Advice Should el Teed get a Surface Pro??

[Tilda]

Bodhi, I agree with you, but for two points about note taking;
Hand written notes engage different parts of the brain than typing, in theory improving memory.
The Surface pro isn't just any stylus, its a pen with Waacom's tech inside it, it is so accurate and nothing like using a generic stylus on an ipad etc. The closest thing I can describe it to is using an extra fine sharpie to write on glass. With palm rejection as well, it is pretty damn close to writing on paper.

 

[Hawkwind]

That nifty presenter view is present on my copy of Office 2007. Can't say I ever use it as I never prepare what I'm.going.to say, just the key points on the slide then make the rest up as I go along, but it's there.

Very old school. Admit I do the same occasionally. Having decent professional looking graphics on the slide then notes to go with as handouts are much better to engage an audience. For very technical presentations old school works fine. How I do it totally depends on two things, content and how dumb'd down I need to make it for higher levels of management

 

[TdC]

hmm I have *almost* decided against getting the 'Pro based purely on the price and three pages of general Surface bashing on tweakers.net Also, MS in their infinate wisdom have decided to do the equiv of 100 euros price cuts in several countries (but not the NL)

 

[Moriath]

Yup they struggling for sales. It's only valid till 29th August tho

 

[TdC]

tbh I was kind of pissed off when Dutch techy sites called it a price cut when it is not valid in the NL.

 

[Tilda]

Can you get someone to grab you one from US?

 

[TdC]

hmmmmmm there's a thought. how's that adapter look btw? I assume the plug is localized?

 

[TdC]

US: Pro + type kbd + vga adapter = 806 euros
NL: ONLY Pro = 986 euros

 

[DaGaffer]

US: Pro + type kbd + vga adapter = 806 euros
NL: ONLY Pro = 986 euros

Rookie mistake; US price doesn't include VAT; add 21% to that 806...

 

[Hawkwind]

Price just dropped by $100 in US today. Now Surface Pro is 799 USD. Just got the email from the Microsoft store.

 

[TdC]

really? on the int'l MS webby?

also 21% of that is 168. 168+806 < 986. YOU STILL GET THE KBD AND ADAPTER FREE as well as beer money

 

[DaGaffer]

really? on the int'l MS webby?

also 21% of that is 168. 168+806 < 986. YOU STILL GET THE KBD AND ADAPTER FREE as well as beer money

If its dollar prices its the US price (MS localises prices in-territory) which means its always ex-sales tax. The US never displays prices inc. sales tax because a. for most of the history of the internet online sales have been sales tax exempt, and b. now that some states are bringing in sales tax for online its not universal, so the default setting is ex-sales tax if you can't be identified.

And don't forget delivery charges and you may be slapped for import duty, if MS will even let you buy it from the US site.

 

[Tilda]

Easiest if you can get someone to pick it up and pop it in their luggage.
The adaptor has a power brick with a detachable plug end that is just a 3-pin thing like a kettle cord.

 

[TdC]

yeah DaGaffer I know I can't buy from MS intl. Even the pussies at Amazon Germany were too wussed out to sell me my Vaio when it was ~200 euros cheaper on the amazon.de webby than in sonystyle nl webby, and that's inside the EU!

 

[Hawkwind]

I buy stuff when I am in LA or Seattle from MS Stores, so they have me in their email list. The price was for US MS Retail Stores and direct from US Store site.

 

[TdC]

sadly I've opted to not go to a seminar in the US this year, and my usual bah-humbug work travel is either Brussels or Laaahndan. so....meh to that plan. I've got a mate or two travelling in the US atm...might try them lol

 

[soze]

Didn't the RT price drop also come to the UK? If so the Pro might drop in price here too.

One thing that stopped me buying one in the US when I was there is that the Sales Staff told me that any hardware problems and the Tab had to come back to that store you could not take it to any store. She also said that they do not ship internationally so if it broke I could ship it back but then I would need to send a courier in to collect it and ship it back to the UK.

I have no idea if she was correct or not but if she was any fault and you probably wipe any savings out with getting it repaired. Obviously if it has an international warranty and it can go back to MS in England its not a big deal.

 

[Embattle]

The RT just didn't sell so it needed a price drop in both the UK and US but the Pro is slightly less of a serious issue with the current price drop in the US possibly being an attempt to shift inventory to make room for a Pro 2.

 

[TdC]

in an aside, wtf is up with the *2 versions "minutes" after releasing the premier? I mean...do the companies *know* the first version is shit and hurry through the iterations or is that just me being negative? the first iPhony lasted what? 4 years? I mean...come on!

 

[Embattle]

Pro came out in the US in Feb this year, if they do plan to make a version 2 then I would expect it around Christmas.

 

[Aada]

The price is just insane for the pro, it's nearly a grand, just not sure who their target market is for the pro, both the RT and Pro aren't selling well at all in the UK and they made a huge mistake in delaying the UK launch because most people who were probably interested just aren't now and have moved onto other things.

It's just die hard gadget enthusiasts and the odd business user who might have found a use for it that are buying them, students aren't going to spend nearly a grand on a tablet PC.

UK won't see Pro 2 until next year and by then the Pro 3 will have already been designed and getting ready for a US launch.

£799 for the SSD version is laughable it really is and £719 for the 64GB is also laughable, my local PC world has them shoved in a corner so far inside the store if you weren't looking for them you wouldn't even know they were there, I asked one of the tablet advisors there (heh is if he was actually a pro?) they had sold many of the Pro's and was open and honest and said ''we had 10 units in for launch and we still have those 10 units'' originally they had them at the front of the store but after a week they were told to put them anywhere they could find space.

 

[TdC]

yeah dude, I hear you. tbh if they mark the current Pro down 250 euros I will consider it. less if they give me a type keyboard with that shit, otherwise I may as well wait out the P2, no? I mean the presumed release dates are getting close now, and I can just as easily buy one half way through the year. Ah well, my lappy does it's thing just fine.

 

[Bodhi]

Why not just get a new Vaio? The Pro is even lighter than the Surface Pro, has a touchscreen and Windows 8, similar battery life, latest Haswell processor, better screen and sexy Carbon.

 

[Raven]

I heard Sony were crap though?

 

[Overdriven]

No.

 

[TdC]

Why not just get a new Vaio? The Pro is even lighter than the Surface Pro, has a touchscreen and Windows 8, similar battery life, latest Haswell processor, better screen and sexy Carbon.

don't I know it mate. thing is, it's not the screen or the fact it's sporting a Haswell. my current 1st gen Vaio Pro is still eating everything I throw at it with consumate ease, so an upgrade via lack of power is off the cards tbh. I suppose the main point is that I am after a full powered laptop with an OS I can code in in tablet form with a current tablet's battery life and I frankly feel I have to wait.

 

[Bodhi]

I heard Sony were crap though?

I heard you fucked goats.

 

[TdC]

speaking of goat-fucking, I went to Mediamarkt today to have a look at the lappys there. While they all seem to be prev-spec stuff, the Pro Vaios are hella pretty and about half the price of my current one. Sales guy's face when I told him I didn't care to look at the Apple products was a picture too; I bet they get hella bonusses for selling the high spec Macbooks

 

[DaGaffer]

speaking of goat-fucking, I went to Mediamarkt today to have a look at the lappys there. While they all seem to be prev-spec stuff, the Pro Vaios are hella pretty and about half the price of my current one. Sales guy's face when I told him I didn't care to look at the Apple products was a picture too; I bet they get hella bonusses for selling the high spec Macbooks

I bet he doesn't; the margin on Apple products is garbage. The only product we get no staff discount on at all is Macs

 

[TdC]

heh terrible in that case I don't know why he looked all dead-puppy...unless it was that general 4pm-on-a-Saturday-having-to-deal-with-retrads-at-the-media-markt-all-week-long feeling