Microsoft Surface Go Review - Review 2022

Over the years, Microsoft's Surface line has inspired a host of imitators in the convertible 2-in-1 market. Indeed, Surfaces have defined what makes for a visually—and functionally—exceptional laptop/tablet detachable. Microsoft is now taking the Surface concept smaller with the Surface Go, a 10-inch Windows tablet that's a shrunken-downward version of the Surface Pro. Most of what'southward familiar about the Pro is here (its design cues, sharp touch on brandish, and born kickstand), just with more pocket-size internal components. Though performance isn't particularly speedy, the Surface Go (starts at $399; $549 every bit tested) is a great mobile companion for less-demanding piece of work, a natural fit for travelers, and an inexpensive selection for classrooms.

It'southward a Surface, Just Smaller

While information technology may sound silly, movie the Surface Go as a Surface Pro that's been put in the clothes dryer a chip too long. It apes the established aesthetic and feel of the larger flagship device, with everything just sized down. (See our companion piece Surface Go Vs. Surface Pro: What'due south the Divergence?)

From the materials to the kickstand, the Become feels, looks, and functions like its larger sibling, whose positive traits are well known. Microsoft's main hardware product offers the best of both PC and tablet functionality through full Windows 10, a sharp high-resolution brandish, a built-in kickstand, and an optional keyboard and stylus peripheral, all of which are coming in the mix with the pint-size Surface Go. (The Windows x aspect is a piffling complicated, but more on that in a moment.)

The Surface Become is, like the Surface Pro, just a Windows tablet at heart, with optional accessories such every bit a keyboard cover turning information technology into a laptop, if y'all like. The main tablet measures 0.33 past ix.6 by 6.98 inches (HWD) and weighs just ane.15 pounds, a highly portable slate made of quality magnesium and just a few feathers above the weight of that 1-pound tablet icon, the Apple iPad (2017). (Every bit a point of comparison for the design, it feels a scrap similar holding a squarer Nintendo Switch in its size and build.)

It'southward not the start Windows 10 tablet, by any means, merely it does come off every bit one of the nicest and most fully featured. Is thinness won't wow you—being as slim as possible isn't really possible here, every bit there's a lot of hardware to fit behind just a display. (With any detachable, that is the price you pay for full detachability.) In fact, information technology's roughly the same thickness as its full-size analogue, the 0.33-inch-thick Surface Pro. Still, it does manage to exist slightly slimmer than the Lenovo Miix 320 (0.4 inch) and the Acer Switch 3 (0.39 inch), and much trimmer than the 0.7-inch-thick Lenovo Flex half dozen 11 ($279.99 at Lenovo) .

The display measures x inches on the diagonal, but the pixel density is very high. It bears a one,800-by-1,200-pixel native resolution, which works out to a 3:2 aspect ratio and 217 pixels per inch. To my eyes, the panel is as precipitous and as crisp equally the excellent displays on other Surface products. Information technology boasts responsive 10-point touch technology, as well. In some cases, the screen'south size required me to lean in to the device, particularly to encounter smaller fonts without straining, when it was set upward in laptop mode on a desk. That'south not unique to the Surface Go, however, equally a 10-inch screen is a 10-inch screen. Resolution can make a departure in text size, but yous can also adapt Windows' font scaling as needed.

The Go's Guts and Ports

Microsoft is selling two different models of the Surface Get, priced at $399 and $549. Inside the $399 model, a "Kaby Lake" Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y processor runs the show, along with the CPU-integrated Intel HD Graphics 615, 4GB of main system memory, and 64GB of eMMC flash retention for storage. Our review unit is the more than expensive version, which offers the aforementioned processor, merely accompanied by 8GB of memory and a 128GB SSD.

Information technology's unfortunately a relatively big toll leap to get this SSD-equipped model, but RAM is pricey these days and SSD is simply non cheap technology. The storage chapters takes a overnice crash-land, though, so you lot can also shop more files and your organization will load faster. A 128GB drive isn't a ton of storage, but for the types of tasks the Surface Go is built for, it'southward a fitting capacity. On the whole, I call up the $399 price bespeak of the Surface Go is ane of the stronger selling points, so there'south less head-turning value in hearing "$550 Surface." Only the speedier storage and more-standard amount of memory are undeniably nice to accept if you'll also lean on this motorcar every bit a frequent work companion.

As for that processor, the Pentium Golden 4415Y is a very low-wattage mobile CPU. (It has a 6-watt thermal design ability rating.) It's a seventh-generation chip with 2 cores only support for four processing threads via Hyper-Threading. A CPU that tops out at this level is more or less necessary given the target price point and express space for thermals—the Surface Go'south design is fanless. All of this promises to add up to a modestly speedy handheld system—by no ways a powerhouse, but a fiddling machine well more capable than your typical farthermost-budget 2-in-1, specially if you opt for the model with the "true" SSD versus the pokier eMMC flash memory. The Pentium Gilt, versus the Atoms and Celerons common in budget chromebooks and like systems in this price range, should help.

Around the edges and bezels of the Surface Go are the concrete ports and inlets, but don't expect many. Yous get dual microphones for voice calls, two cameras (a front-facing 5-megapixel camera, and a rear viii-megapixel 1), a single USB Type-C port (used for data, video out, and charging), a headphone jack, and a MicroSDXC card reader. I'd have liked to see a Type-A USB for attaching workaday items like a flash drive.

In addition, the Surface Go supports Windows Hello for facial-recognition sign-ins via the camera. The standard wireless connectivity is the expected Wi-Fi (here, 802.11ac) and Bluetooth 4.1. Worth noting for frequent travelers, an LTE version of the Surface Go is coming at a subsequently date. Similar the Surface Pro with LTE, it's a natural fit for those who need to work on planes, trains, and automobiles, simply equally I discuss below, long typing sessions are less appealing on this model's keyboard.

Two Flavors of Windows 10

The takeaway of the component overview is that the guts are relatively basic, but the Surface Become still offers a solid spec baseline for the price. As a Windows 10 system, the Surface Go will exist able to run all of your standard Windows programs (Microsoft Role, the desktop version of Spotify, and the like), and should exist able to do so without straining itself given the components.

That brings us to a key signal: the Windows 10 versions that will be deployed on Surface Get. With commercial versions of the Surface Go, Microsoft will be shipping Windows 10 Pro, with the choice to lock the version to Windows 10 S, the version of Windows x that works solely with Windows Store apps and Windows x S-uniform accessories. Versions of the Surface Go sold to consumers, on the other hand, will send with Windows 10 S active by default.

Buyers of these models will have a gratis but one-style (i.e., irrevocable) pick through the Windows Store to switch from Windows ten S style to Windows 10 Domicile. So, in short, y'all volition get a full version of Windows 10 in either ownership scenario. You will just accept to activate information technology, if you want it, on the consumer versions of the Surface Go, and yous can't go back to Windows 10 S if you practise.

After messing around on Windows ten S for a short flow (which largely feels the aforementioned as full Windows 10), I was forced to make my one-time switch. Our benchmarking software consists of multiple full Windows programs, and these could not install on Windows 10 Southward, so I had no choice but to convert. If yous attempt to install full applications, a prompt appears suggesting you make the jump and directs you to the Windows Store to transfer with just a few clicks.

You're a Stand-Up Tablet

Enough of Windows-based 2-in-1s and tablets have sought to emulate the Surface, but the device's excellent kickstand has set the standard for Windows detachables, marrying the tablet and laptop device types effectively and allowing each mode to be deployed quickly depending on need. This is largely a positive, though every bit I'll get into below, the kickstand doesn't work quite too at this size in all situations.

As with the full-size Surface Pro, the Go'due south kickstand has a very wide range of adjustability, thank you to its stiff hinge. You can stand the tablet from virtually vertical to just about apartment (down to 165 degrees). This works well on a desk or tabular array, every bit the smaller size of the tablet proper doesn't make any role of the setup process more difficult. On your lap, yet, the modest size of the Surface Get has only so much kickstand width to balance on your thighs, which makes it less stable used that way than the Surface Pro.

Now, listen yous, the flagship Surface Pro isn't ideal used on your lap, either, just its wider body can fit across your legs much more naturally, even if yous have to be careful not to motion besides suddenly while balancing the kickstand. With the Surface Go, the bottom body/kickstand width means you have to keep your legs close together, or else it will fall between them. That arrangement is serviceable on my lap for a quick session, but much less so for a long train ride, as information technology requires you to sit upright and still, and strain your neck a scrap. And while the device is nicely made and feels sturdy, it'due south non a ruggedized tablet y'all'll feel comfortable seeing clatter to the floor.

So, you'll want to apply the Surface Become mostly on a flat...well...surface. And that'southward fine, because most meaty 2-in-1s this size suffer the same malady. For some users, though, it's a plus, non a minus. Traveling presenters, for 1, may appreciate the small size of the Surface Go, because information technology could exist an excellent traveling companion for giving large-screen presentations. Through the proprietary Surface dock connector, the Surface Go tin display to an external monitor (up to a 4K panel) for presentations, or more concerted desktop piece of work on a big display...

In our trials with the device, docking was instant, though the modestly powered device demonstrated some lag pushing images and 3D models to such a high-resolution screen. Still, it'southward a very handy characteristic to have, and simpler tasks and display operations operate just fine. Your basic static presentation will present no issues.

A Need for (Bigger) Keys

It is a bit of a shame that the Surface Go doesn't come with a keyboard in the box. This, alas, is usual practice for the Surface tablets. I empathise information technology would bulldoze the toll up, but in this detail case, the device becomes much more useful with 1. At this size, propping up the Surface Go on a desk in laptop mode without a keyboard isn't the nigh useful layout. The Surface Become has its uses in tablet way, and the default consumer OS (Windows 10 S) is congenital for poking and tapping. But not having the power to type or utilise a touchpad to navigate Windows is non platonic.

If you are going to make the jump and purchase a keyboard, Microsoft offers a few options. A stock $99 Type Encompass for Surface Go comes in black solitary, while the spiffier $129 Signature Type Embrace comes in platinum, burgundy, and cobalt shades. These are finished with a soft "Alcantara" fabric material, which has echoes of rich Corinthian leather merely nonetheless feels nice to rest your wrists on. The black version, in contrast, is all-polyurethane.

Microsoft sent along the cobalt Alcantara keyboard with our review unit of measurement, which looks pretty swish, only will set your wallet back. Combined with our pricier version of the Go, the price of this review unit adds upward to $678, and that'due south before you go the optional Surface Pen ($99). Factoring in the Pen, the price point begins to spin out of the affordability-minded zone, which both makes the Go less of a bargain and changes which devices it'due south competing with. Many ii-in-one alternatives include the keyboard in the cost, so make sure to factor that in when shopping for the Surface Go.

You attach the Go's keyboard in the same way you exercise on the Surface Pro, a streamlined process equally on well-nigh detachable two-in-1s. The Surface is amongst the easiest to attach and disassemble; some competitors make it a little clumsier than needed. The Surface Go's board connects to the bottom of the device with a magnetic snap, and yous tin can and so conform the keyboard to a more than comfy angle by folding a flap upwardly against the screen and attaching it to embedded magnets there.

While setting up the Type Cover on a desk is a breeze, the new, smaller keyboard is a bit cramped to type on. It's much more comfy as a quick notation-taking device than as a go-to word processing machine. Given the keyboard and display size, I wouldn't exactly look forward to typing a whole essay or review on it. Information technology's functional, but the keys, while they remain island-style with spaces betwixt, are themselves minor since the whole layout has to fit in a narrower device. I definitely became more accustomed to the size as I used the Surface Go for a longer stretch, simply you have to be more than careful with your keystrokes, which will tedious you down and crusade some mistakes at first. That's not to say this is a poor-quality keyboard, though. The keys are backlit, and they deliver satisfying action, fifty-fifty though there's simply 1mm of travel.

Still, the angled nature of the keyboard, when attached to the screen magnetically, does have a picayune requite to it, because there'south goose egg supporting the keyboard between the screen and the front edge. This creates a slight natural sag, and the Alcantara surface flexes in just a niggling when y'all printing on a fundamental. Information technology's not pronounced, and it doesn't ruin the typing experience, simply information technology is noticeable. Unlike the keys, the touchpad is generously sized relative to the whole keyboard, and it tracks very nicely.

A Teacher's New All-time Friend?

And then, traveling presenters, and those who work on stable desks or tray tables, should appreciate the Surface Go. But that leads us to one of the larger talking points surrounding this machine: Who, really, is it for?

With the Surface Go'southward relatively low cost versus the rest of the Surface Pro line and its very portable nature, the didactics market is one of the obvious fits. Classrooms accept taken to chromebooks and iPads in droves every bit affordable options to manus out to students, though I've personally been a bit skeptical of proposed scenarios in which schools rush to buy swaths of these devices without articulate usage-example clarity. You tin can certainly notice apps on either Google Play or Apple tree's App Store that tin can exist used in the classroom, merely functionality is limited.

Though I have like reservations about the investment versus the benefit for schools, I recall the Surface Become is a more powerful tool for this scenario. Running a full PC operating organisation with more power gives schools options for what to run on these devices. They're too modest plenty for younger children to handle, and the integrated touch interface, particularly in Windows 10 S, is appealing (as opposed to on chromebooks, which often lack touch). Younger kids may be more prone to damaging a non-rugged device like this one, but given that Microsoft is aiming for this audition, the Surface Go should exist able to withstand some wear and tear.

At the preview effect I went to before we received a review unit, Microsoft showed me some examples of educational applications that may be employed in the classroom. These ranged from Mandarin-education tools (students would trace the characters with the Surface Pen) to apps with detailed 3D models of the homo head. I tin see scenarios where these would be useful for a classroom of students—or just for an individual child—and while iOS and Android accept their own options, Windows 10 or 10 South is a fleshed-out ecosystem that can also be readily used for productivity piece of work.

The handheld nature and full Windows 10 OS may as well have appeal to the medical sector, where on-the-become professionals tin can conduct the device from room to room to show charts, images, and information, then snap on a keyboard for express data input.

In less specialized apply, I constitute the Surface Go pleasant to tote. I inappreciably find information technology in the cheat of my arm or one paw while buzzing around our office and taking information technology on the train. It shines in any of these on-the-go circumstances, then if yous find yourself hopping from meeting to meeting and spending a lot of fourth dimension away from your desk, this may be a neat partner. On a larger scale, the low cost may exist especially well suited to the bulk-purchase scenarios I mentioned.

Performance Tests: The Get Is So-Then

As mentioned, the Surface Go'south target size and cost ways a relatively minor internal-component offer. With no room for much cooling, the low-wattage CPU is a necessary selection, and it fits the general design concept and purpose of the Become. All of this is to say you shouldn't wait blistering speeds, and indeed, it performed modestly on our criterion tests.

Its PCMark 8 Piece of work Conventional test is on the low side for modern systems, and it didn't match up too well against some of the competition. (It should be noted, though, that having a higher screen resolution hurts this score, and the Lenovo Flex 6 11, for example, only offers a 720p display). I included both the Miix 320 and the more expensive Lenovo Miix 520 for comparison since the Surface Go'southward price tin scale closer to either of them depending on the SKU and keyboard.

In more general, anecdotal use, I found the Surface Go's responsiveness perfectly acceptable for everyday tasks. Open too many visually demanding applications, or launch besides many browser tabs at once, and it will slow down. But it ran fine for web browsing, word processing, and light multitasking in my experience.

Multimedia tests were some other story. Like the PCMark eight score, the results I saw on Handbrake, Cinebench, and Photoshop weren't exactly impressive, ranking well backside the Cadre i5 U-series kin assembled hither in the charts. It'southward pretty obvious this isn't a media car or workstation, though, so using it in a pinch for media editing is the virtually I'd expect a reasonable user to subject this machine to.

Run across How Nosotros Test Tablets

As you might guess, the Surface Get isn't a killer at 3D-accelerated applications, either. No detachable tablet is, really, every bit professional or hobby-grade 3D readiness is the realm of gaming laptops, mobile workstations, or the uncommon general-use laptop that includes a discrete graphics bill of fare. None of the Go's competitors is 3D- or gaming-ready, worth keeping in mind if you piece of work with 3D models or rendering and were hoping to use a device similar this while on the move.

Despite the fact that the Go's compact chassis doesn't leave much room for a beefy battery, the Surface Get lasted for a very respectable 9 hours and 56 minutes (9:56) on our video-playback rundown test. The Flex 6 xi ran for a petty longer, at 11:10, but it and others were in the same ballpark. Near 10 hours isn't super-long battery life (many ultraportables can hack that), but it is a lot of time away from the charger for a system that stresses mobility. And it'southward strong enough for a detachable design, given that, in most cases, the merely place the battery can live is behind the screen. (Notable exception: Microsoft's own, and way pricier, Surface Book 2.)

A Nice-But-Niche Surface?

Putting aside the specific professional use cases and bulk-purchase scenarios addressed before on, someone who travels a lot on aircraft will find plenty of employ for the Surface Go. It won't take upward much room in a conduct-on handbag, it fits on a tray table merely correct (peculiarly minus the detachable keyboard), and even though the arrangement is not ideal, information technology can be used on your lap.

Fifty-fifty our pricier 8GB/128GB model is but passable on speed, though, and so if y'all need to get a lot of processor-intensive work done, something with a bit more power may be a ameliorate fit. That said, a peppier ii-in-1 volition also accept to be larger. Detachable tablets' potential power tends to calibration with size, as a 10-inch tablet like the Surface Go is more thermally challenging within for hardware engineers than a 12- or xiii-incher like the Surface Pro, by sheer dint of less space for cooling.

While I wouldn't make a Surface Go my primary machine for graphical/video creativity work or enervating tasks—Microsoft acknowledges this is non really its place—it's even so a fine choice for a lean, mean travel companion. The Get fills a niche, is nicely built, and is inexpensive enough to justify its role. Ability seekers, though, looking for a principal-squeeze detachable 2-in-1 should go along to look at the Editors' Pick-winning Surface Pro start.

Microsoft Surface Go Specs

Laptop Class	Budget, Detachable 2-in-1
Processor	Intel Pentium Aureate 4415Y
Processor Speed	i.vi GHz
RAM (as Tested)	8 GB
Boot Drive Blazon	SSD
Boot Drive Chapters (as Tested)	128 GB
Screen Size	10.6 inches
Native Display Resolution	1800 by 1200
Touch Screen	Yes
Panel Technology	IPS
Variable Refresh Support	None
Screen Refresh Charge per unit	lx Hz
Graphics Processor	Intel Hd Graphics 615
Wireless Networking	802.11ac, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)	0.33 by 9.half dozen by vi.98 inches
Weight	one.2 lbs
Operating Organisation	Windows 10 S
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)	7:42

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Source: https://sea.pcmag.com/apple-ipad-reviews-news-tips/28271/microsoft-surface-go-review

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