My week started with the Windows 10 devices product event in Zürich where I’ve been invited by Microsoft Switzerland. In a typical lounge atmosphere with good sound, appetizers and a glass of wine I could test the brand new Surface Pro 4 and the Lumia phones. The following product reviews are based on my impressions during the product event.
Microsoft Surface Pro 4
The new Surface Pro 4 looks thinner (8,4 mm instead of 9,1 mm) and is lighter than its predecessors. The tablet has a 12,3 inch touch screen with a resolution of 2736 x 1824 pixels. The PixelSense display recognizes automatically whether a pen or a finger is used and optimizes the touchscreen accuracy. The Surface Pro 4 runs with 6th Generation Intel Core m3, i5 and i7 processors. The kickstand is similar to the Surface Pro 3 thus it’s still a bit difficult when working on the thighs.
Improvements are the magnetic pen and the keyboard which seem to be attached firmer to the device compared against earlier versions. My personal favorite is the Type Cover 4. It feels distinctly more like a regular keyboard and comes with additional space between the keys. That makes it easier to write down a document without accidentally hitting the adjacent keys. The Type Cover 4 is also available with a fingerprint reader.
The Surface Pro 4 with Intel Core m3 or i5 processor are available beginning November 12 in Germany and November 19 in Switzerland. The devices with Intel Core i7 processors are available beginning December 12 in Germany and also in Switzerland.
Microsoft Surface Book
The Microsoft Surface Book was the highlight of Microsofts product presentation earlier this month. Therefore I was excited to play with the first laptop made by Microsoft. But unfortunately the Surface Book was’t presented during the event in Zürich.
Microsoft Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL
The first two mobile devices running under the new operating system Windows 10 are made by Microsoft. The smaller device is the Lumia 950 with a 5,2 inch display and a 1,8 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 six-core processor. The bigger device is the Lumia 950 XL with a 5,7 inch screen and a 2,0 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 eight-core processor. The two devices are differed by the size and the processors. Both devices have a clear and vibrant AMOLED display with a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels, 3 GB RAM, 32 GB of internal plus up to 200 GB expandable storage and a 20 megapixels camera which made great pictures in the dim lounge atmosphere. Both devices have a dedicated camera button and a 5 megapixels front camera.
Windows Hello allows you to unlock your device through iris recognition. I didn’t test this feature, so it will be interesting to see how it works under real world conditions. The shell is made of plastic but having said that I like the modern and clean design. This is probably the reason why it’s lighter than its competitors. Both devices will be available beginning November 27.
Microsoft Display Dock (Continuum)
Possibly the biggest pitch is the Microsoft Display Dock (Continuum). A hub that turns Windows 10 smartphones into a Windows 10 PC. Simply connect a Lumia 950 or 950 XL to the Microsoft Display Dock and add a keyboard, a mouse and an external monitor. Since the Office and Outlook apps scale up automatically you’re ready to work like on a normal PC.
The new Windows 10 devices are a big step forward. I’m looking forward to see those devices under real world conditions. I’m still hoping to get a test device. Oh, and I also could assort a a box of chocolates.
Picture credits: Surface Pro 4, Lumia 950 XL, Microsoft Display Dock (Microsoft)
