, a 2019 HP x360 Spectre. One panorama made up of 25 photos took 2 minutes and 30 seconds to merge on the Surface Book vs. 5:12 for the same image on the HP (8GB RAM). Editing it after the merge on the HP was nearly impossible. While the Surface is a little larger than the HP machine for carrying around, it’s nice that I don’t have to switch back and forth to different machines, depending on the work I’m doing. This will also be great on vacation where I can edit my photos while I’m still in the moment. One of the best features of the Surface is the detachable tablet mode. This makes editing using a pen incredibly comfortable. The tablet portion houses nearly all the compute power (minus the video card). While there’s no keyboard, it’s also half the weight of the overall unit. Detaching is as easy as touching a button. While certain edits were slightly slower, all the RAM is in the tablet. That goes a long way towards making editing practical. It then becomes your choice if you want the convenience of a tablet vs the power of a dedicated video card. The only caveat is you can’t detach if you have a file open from a connected source (i.e. USB drive). All the ports are in the keyboard. The keyboard also quadruples the battery capacity. The tablet can be docked as a laptop or in flipped mode where it will fold to the keyboard with the screen on the outside. Since I have an active pen that came with my HP, I didn’t purchase the MS Surface pen. The HP pen worked very well for all I want to do, including easy photo editing. I could right click to get context sensitive menus. I didn’t have the eraser function that MS touts for its Surface pen. It’s a shame that at this price, MS, unlike its competitors, declined to include such a vital accessory. The keyboard is extremely comfortable to use with great key travel and good feedback. However, the Home, End, PgUp, and PgDn keys are awkwardly placed as alternates to function keys. (i.e. Fn-F9 = Home). Sound is clear and friends on a video conference had no trouble hearing me. The SSD drive is faster than any other OEM drive I’ve used, clocking transfers at 2.2GBs read speed in my tests. The docked machine should last well over 6 hours in power saving mode. I was disappointed with the lack of Thunderbolt ports. It comes with 1 USB-C port and 2 USB-A ports rated for 3.0 speeds. MS sells its proprietary docking station with all the ports you need. It’s one of your few options if you want to hook up to more than one external monitor. The standard power plug has a proprietary connector which clips on with a magnet. That’s nice to avoid testing gravity with your machine. You can also charge from a friend’s USB-C if you forget your charger. A 65W charger I have for another laptop was nearly as fast as the plug MS includes. As great as this machine is, I feel I have to take off a star for the awkward keyboard, lack of pen and maintaining proprietary ports. Small changes could have made this much better. I received this machine as part of Best Buy’s Tech Insider Network. Reviewers in this invitation-only program are provided products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased reviews.
I would recommend this to a friend - Pros mentioned:Battery life
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
High end laptop and tablet combo!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I am a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. Reviewers in this invitation-only program are provided products to write honest, unbiased reviews. I received a 13.5” Microsoft Surface Book 3 with the following configuration. 10th Generation Intel Core i7 Processor, 512GB SDD, 32GB Ram, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GPU. This unit can be configured as a traditional laptop, or the screen portion can be removed to use it as a tablet or mounted in reverse on the base to use it for presentations. Per the specs, the battery life in tablet mode is about 6 to 8 hours and 10 to 12 hours in laptop mode. There are batteries in the base and the display, so the battery life is longer when the units are combined. The device uses a quick-connect magnetic charge port, and the included 102-watt power supply also has an auxiliary USB charging port. The power button, volume toggle, and standard headphone jack are in the tablet portion of the unit, and the base has 2 USB 3.0, USB-C, and an SD Card port. The tablet portion is held in place by an electromagnet, so it will not release if the unit is not connected to power and has a dead battery. The backlit keyboard is very responsive along with the touchpad, and the speaker volume and sound quality are above par for a portable unit. A USB-C docking attachment is available that so you can connect additional monitors and accessories and use it as a desktop unit. The Surface Book 3 is a portable tool that is more than capable of serious photo editing. I was able to run full-powered editing software such as Lightroom and Photoshop CS. Photoshop recommends 8GB of RAM to properly execute the program and its effects, so the unit’s 32GB RAM far exceeded all expectations. Combine that with the improved processors I was certainly able to see a faster performance all around. The program is quick to launch and I was able to import over 10GB of my photos, post-process, and export RAW files in about half the time of my previous 16GB laptop. Being out and about I was impressed with the battery life under my heavy rendering load. Overall, I was very impressed with the display. The colors were very vibrant while still feeling natural. There is a great depth to the tones. A real richness. Retouching is a breeze. The faster processor certainly shows in the rendering time. I did not hit any hiccups or lags regardless of how many layers my files had.
I would recommend this to a friend Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Fast, useful and unique
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.Pros: * Plenty of power for all your app needs * Beautiful screen * Unique removable screen for Tablet mode * Useful ports * Adequate battery life when docked, OK when in tablet mode Cons: * A tad thicker and heavier than similar notebooks * Can’t remove tablet portion (screen) with one hand once unlocked * Slim stylus doesn’t firmly attach to the side of the screen * Keyboard lighting is uneven when set for low backlight * Pen our mouse still required - Windows still has some things not great for finger access when in Tablet mode My Review: If you’re reading this review, you’re probably considering buying the Surface Book 3 and are trying to figure out if it’s worth the money and will meet your needs. Hopefully my experiences with it will give you some insights and help you decide. I am a member of Best Buy’s invitation-only review program and have been provided this product for the purpose of writing an honest, unbiased review. I’ll try to cover the basics but also highlight the little stuff that you may not realize until after using it for a bit. The Surface Book has been around for nearly 5 years and has always been a beautiful design statement with unique features to support conversion between use as a traditional laptop or full-featured tablet computer. In its native configuration, it’s a convenient pen and touch-enabled laptop computer; albeit a tad heavier than most competitors due to having dual batteries- one in the screen section for use as a tablet when separated from the keyboard base, and one in the base to increase battery life when used as a standard notebook computer. One of the novel features has been the arcing hinge that spans the width of the notebook. This looks really cool and works well, but forces the lid to not lay completely flat on the keyboard when closed and thus it’s a tad thicker than most notebooks when closed, too. Not a ton has changed to the overall design since its introduction. It still stands out as a gorgeous and sleek notebook with compelling hardware and is a testament to what Microsoft can do when they design the hardware to work in synergy with the software. I’m a User Experience Designer by trade. I spend my work days in the Adobe Creative Cloud suite of apps and my workplace uses Office365 and Slack as our primary office tools. Most of my time is deep in Adobe XD and Photoshop while chatting in Slack and keeping up with Excel spreadsheets, Word documents, etc… Creative professionals such as myself are interested in laptop computers like this to be the center of our workspace - something we can work all day on and still have the ability to take it with us to client, to another office or just to work away from our desks. All of the Surface’s prettiness isn’t worth much if it slows me down, and this notebook definitely gets the job done without complaints. I had no trouble editing a huge XD document while modifying assets in Photoshop… nothing so much as stuttered. For fun (pun intended), I tried to hook up my Oculus Quest via cable and sadly the built-in graphics weren’t up to snuff. The Surface Book 3 is not really advertised as a “gaming” notebook, so you can’t really complain. It still had no trouble with any of the creativity apps I threw at it and multitasked like a true pro. Not everything is perfect, though. While Windows 10 has a lot of great improvements to accommodate pen and touch input; its roots in a keyboard and mouse world are still evident. There’s a lot you can do with your fingers in Win 10, but fine cursor control is still necessary for many things and finger access on the touch screen just isn’t advisable or usable sometimes. When undocked in tablet mode, a mouse or touchpad are no longer available and it relies on touch or use of an optional pen like the Surface Slim Pen. Several times when using the screen in Tablet mode (detached from the keyboard), the touch drivers bailed on me and I couldn’t really do anything until docking back to the keyboard to resume control with the base’s keyboard and touchpad. Another note about the Surface Slim Pen - it works really well and is comfortable to hold and even supports magnetically attaching to some Surface products. The Surface Book 3; however, only seems to allow this pen to attach to the left edge of the tablet and it isn’t really a solid mount. While not a dealbreaker, it would have been nice to support attaching the pen more strongly and to either side of the Tablet portion. The built-in speakers are OK and were free of distortion even at the max volume, but the volume level isn’t really sufficient for listening in anything more than a quiet environment. At least you can easily plug in 3.5mm headphones or use Bluetooth headphones. The power cable is a proprietary connection and attached magnetically to a special port on the keyboard base. There is also a connector on the bottom of the screen so it can be charged separately when detached. The plug, though, is a hybrid of a magnetic coupling with a portion that inserts into a slot, so take some attention to plug it in - you can’t just hold the end near the port and have them snap together. Also, there is an LED on the plug to indicate when it is providing power to the laptop. That LED, though, is on the side rather than on the end so you can’t see it when sitting at the keyboard or holding the tablet. Not a dealbreaker, but a small detail that could use improvement. The keyboard has three levels of backlight intensity. At the highest brightness, it looks great and the light is even across the keyboard, but at the lowest intensity and when sitting at a typical viewing angle, the light looked splotchy and uneven as if the LEDs are too far below the keycaps so the characters are not evenly lit up. Not a huge deal, but if you’re working in a dimmer room and don’t want or need the highest brightness, you might need to hunt for that key you’re looking for because it just isn’t clearly backlit. One last comment on the hardware - when you’re ready to undock the screen to use it as a tablet, there’s a mechanical release that can be kicked off by a button on the keyboard. Once unlocked and ready to be removed, you just pull the tablet off the hinge. The problem is that the screen portion is magnetically coupled to the hinge and is so strongly attached that you need to hold the keyboard down while pulling up on the screen to separate them. In other words, you can’t just unlock the lid and pull it off- it’s a two-handed operation. I appreciate that the lid shouldn’t just fall off when the latch is unlocked, but it would be nice if it didn’t require such a forceful separation and two hands. It might seem that I didn’t like the Surface Book 3. On the contrary; I love this notebook. The hardware design is beautiful and it has more than enough power to be my primary computer for creative work in traditionally performance-demanding apps like the Adobe Creative suite. It’s really convenient to be able to undock the screen and work on a full-fledged Windows 10 tablet, too. Most of the small issues that I noted are nits; small things that can be improved but otherwise don’t prevent getting your work done quickly and easily on this awesome notebook. Some of these areas for improvement may not even matter to you, but it’s nice to be aware of them nonetheless.
I would recommend this to a friend- Cons mentioned:Speakers
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Awesome!
|Posted .This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.I received the product from Best Buy and I am writing honest, unbiased review #sponsored #ad Very easy to set up. The speakers are just OK, not the best. Build is solid, beautiful machine. I absolutely love the face detection to unlock the computer! Screen Resolution is amazing, we have edited tons of pictures in adobe and I just love the effect it gives. Watching and editing videos is also wonderful because the resolution is just that good! )better than my MacBook) Keyboard is not backlit, but I can live with that. While working and editing I find the tablet very easy to detach which is a huge plus. Processing is great, no delays or lagging.
I would recommend this to a friend - Pros mentioned:Screen
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Better than the HP Spectre
||Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.1.Our HP Spectres would break where you plug in the power cord. It plugged in like flashdrives, but over time broke. Not huge, but kind of annoying. THIS surface book 3 has a unique power plugin; it's magnetic. You just hold the cord up near the plugin&it sucks it in! FABULOUS idea! 2. Altho I didn't mind, the HP Spectre did get very warm; vents on bottom of laptop. THIS surface book 3 NEVER even gets warm! AND vents are on the top where the hinge is! GREAT idea! 3.Touchpad works better than HP Spectres. 4.keys work better than HP Spectres, where recently we'd have to really hit the keys harder on the HP Spectres. 5.THIS surface book 3 easily detaches, and I thought I wouldn't like that; but I do. Since I tend to carry around the laptop, it's really handy, and it attaches easiliy too. 6.THIS surface book 3 when detached, THE TOP using as a tablet ALSO has ability to plugin power cord! That's good, because yes the battery goes down faster when just using the top as a tablet. No biggie; plug it in. 7. It does seem that the battery does go down a bit faster than the HP Spectres, BUT not by much, and not an issue for us. 8.All in all, THIS surface book 3 is pricey, but so far, WELL WORTH IT. It is STILL LIGHTWEIGHT, a bit heavier than the current HP Spectres, but the same as the first HP Spectre that came out--we still have that one and weighs the same...so is fine with weight. We only look at very lightweight laptops.That's our#1 priority. Sad I had to spend so much to get a laptop that's lightweight, that ACTUALLY WORKS! (Had to return 2 HP Spectres within a few months, and gave up with them. They short-changed something in the way they make them now. Think it was the screen or hardware issue--awful--would act up immediately; go black,shut down,not come awake,flicker,cursor moved all over the screen,closed out of windows, shrunk windows, etc.,etc. on the HP SPECTRES. DISGUSTING as they are also expensive.) 9.I was told that Microsoft is high end premium; so far I'd say it definitely is. IF I have trouble with it, I will update this review. But have had it now for a month and am VERY happy with it. At least it WORKS, which is what I expect from a new laptop, especially with a price tag like it has. Microsoft has my vote forever unless it acts up like the HPs did.
I would recommend this to a friend
Q: QuestionI read some buyer concerns that the Surface Book 3 occasionally freezes or blacks out when in use. Has that been properly identified and corrected?
Asked by Anonymous.
- A:Answer If this was an issue, think it has been resolved. I can tell you that when I pulled this out of the box, there was not only WinOS updates, but did see firmware updates come across. I have had this thing for almost two weeks and have been pushing the system to its limits with all of my photo and video editing; have yet to experience this issue.
Answered by 82jax
Q: QuestionWill the Surface Book 3 work with my Surface Dock (original)?
Asked by Andy.
- A:Answer Surface Book 3 is compatible with Surface Dock 2 and Surface USB-C Travel Hub.
Answered by MicrosoftOutreachTeam
Q: QuestionWhat are the differences between Surface Book 2 and Surface Book 3?
Asked by MicrosoftFAQ.
- A:Answer Surface Book 3 is our most powerful laptop ever, pairing an Intel 10th generation CPU with an NVIDIA discrete GPU and up to 32GB of RAM. Still thin and light, this powerhouse laptop provides up more performance Surface Book 2 and has the longest battery life of any Surface device. We kept the world-class all-glass precision trackpad and keyboard that our customers love, and the beautifully crisp, high-DPI PixelSense display now detaches from the keyboard base up to three times faster than Surface Book 2. Surface Book 3 13.5” is more than 50% faster and has 40% more graphics performance than Surface Book 2 13.5”.
Answered by MicrosoftOutreachTeam
Q: QuestionCan an upgrade to Windows 10 Pro be purchased and installed at the time of initial sale? Is a docking station for use with this notebook available for purchase from Best Buy?
Asked by GarlicBreath.
- A:Answer 1. Win10 Home to Pro upgrade can be done. Best Buy does carry Windows 10 Pro Upgrade (SKU:6383106). You can schedule an appointment with GeekSquad to have the key update done or accomplish at home as there will be additional pieces of the Windows Operating System that will have to be downloaded to complete the process and if not done correctly, you will have to reload the WinOS. 2. The most current docking station is carried by Best Buy; Microsoft - Surface Dock 2 (SKU:6408935) and is compatible with the latest gen Surface Book.
Answered by 82jax
Q: QuestionWill this support windows 11?
Asked by Windows11.
- A:Answer Yes, Surface Book 3 will support Windows 11.
Answered by MicrosoftOutreachTeam
Q: QuestionDoes this come with a computer case or protective, padded sleeve?
Asked by LoveGIS.
- A:Answer No, however there are plenty of options out there to allow you to get what you need. Note, if you get the pen, it will magnetically attach to the side of the computer.
Answered by Robert360
Q: QuestionIs this laptop lightweight? Does it have a dedicated graphics card? Is it a Windows operating system? Does it have DDR4 or DDR3? How many GBS of storage does it have not including rams?
Asked by conner.
- A:Answer In my opinion, these are fairly heavy. The specs on the page say it weighs 3.62 pounds. The operating system is Windows 10 Home so if you're going to domain connect it you will need to upgrade it to Windows 10 Pro. From what I have read, it uses DDR4 RAM. For storage, you can get 256GB, 512GB, 1000GB or 2000GB options. I purchased the 512GB but in doing so the RAM increases from 16GB to 32GB.
Answered by Ceterius
Q: QuestionDO ALL SURFACE KEYBOARDS HAVE WHITE LIGHTS?
Asked by RJJSR.
- A:Answer I believe the answer is yes. I've never seen any Surface Pro keyboard or Surface Book keyboard with any other color lights.
Answered by ChrisSpera