Surface Pro X - 13" Touch Screen - Microsoft SQ1 - 8GB Memory - 128GB Solid State Drive - WiFi + 4G LTE - Matte Black

I have been an iPad user mainly for travel entertainment and casual browsing. Upon any trips longer than a day or two, I would have to bring my laptop for actual work-- nothing crazy-- excel, mail, and browser work-- yet the iPad couldn't work. Enter Surface Pro X. I was always wanting to try the Surface line, but every time I tried one out, I would be turned off by sluggish performance and poor battery life. After using this for a week now, I am SOLD. I've been powering away on spreadsheets at Starbucks this morning without having to have both devices with me. Tablet mode works great for browsing and media consumption. Once you get used to Windows 10 coming iOS, its pretty startling how much more capable it is! A couple apps couldn't load due to the ARM processor, but I just use the web based version with the new Edge (which is blazing fast!). Having an always connected computer/tablet with LTE a a full operating system with a sexy design rivaling Apple has me very excited.

When I first read about the Surface Pro X on Microsoft's website I didn't fully realize what the differences between ARM processors and i3, i5, and i7 processors. I still went ahead and purchased it and started using it. At first, when I read that you can't just install anything on it I was worried about my decision. "Did I just purchase a souped-up Surface RT?" However the more I used it the more I was confident with my decision. To start, the display on the Surface Pro X is simply gorgeous. The colors are rich and vibrant and it just looks great I love the very thin bezels on the right and left side of the screen! If you are looking for a tablet/PC to do high-end video editing or late-night gaming sessions then this is not your choice. With the ARM processor you can only run 32 bit programs in emulation mode. However, for watching media, document processing, or other simpler tasks you will not be disappointed. This device is also LTE compatible which I love. I'm an AT&T subscriber and all I have to do is pay a monthly $10 connection fee and I can share my data plan with it. This device also has a solid build and feels very sturdy in your hands. What I don't like is that this device is a fingerprint magnet! I am constantly wiping it down and cleaning the back. Some may not be so picky but fingerprints drive me nuts. The unit also has the ability to increase the SSD space by purchasing a larger drive. A friend of mine took his 128GB Surface Pro X and upgraded it to 512GB. He said this gives him much more piece of mind in not running out of memory. It also saved him money. Overall, I highly recommend this device to the right person. I am 30 days in on using it and have no regrets buying it.

I'm going to focus on the negatives first, but if you get what you want, I think they all can be overlooked. You just need to know the limitations and see if you're okay with it. The processor is NOT what you'd normally find in a desktop and laptop. A few months back, I was purchasing these for my workplace and noticed they had a "Microsoft SQ1 processor". I immediately went what the heck and put it back on the shelf. Microsoft ABSOLUTELY needs to disclose the fact that this processor runs differently. It breaks compatibility with a majority of programs that can run on a normal desktop or laptop. Whether they didn't disclose this on purpose or by accident is unforgivable. I suspect a lot of people buy this because it looks sleek, and expect it to run like a Surface Pro series with a number. Only to find out that it can't really run anything at all other than the built in browser and Office. It has a built in emulator that you can run older Windows programs on, but it doesn't work well and kills the battery life. I only caught it without researching it initially because I'm too nerdy for my own good. So why did I get it then for personal use? My curiosity piqued when these were on sale, so I thought I'd give it a try. I love my iPad Pro, but iOS fails horribly when it comes to productivity. It's touch oriented, which has its pros and cons. It's pretty much a device you use in bed or on the sofa, just looking at the web. This tablet is in a completely different class. I would put it somewhere between a tablet and a laptop. Better than a Chromebook, less than an actual laptop. Being a different processor, again it breaks compatibility with a lot of traditional Windows programs. Even programs that have been converted to run on this sometimes don't run well. Firefox, for example, stutters a lot. It also eats gobs and gobs of memory. The new Microsoft Edge however runs as you'd expect a browser to run. Now that that's out of the way, time for the good... This tablet does everything I want it to. I can use it as a tablet, but Microsoft needs to refine it a little bit. It's sleek and the battery life is really good. It's very portable. It has a built in LTE modem. So that means I can take this with me and not bring my separate hotspot, which is one more thing to keep track of. And I don't want to use my phone as a hotspot, which kills battery life. This has a qualcomm modem, which is the best on market. I've been getting very good speeds. You can actually sign up for a few services on the tablet itself, like you can with a cellular iPad. It did not work completely well for me, due to the carrier. I signed up for the plan on their website, and it automatically activated on the tablet. That was very sleek. The drive is also upgradable. There's no reason to spend a ton more money just to get more drive space. It's located where the SIM card slot is located- in the back. I don't have the type cover and stylus. Maybe at some point I will get it. But I can use my iPad Pro if I need to draw something. I hate the feeling of the keys on the surface cover, and it feels weird to feel the keys if you have it folded back. I do have wireless keyboards at home, so I can use them. It does everything I want it to, and knowing its weaknesses I don't think it's fair to knock down any stars. This laptop will be very good for quite some time. When Adobe converts Photoshop onto this, I expect it to become very useful. 1 star gets knocked because they don't disclose that it has limitations on what it can run. I don't really know where it stands on the value spectrum. If you don't care about cellular but want productivity, you're better off getting a 2 in 1 laptop. A cellular iPad Pro that has double the space is $50 more. If you want a tablet but don't care about cellular access, then the iPad Pro is significantly cheaper. The value depends on what you want and what you need. I feel like it's slightly on the not so good value side. I recommend this to anyone who needs a good productivity computer and it's a GREAT iPad Pro alternative. Just understand that you can't expect this to behave like what you will normally find in Windows computers. Stick to Microsoft's software for now because they perform better.

The Surface Pro X is a glimpse of an ARM-powered Windows future, combining the best bits of phones and computers, but while that future is closer than ever, it isn’t quite ready yet. The new Surface Pro X might look like the rest of Microsoft’s Surface tablets on the outside, but it is fundamentally a different beast on the inside. It has a new processor at its heart called the SQ1, which Microsoft partnered with mobile-chip maker Qualcomm to create, instead of a traditional Intel or AMD chip. It is ARM-based, just like the one inside your phone, not an x86 chip, which has been used in most computers for decades. I think this is just the beginning of something great!

The main plus I bought the Pro X for is LTE. I am a SAP consultant so what is basic for me is to install: (1) Office 365 (check) (2) Drive Cloud. I used BOX but it does not allow it to be installed on Pro X. I investigated and the one that did let it install without a problem was iCloud. (check) (3) Fortinet to connect to the SAP of various clients. In the Microsoft Store is the fortinet, it is installed without problem and connects perfectly to the VPN. (check) (4) MS Project. I installed Project 2007 which is 32 bit and it installed and works without problem (check) (5) SAP LOGON. The ultimate test, I installed the SAP Logon version 7.2 (I like it better than the newer versions). It was installed without problem and connects to SAP just like other computers. (check). In conclusion, it is 100% functional and enjoying all the advantages of the Pro X. Now that everything has worked for me, I will buy the keyboard.

I absolutely love this windows machine. The mobility factor the performance the design is 5/5. But the lack of 64 bit apps means that a lot of software simply won’t work including a few key ones that I need to use. Which is an unfortunate limitation.

I cannot say enough good things about this unit. I wanted something like a hybrid and this has met the mark. It is lightweight and extremely versatile allowing me to take everywhere. For anyone on the go, this unit is great!

Run a business from my Truck mostly. always on the go, was using a Samsung dex system/ with an outdated HP laptop when I needed a computer. Finding a tablet capable of the full versions of EXCEL and running MACRO's led me to the surface. Glad I bought it cause the possibilities are endless. Must buy for any small business owners.