Companion/replacement for MBP13" – iPad/Air/MBPR?

Irish_Tom · 21 Dec 2012 at 13:32

theheyes said:
D'oh silly me, I forgot people don't want Office anymore.

Is it really worth recommending if you only gave it 6/10?

theheyes · 21 Dec 2012 at 14:49

Irish_Tom said:
Is it really worth recommending if you only gave it 6/10?

Scores are a bit contrived to be honest. The iPad is "better" at the moment because there is no getting around the fact that it has a much more mature ecosystem. Having said that though, I use mine all the time. It's a really good tablet.

Based on the OP specifically citing Office compatibility, a long battery life, and high portability the Surface ticks those boxes easily. Functionally it's more comparable to the MBA than the iPad, but at a fraction of the price.

People can say Office RT is 'stripped down' but it's really disingenuous to use that as excuse not to consider it. For most practical purposes and for the majority of people, it's just Office. If you're going to miss add in and macro support you wouldn't even be considering a Mac let alone an iPad.

It's a recommendation based on merit and in context with the OP's requirements.

Irish_Tom · 21 Dec 2012 at 14:59

^^^ Fair enough, good shout.

I read your review after posting and if Surface 2 irons out the issues it does sound like a winner.

Skyboat · 21 Dec 2012 at 15:04

I don't particularly like using Office as I consider it bloated for my needs but at least it has everything I could possibly need to do. Google Docs is still rather limiting in some factors.

fez · 21 Dec 2012 at 16:15

The proper version of the MS surface is going to cost as much as a macbook pro and still not be as good and the RT version is not great so I really can't see how the surface is much use.

I have just got the base model 13" MBA for web development and its perfect. Small, light, good resolution and connections and it runs everything fine. Photoshop, Illustrator, itunes, 2 browsers, 2 editors, sql editor and about 10 other programs don't cause any slowdown.

theheyes · 21 Dec 2012 at 18:03

fez said:
The proper version of the MS surface is going to cost as much as a macbook pro and still not be as good and the RT version is not great so I really can't see how the surface is much use.

Please explain to me how a tablet that comes with Office, has an 8-10 hour battery life, is highly portable and comes with a tactile keyboard for £510 is "not much use" to somebody who finds their MBP "heavy/cumbersome", likes having a full keyboard, and cites Office compatibility as a downside of iOS/OSX? Their words, not mine.

It's a perfectly legitimate suggestion. The OP may well turn around and say he's not interested if it isn't an Apple product, and that's fair enough. I can't second guess every nuance of what other people want. But from an objective point of view based on what's been said so far the Surface is a viable option.

Amp34 · 23 Dec 2012 at 18:54

Mind your language! Don't use that dirty word in here! Objectiveness is not something you usually see in the regular users of the Apple forum...

fez · 24 Dec 2012 at 01:02

theheyes said:
Please explain to me how a tablet that comes with Office, has an 8-10 hour battery life, is highly portable and comes with a tactile keyboard for £510 is "not much use" to somebody who finds their MBP "heavy/cumbersome", likes having a full keyboard, and cites Office compatibility as a downside of iOS/OSX? Their words, not mine.

It's a perfectly legitimate suggestion. The OP may well turn around and say he's not interested if it isn't an Apple product, and that's fair enough. I can't second guess every nuance of what other people want. But from an objective point of view based on what's been said so far the Surface is a viable option.

He said that he thought the macbook air would be underpowered for what he wanted. The surface isn't as capable or fast as the air. Its not a massive stretch is it when you add on the fact that the surface has some serious restrictions? I didn't recommend an ipad because that fits in the same category for me. I know its popular on here to claim to be the voice of reason but sometimes, people are just giving their opinions which happen to be based on more than bias and lies.

Simply my view, just like you think that the surface is obviously a good choice.

theheyes · 24 Dec 2012 at 08:26

fez said:
He said that he thought the macbook air would be underpowered for what he wanted. The surface isn't as capable or fast as the air. Its not a massive stretch is it when you add on the fact that the surface has some serious restrictions? I didn't recommend an ipad because that fits in the same category for me. I know its popular on here to claim to be the voice of reason but sometimes, people are just giving their opinions which happen to be based on more than bias and lies.

It's fine to have conflicting opinions but to brand the Surface as basically 'useless' I thought was completely unsubstantiated, that's all. Nothing personal.

Everybody has a certain amount of bias but I think it's harsh to say that opinions are derived from lies as well (can't quite work out whether I've been called a liar tbh)

FWIW I don't know how the MBA can be considered underpowered either.

fez · 3 Jan 2013 at 09:36

theheyes said:
It's fine to have conflicting opinions but to brand the Surface as basically 'useless' I thought was completely unsubstantiated, that's all. Nothing personal.

Everybody has a certain amount of bias but I think it's harsh to say that opinions are derived from lies as well (can't quite work out whether I've been called a liar tbh)

FWIW I don't know how the MBA can be considered underpowered either.

Not at all, I was simply saying that I try to give as unbiased a view as I can. I was referring to myself in the lying bit