Laptop Hinge vs Kickstand Poll for SP4

[riggi]

I like the flexibility of detaching the keyboard.
I use a Logitech K810 90% of the time.
It allows me to push the display further away. It also allows me move the keyboard to the side when I need to read a book or papers, but still see the screen in front of me and still use the keyboard off to the side. I do this a lot and used to have to push my laptop a long way back and reach over my papers to type.

I mainly use the type cover as a protective cover and if I have to just type something quickly or go to a meeting and couldn't be bothered carrying the K810 too.

 

[kristalsoldier]

Got mine because I wanted a tablet that can be a laptop, not a laptop that can be a tablet. I use my Surface more as a tablet than a laptop. What's nice is when I really need to work I can do just that because of its versatility; don't have to worry about carrying a heavier keyboard to get some typing in.

Funny! When I got the Surface RT and the Surface 2, I wanted a tablet that would function like a laptop. But when I got the SP3, I wanted a device that function both as a tablet and as a laptop and it performs bloody well in both roles - perhaps as a laptop more than a tablet but this I think is a function of the available apps. I should add that I also have an iPad Air. And, to give the devil its due, the Air is a damn good tablet and I believe the Air 2 is even better. But the iPad suffers from the problem of being a poor substitute of being a laptop despite die-hard fans trying to use it with a keyboard and claiming to execute laptop duties. And, it is precisely here that the SP3 shines!

 

[markusbeutel]

Because to engineer the Keyboard Dock would take resources away from the other engineering tasks to improve other aspects of the Surface Eco-system. By Microsoft's own admission, it took 3 years to get the covers to a shippable format and we are now on our third iteration of said covers.

I've used the 2 and 1's that offer keyboard docks and none of them are engineered anywhere near the quality of the Surface line.

See this is purely subjective opinion... as I find the the various keyboard docks on the Acer Switch series, or the the Venue 11/13 Pro series, to completely dominate the quality of the Surface type covers, to name just a few (I went through 2 type covers and 2 power covers while I had a Surface - in all cases they just stopped working after around a month across multiple Surface machines). Not to mention that the type cover's felt material is just a nightmare in a university setting when you're using it on dozens of desks everyday. After just a week the type covers are essentially disease magnets, and already discolored from all the dirt they pick up. For use at home or in a stationary setting though, I can see how people wouldn't pick up on this (and buying the black one to mitigate this isn't really a solution).

Now if the type covers were made of some sort of plastic or magnesium material like the Surface itself, then I'd consider them to have some decent quality to them, as is though, imo they're just flimsy dirt magnets, and one of the main reasons that people stay away and/or ridicule the Surface lineup.

Having said all that, the type cover for the SP4 is sure to have improvements compared to the current model. If they keep the felt like material, my hope would be that they use the material on the palm rest on the bottom of the type cover as well, as this section seems to hold up better and not get grimy to the extent that the bottom does.

Here's an example of the Venue Pro 11 keyboard - if MS could make this and thin it down a bit so that it's type cover size - let's even say they use the SP3 magnet hinge mechanism, would that really be a bad thing?

 

[ptrkhh]

To me, its either going with full-on laptop dock, or a superthin, superlight Touch Cover.

Heres the thing, the Type Cover is simply the jack of all trades. Its not particularly good as a keyboard, its not good as a cover either.
First of all, its too heavy, you need to detach it every now and then. It simply negates all the diet that the SP3 did in the first place. As a matter of fact, the total weight of the device+cover is almost identical between the SP2 and SP3. But that's hardly the biggest issue. The biggest issue is the fact that it is a Type Cover. That means I have to take care of it or otherwise I would rip the keys out of the keyboard, and the keys themselves bother me when the keyboard is folded to the back. Meanwhile, a Touch Cover would 'disappear' easily like a, well, cover. Sure, it might not be a terribly good keyboard, but at least it does one of its job, as a cover, successfully, while the Type Cover fails at both areas.

On the other hand, a full-on laptop keyboard with real laptop dock offers a better laptop replacement feature. We could at least expect fullsize HDMI/DP port, fullsize SD card, and a USB port or two, but most importantly, a proper keyboard. It would be really nice if it could have a dGPU. As somebody 160/5'2, the SP3 is flat out impossible to use on the lap, hence it needs a proper laptop dock to be qualified as 'lapable' for me. That said, they shouldn't kill the kickstand. I want the laptop dock to work wirelessly when I undock it and use it with the kickstand on the table like a wireless keyboard like what riggi explained above.

 

[snowcherries]

i was one of those who really wished for a different keyboard prior to buying the SP3, and while i had no angst towards the kickstand i did have concerns about how far i could push it back to get a decent angle sitting down with it on my lap, without it slipping off my shorter legs.

i have been pleasantly surprised at how adaptable the whole unit is [both kickstand and keyboard] and find the "lapability" quite decent. while i am not a great typer i can type adequately and faster on it than i had originally anticipated. the kickstand is brilliant when in bed or lounging and wanting to get the lean/angle right. i also appreciate the stand hides all that text and serial numbers etc that on other hybrids i've looked at in the past can show all that, and look quite nasty for it.

i will say my only disappointment is the material of the keyboard. i am fairly precious with my stuff and getting frustrated at how i often notably have fingerprints all over the keys, and to me it looks like these fingerprints will eventually stain in [natural oils]. i have concerns it will not stand the test of time. as mentioned above i'd also like to see this same keyboard in lightness and thinness but a different more metallic material and perhaps have chiclet keys.

 

[jnjroach]

See this is purely subjective opinion... as I find the the various keyboard docks on the Acer Switch series, or the the Venue 11/13 Pro series, to completely dominate the quality of the Surface type covers, to name just a few (I went through 2 type covers and 2 power covers while I had a Surface - in all cases they just stopped working after around a month across multiple Surface machines). Not to mention that the type cover's felt material is just a nightmare in a university setting when you're using it on dozens of desks everyday. After just a week the type covers are essentially disease magnets, and already discolored from all the dirt they pick up. For use at home or in a stationary setting though, I can see how people wouldn't pick up on this (and buying the black one to mitigate this isn't really a solution).

Now if the type covers were made of some sort of plastic or magnesium material like the Surface itself, then I'd consider them to have some decent quality to them, as is though, imo they're just flimsy dirt magnets, and one of the main reasons that people stay away and/or ridicule the Surface lineup.

Having said all that, the type cover for the SP4 is sure to have improvements compared to the current model. If they keep the felt like material, my hope would be that they use the material on the palm rest on the bottom of the type cover as well, as this section seems to hold up better and not get grimy to the extent that the bottom does.

Here's an example of the Venue Pro 11 keyboard - if MS could make this and thin it down a bit so that it's type cover size - let's even say they use the SP3 magnet hinge mechanism, would that really be a bad thing?
View attachment 4559

Again, I've used all of the them, they felt too much like a regression, added to much weight, I personally wish for a Touch Cover for the SP3. I simply love the flexiblity that the SP3 offers weighing no more than iPad 3 but its a fully functional x64 Mobile Device.

I've owned every Generation Device, and outside some cosmetic issues with the Gen 1 Cover, all have worked without issue including my Gen 2 Power Cover. (BTW - we had 3 Gen 1 RTs, 3 SP2s, 3 S2s and 3 SP3s in our household all with a varity of covers).

 

[bluegrass]

I don't think anybody will ever convince an SP3 owner on this forum to replace their SP3 with a Lenovo, HP, etc. You're talking to the wrong crowd. Now if you were really trying hard, you'd post some photos and detailed comparisons between them.