Is the Surface Pro X pointless?
It depends, and that’s the point.
On page 28 we have a review of the Surface Pro X, which some say is sort of the unpopular stepchild of the Surface family. I’ve been using one for the last month myself so wanted to chuck in some personal perspective of what this device is – and isn’t.
This machine is fighting a perception and viable use-case war on several fronts. It’s up against the iPad Pro in many ways, and with that comes fiery fanboy arguments in comments sections and forums as it’s discussed. Secondly, it’s also being stacked up against the ‘proper’ Surface machines running a 64-bit Intel or AMD CPU. Meanwhile it’s fending of a flanking attack from the ‘small-Surface’ – the Go – which offers competing portability. Its Venn diagram also overlaps with Chromebooks.
No wonder it’s copping some heat. Really – it also goes head to head with any high-end tablet or low-end laptop.
But as far as I’m concerned this thing is for travelling. That’s where it shines. It’s gorgeously thin and light, has the best battery life of the whole Surface family and you can shove a SIM card into it for data roaming. Instant-on is great, too, if you need to regularly fire it up to do something quickly.
It’s also a gem for mucking around and surfing while at home. Which is not to say that it can’t handle proper workloads. It all depends on what you want your 2-in-1 to do. Be realistic. The Qualcomm CPU isn’t an i7, but it’s pretty capable. Nope, it doesn’t run 64-bit apps, and for sure that rules out a tonne of stuff – but for a certain type that knows what they want from a machine the Pro X is a sexy, lightweight Windows-running computer. Spec it up with 16GB of memory and it won’t choke.
The case against is cost. It is expensive compared to the Surface Pro 7, which can be had with similar storage and memory for nearly the same price. And, a much better CPU. And will run 64-bit apps.
If it’s right for you, that’s your balanced decision to make. I loved my time with the Pro X, but I have simple needs. I’d class this as a luxury item, for sure. Most people that vaguely suspect they might want to get heavy on workloads should buy a more powerful machine, even just to provide a performance safety net. And most people, it seems, think that way – I don’t think Pro X sales are setting the world on fire, but I’m glad Microsoft made it, just like I’m glad Apple made the iPad Pro.