The pro is really interesting. Larger than SP4 screen at same weight and USB 3.1 Gen 2 with TB3. What's more with keyboard and pen included in the price.... MS will better come with something really good with Asus, Acer (with fanless i7) and Lenovo (with X1 tablet with thinkpad keyboard included and modules) all being already available before SP5 (due for Q1 2017 according to Paul Thurott)
I'd go with the SP5 coming out in October like its done before rather than Q1 unless Ms is using come new tech that won't hit volume production till Q1
Don't expect any new hardware from Microsoft until next spring. Expecting next gen surface, surface pro, surface phone and Xbox all around the same time then
The Miix 700 is just a clone of the SP3, that doesn't add much and has poor battery life... The X1 tablet is a much more interesting an innovative tablet, with a thinkpad keyboard, a better kickstand for laptop use, USB type C and LTE, and the modules add features like 5 hours of battery life, ports, a projector etc.
My guess is that unless Microsoft sees itself as becoming like Apple in controlling both the hardware and software they won't make major changes to the Surface. They will push the envelope as necessary if they see OEMs stagnating or just fixating on aping Apple as most were until recently, but otherwise won't make major changes.
If the Surface Pro 5 is coming in October, it's possible that it will actually be available before this Transformer 3.
Here's hoping Microsoft will adopt USB-C with Thunderbolt 3 instead of their custom port, or at least let third parties develop a SurfaceConnect to USB-C Thunderbolt adapter.
Looks like but it also looks like ASUS almost closely copied the Surface line. Still love my SP4. USB-C would of made it a bit better but over all I still love it.
We will see who is right concerning SP5 and the other MS devices... In any case it's preferable that MS waits more (as it seems it will) and provides us a more compelling device with TB3 and/or liquid cooling for fanless i5/i7, larger screen at same or lower weight, hopefully without shaving battery life as they did with SP4.... (or at least with some form of extended battery module)
Not to parrot ASUS's CEO too much, but the Zenbook is a prestige device. They wanted to be able to say that they created a notebook thinner, lighter, and more powerful than the MacBook at a similar price with similar looks and build quality. They will probably sell more of the Transformer than the Zenbook 3.
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digiguy - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
The pro is really interesting. Larger than SP4 screen at same weight and USB 3.1 Gen 2 with TB3. What's more with keyboard and pen included in the price.... MS will better come with something really good with Asus, Acer (with fanless i7) and Lenovo (with X1 tablet with thinkpad keyboard included and modules) all being already available before SP5 (due for Q1 2017 according to Paul Thurott)SunLord - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
I'd go with the SP5 coming out in October like its done before rather than Q1 unless Ms is using come new tech that won't hit volume production till Q1CaedenV - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
Don't expect any new hardware from Microsoft until next spring. Expecting next gen surface, surface pro, surface phone and Xbox all around the same time thenvanilla_gorilla - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
Don't forget about Lenovo's real Surface competitor the Ideapad Miix 700. Starting at $749 including the keyboard.digiguy - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
The Miix 700 is just a clone of the SP3, that doesn't add much and has poor battery life... The X1 tablet is a much more interesting an innovative tablet, with a thinkpad keyboard, a better kickstand for laptop use, USB type C and LTE, and the modules add features like 5 hours of battery life, ports, a projector etc.KPOM - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
My guess is that unless Microsoft sees itself as becoming like Apple in controlling both the hardware and software they won't make major changes to the Surface. They will push the envelope as necessary if they see OEMs stagnating or just fixating on aping Apple as most were until recently, but otherwise won't make major changes.ToTTenTranz - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
If the Surface Pro 5 is coming in October, it's possible that it will actually be available before this Transformer 3.Here's hoping Microsoft will adopt USB-C with Thunderbolt 3 instead of their custom port, or at least let third parties develop a SurfaceConnect to USB-C Thunderbolt adapter.
Prod1702 - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
Looks like but it also looks like ASUS almost closely copied the Surface line. Still love my SP4. USB-C would of made it a bit better but over all I still love it.digiguy - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
We will see who is right concerning SP5 and the other MS devices... In any case it's preferable that MS waits more (as it seems it will) and provides us a more compelling device with TB3 and/or liquid cooling for fanless i5/i7, larger screen at same or lower weight, hopefully without shaving battery life as they did with SP4.... (or at least with some form of extended battery module)taisserroots - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
What's funny is this has more connectivity than the zenbook 3KPOM - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
Not to parrot ASUS's CEO too much, but the Zenbook is a prestige device. They wanted to be able to say that they created a notebook thinner, lighter, and more powerful than the MacBook at a similar price with similar looks and build quality. They will probably sell more of the Transformer than the Zenbook 3.jsntech - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
And another 3:2 aspect display...sweet!I'm sure it's too much to hope for, but *please* let this tiny trend of 'taller', more-useful-for-majority-of-uses displays keep growing.
KPOM - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
But then they went ahead and put 16:9 into the Zenbook, even though the MacBook uses 16:10. I'm not sure I understand why.Spectrophobic - Monday, May 30, 2016 - link
I think I'll prefer a 1920x1080 panel over 2880x1920. Not having to bother with scaling a big plus for me.I think squarer aspect ratios make more sense on laptops though, as on tablets you can just change orientation to fit your needs.
Impulses - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
Not necessarily, at 10"+ a long 16:10 (let alone 16:9) tablet can become kind of unwieldy and top heavy in portrait orientation...Lolimaster - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
And if you check photos or read comic/manga 16:10 or even worse 16:9 look absolutely horrible in a vertical position.3:2 should be the only aspect ratio for PC ecosystem and 16:10, 21:9 for niche segments (editing),
Movie and TV industry should also adopt 16:10 and ban for good this horrible 16:9
Lolimaster - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
3:2 --> 1,5 ratio is +0.17 from a 4:3, +0.08 from actual A3 paper (1.42~) and -0.1 from 16:10Spectrophobic - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
...and give pretty much every TV pillarboxing?Spectrophobic - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
Ehhh, not really. I'm fine with the SP2.jnfbatista - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
I would love to see one of these paired up with a Razer Core.lilmoe - Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - link
They do have a Thunderbolt GPU dock and lots of other "extensions". It was announced in the presentation...Gunbuster - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Dear lord, please say the one thing they did NOT copy is the shit-tastic Surface Avastar WiFi/Bluetooth.