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posted by Fnord666 on Tuesday August 07 2018, @06:18AM   Printer-friendly
from the go-go-gadget-tablet dept.

Submitted via IRC for BoyceMagooglyMonkey

Surface Go—Microsoft's 10-inch, $399 tablet—launches today in 25 markets. Many publications around the Web have had a couple of days to review Microsoft's latest attempt at a cheap(ish) computer, and opinions are surprisingly varied.

Surface Go is a shrunk-down version of the Surface Pro, Microsoft's kickstand-equipped two-in-one tablet/laptop. It has a smaller screen (10-inches, 1800×1200), a weaker processor (an Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y, which is a two-core, four-thread Kaby Lake chip that was launched about 18 months ago), slower and smaller storage (64GB, using an eMMC interface), and reduced battery life (estimated at 9 hours). But it's cheaper. A lot cheaper: the base model is just $399, compared to $799 for the base Surface Pro.

[...] One thing almost every review agrees on is that the Go's processor is slow. The Pentium 4415Y is a 6W processor running at 1.6GHz (with no turbo boosting). As with other Intel chips, that power draw is configurable, and Microsoft has apparently cut it to 4.5W. It should still hit 1.6GHz, but the tighter power envelope means that it will cut back its speed even more aggressively to keep within its thermal budget.

[...] Several reviews also expressed concern over the 4GB model; even relatively light browsing workloads can push a machine past 4GB, and at any price point, we find it hard to recommend a 4GB machine in the year 2018.

[...] Engadget's reviewer felt, by contrast, that the keyboard "blows away any other tablet" keyboard and compared it particularly favorably to Apple's iPad Pro Smart Keyboard.

[...] The display was broadly liked; 400 nits of brightness was enough for some outdoor usage, with Engadget calling it "gorgeous" and Mashable praising its brightness and viewing angles.

[...] Build quality, the kickstand, the stylus support, the cameras (including Windows Hello facial recognition), and even the port selection (one USB Type-C port, one Surface Connect charging port, a 3.5mm headset jack, and a microSDXC reader) were universally liked.

Source: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2018/08/the-surface-go-reviews-are-in-and-theyre-a-bit-all-over-the-place/


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  • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday August 07 2018, @07:53AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday August 07 2018, @07:53AM (#718151)

    It performs 33% better than a 2013 80$ Bay Trail tablet with the same battery life: http://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Pentium-Gold-4415Y-vs-Intel-Atom-Z3775/m549016vsm12464 [userbenchmark.com]

    The following generation, Cherry Trail, performs even better with the same battery life and ended up costing 100$: https://www.fudzilla.com/news/notebooks/39037-cherry-trail-ends-up-in-99-tablets [fudzilla.com]

    This product is a joke and the reviewers are either completely ignorant or just bold face lying.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 25 2018, @08:47AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 25 2018, @08:47AM (#726179)

    I played with one in the MS store. If i didn't already have a surface pro i would have bought it then and there. The pen, with erwser, works wonderfully if you have an actual use for it