Cesar Cadenas/KeynoteUSA
KeynoteUSA’s key findings
- Microsoft has created one of the best work tablets of 2024 with the 11th Gen Surface Pro.
- It is one of the new Copilot+ PCs that houses cutting-edge hardware, long-lasting battery life and a stunning OLED touchscreen.
- As good as the device’s generative AI features are, they don’t perform at the same level as the rest of the machine’s functions.
There’s been a lot of hype around the Copilot+ PCs. When they were first announced in May, Microsoft talked up their performance, how much better they are than the M3 MacBook Air, and all the new features they pack. So far, it seems like consumers have responded to the hype, believing that the company has finally managed to create a worthwhile Windows-on-ARM machine.
Also: I bought the cheapest Surface Pro Copilot+ PC – here are my 3 takeaways as a Windows expert
I recently had the chance to test out one of these machines – the Microsoft Surface Pro 11th Edition – and I had one question in mind as I tried it out: does it live up to expectations? Now that I’ve had the chance to test it out, I can safely say that the device lives up to expectations in some ways and falls short in others.
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It all starts with the model’s hardware. The Surface Pro is powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon X Elite, which, if the hype is to be believed, makes this laptop a “MacBook killer.” It certainly runs pretty well. Browsers worked without any issues, even with multiple videos playing and many tabs open. First-party software and some third-party apps also ran pretty well.
However, I did have some difficulty testing the hardware properly. The Snapdragon X Elite chips are so new that many of the usual benchmark tests we use at KeynoteUSA don’t yet perform as expected. Geekbench was one of the few that did, scoring 14,564, which puts the processor above the M3 MacBook Air but below the M3 MacBook Pro. While this suggests the new Surface Pro is better than Apple‘s hardware, it’s hard to say without proper testing.
By Kyle Kucharski/KeynoteUSA
We’ll have to wait until developers update their benchmarking software to get a clearer picture. Also, as Windows releases more updates to optimize performance with the new chips, we’ll see improved efficiency and performance in the coming months.
Plus: I tried Microsoft’s new Surface Laptop Copilot+ PC and it beat my MacBook Air in three ways
As for the performance of third-party apps on the new Copilot+ PCs, you may have heard that some are slow, buggy, or don’t work at all. Fortunately, Microsoft’s Prism emulator allows many of these apps to run on Windows on ARM PCs (similar to how Apple’s Rosetta lets you run non-native apps on MacOS), though not everything works perfectly yet.
Like PC Copilot+, its AI capabilities are a big part of the device’s appeal. But in practice, I was a little disappointed by most of the features available out of the box. Content Cocreator AI image generator was low quality. Live Captions were slow and often inaccurate. Studio Effects, on the other hand, was pretty good. It improves on the already fantastic 1440p webcam by improving lighting on video calls, centering the camera, and blurring the background, among other things.
Speaking of work, pro users will fall in love with the gorgeous PixelSense Flow touchscreen. It’s a 13-inch OLED display that offers a picture resolution of 2880 x 1920 pixels. The PixelSense even has a 120Hz refresh rate for incredibly smooth images. And with all the software optimizers, the picture quality is impressive.
Also: The best 2-in-1 laptop for work I’ve tested isn’t from Lenovo or HP
The Surface Pro’s speaker system was also surprisingly good, as I was expecting a tinny sound, but the output has a nice bass. The speakers won’t fill the room, but you’ll be able to watch a movie and feel like you’re part of the action.
Cesar Cadenas/KeynoteUSA
Accessories also play a big role in the Surface Pro ecosystem. I had the chance to try out the Surface Slim Pen and the Flex Keyboard; I really liked both of them. Tablet keyboards tend to be low quality in my experience, so I wasn’t expecting much, but Microsoft did a great job with this keyboard. The new generation has a sturdier design made from carbon fiber, resulting in a lightweight yet sturdy product that offers a wonderful typing experience.
As for the pen, I loved its precision. The accessory was able to perfectly follow my sloppy handwriting on the screen, and that level of precision extends to illustration. Every brush stroke, every scribble is accurately rendered. Plus, the flat end of the pen is a handy button. Double-tapping it opens an app that’s set up for instant access.
By Kyle Kucharski/KeynoteUSA
And one of the best qualities of this laptop is its battery life, which is absolutely phenomenal. I ran our usual YouTube livestreaming test at 720p and 50% brightness. At its peak, the Surface Pro lasted just under 13 hours on a single charge. That’s just shy of Microsoft’s claimed 14-hour battery life. In practical use, this is a device that will easily last several days on a single charge.
KeynoteUSA’s buying advice
Microsoft’s Surface Pro 11th Edition is an amazing computer for professional artists who want a high-performance machine with a brilliant display. The era of Windows laptops on Arm is finally here and I can’t wait to be a part of it.
Pricing for the device starts at $999.99. My review unit with the 12-core Snapdragon X Elite chipset, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB SSD costs $1,699. However, it’s important to note that those prices don’t include accessories like the Flex Keyboard. Those cost extra and aren’t exactly cheap, as the Flex Keyboard and Slim Pen combo costs $449.
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