surface 3 Looking for Surface 3 Alternative ( Or should i just go for Surface 3 ?)

[Bearmc27]

(I am from Hong Kong, not a native English speaker, sorry if i make any grammer nazi rage or something)
Greetings friends in LTT forum,
I have been considered buying a tablet for my next year college study and i would like to have some suggestion on what to buy.
 

Information and requirement:

• Prefer Windows OS, for installing IT related software and better transfer-ration from my PC to the tablet, also not interested in any Android/ iOS only apps.
• Budget will be around 600USD, feel free to suggest slightly higher price product tho.
• Tablet will mainly for documentation, light-medium weight programming in school, personal entertainment (watching video, playing some lightweight games) too.
• I already own a portable Bluetooth keyboard that I love it very much.
• I own a relative strong PC ,so whenever I am at home and i need to do heavy duties, I am fine with that.

So the questions are:

1. Based on the above info. and requirements, is surface 3 128G the best to go? Any better or similar alternative?
2. If yes, can the cpu in surface 3 ( I believe is Quad-core Intel Atom x7-Z8700 processor ) with 4GB Ram be enough for the above usage?

Thank you for any suggestions!!

[VAkena]

12 minutes ago, Bearmc27 said:

So the questions are:

1. Based on the above info. and requirements, is surface 3 128G the best to go? Any better or similar alternative?
2. If yes, can the cpu in surface 3 ( I believe is Quad-core Intel Atom x7-Z8700 processor ) with 4GB Ram be enough for the above usage?

Thank you for any suggestions!!

If you don't mind a laptop at $100 more check this out: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/acer-aspire-r14-2-in-1-14-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-256gb-solid-state-drive-black/4503300.p?id=1219755698811&skuId=4503300

 

If you want a portable machine, I don't think you can go wrong with the Surface 3. It offers full Windows and is much more powerful than its tablet-based competition. I don't think there's another product that matches its versatility. 

[Bananasplit_00]

surface book? its awesome IMO, not sure how much it is but its really good IMO

[AlTech]

1 hour ago, Bearmc27 said:

(I am from Hong Kong, not a native English speaker, sorry if i make any grammer nazi rage or something)
Greetings friends in LTT forum,
I have been considered buying a tablet for my next year college study and i would like to have some suggestion on what to buy.
 

Information and requirement:

• Prefer Windows OS, for installing IT related software and better transfer-ration from my PC to the tablet, also not interested in any Android/ iOS only apps.
• Budget will be around 600USD, feel free to suggest slightly higher price product tho.
• Tablet will mainly for documentation, light-medium weight programming in school, personal entertainment (watching video, playing some lightweight games) too.
• I already own a portable Bluetooth keyboard that I love it very much.
• I own a relative strong PC ,so whenever I am at home and i need to do heavy duties, I am fine with that.

So the questions are:

1. Based on the above info. and requirements, is surface 3 128G the best to go? Any better or similar alternative?
2. If yes, can the cpu in surface 3 ( I believe is Quad-core Intel Atom x7-Z8700 processor ) with 4GB Ram be enough for the above usage?

Thank you for any suggestions!!

Dude. Same. I'm in HK as well.  Except English is my first language.

 

As for Surface 3........ How long can you hold off purchasing it? It's been around a year since it came out. It's rumored to be refreshed in February 2017.

 

The only issues with Surface 3 is that A) You'll have a tiny keyboard (you should get the type cover even if you have a Bluetooth keyboard)

B) It takes forever to charge (like around 4 hours - An average laptop charges in 2 hours)

C) Pen isn't included (May not be an issue for you)

D) No Windows Hello (Also comes down to preference)

 

Make sure you get the 4GB model. I would encourage you to go to your nearest Fortress store and try it out.

They'll let you try out the trackpad and you can even buy it on the spot.

 

IF you do serious or moderate programming DO NOT BUY IT!

[AlTech]

15 minutes ago, Bananasplit_00 said:

surface book? its awesome IMO, not sure how much it is but its really good IMO

It's like $11000 HKD starting price. For comparison, OP's budget is $4650 ish HKD.

 

 

[Bananasplit_00]

1 minute ago, AluminiumTech said:

It's like $11000 HKD starting price. For comparison, OP's budget is $4650 ish HKD.

 

 

or RIP. well its still a good laptop tablet hybrid

[Bearmc27]

1 hour ago, VAkena said:

If you don't mind a laptop at $100 more check this out: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/acer-aspire-r14-2-in-1-14-touch-screen-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-256gb-solid-state-drive-black/4503300.p?id=1219755698811&skuId=4503300

 

If you want a portable machine, I don't think you can go wrong with the Surface 3. It offers full Windows and is much more powerful than its tablet-based competition. I don't think there's another product that matches its versatility. 

The price of this laptop in HKD is a little bit off my budget, thanks for your suggestion anyways. But i always wonder, what is the feeling of using these kind of 360 degree 2in1 laptop, when you use it in tablet mode, the keyboard is at the bottom of the device, will it feel weird to hold or something? like it is not flat?

Edited May 24, 2016 by Bearmc27

[Bearmc27]

53 minutes ago, AluminiumTech said:

Dude. Same. I'm in HK as well.  Except English is my first language.

 

As for Surface 3........ How long can you hold off purchasing it? It's been around a year since it came out. It's rumored to be refreshed in February 2017.

 

The only issues with Surface 3 is that A) You'll have a tiny keyboard (you should get the type cover even if you have a Bluetooth keyboard)

B) It takes forever to charge (like around 4 hours - An average laptop charges in 2 hours)

C) Pen isn't included (May not be an issue for you)

D) No Windows Hello (Also comes down to preference)

 

Make sure you get the 4GB model. I would encourage you to go to your nearest Fortress store and try it out.

They'll let you try out the trackpad and you can even buy it on the spot.

 

IF you do serious or moderate programming DO NOT BUY IT!

Hello to my friend from Hong Kong and thanks for the detailed information.
I believe my style of using this tablet/laptop would be mainly for documentation and light weight programming which I call it idea crafting, whenever i need to do "real job" i would prefer my home pc or school pc. So far keeping jobs at home and avoid any heavy duties outdoor is fine to me.
I am looking forward for the new surface too. I hope they can put more effort on the cpu. Atom Cherry Trail is cool but it will be cooler if they can put better cpu in it without pricing up too much

[AlTech]

2 minutes ago, Bearmc27 said:

Hello to my friend from Hong Kong and thanks for the detailed information.
I believe my style of using this tablet/laptop would be mainly for documentation and light weight programming which I call it idea crafting, whenever i need to do "real job" i would prefer my home pc or school pc. So far keeping jobs at home and avoid any heavy duties outdoor is fine to me.
I am looking forward for the new surface too. I hope they can put more effort on the cpu. Atom Cherry Trail is cool but it will be cooler if they can put better cpu in it without pricing up too much

Really though apart from charging it's quite ok for a "light weight" device.

 

Unfortunately it's just not powerful enough for me so I'm gonna get the Surface Pro 4.