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Laptops · Microsoft Surface Pro

Microsoft Surface Pro 6

7owners with an opinion
80%of verdicts positive
0/0positive/negative since 2024
0happy after 3+ years

Praised for portability and design; criticized for performance and battery.

What people wrote

Neutral
This morning I was looking to maybe replace my Macbook Pro 2018, which had the horrible keyboard and finally seems to be crippled enough to not be fun to use anymore — now this! However, I have been disappointed by Apple too many times (they wouldn't replace my keyboard despite their highly-flamed design-faux-pas, had to replace the battery twice by now, etc.) Two years ago I finally stopped replacing their expensive external keyboards, which I used to buy once a year or every other (due to broken key-hinges) and have been so incredibly positively surprised by getting used to the MX Keys now. Much better built, incredible mileage for the price. Plus, I can easily switch and use them on my Windows PC, too. So, about the Macbook — if I were to switch mobile computing over to Windows, what can I replace it with? My main machine is still a Mac Mini M2 Pro, which is perfect value/price. I like the Surface as a concept (replacable keyboards are a fantastic idea, battery however, super iffy nonsense), and I've got a Surface Pro 6 around, but it's essentially the same gloss-premium I don't need for my use. Are there any much-cheaper but somewhat comparable laptops (12h+ battery, 1 TB disk, 16-32GB RAM, 2k+ Display) with reasonable build quality? Does bypassing the inherent premium of all the Apple gloss open up any useful options? Or is Apple actually providing the best value here? Would love to hear from non-Surface, non-Thinkpad (I love it, but) folks who've got some recommendation…
Doesn’t like it
Also still using a X220 (X230 motherboard swapped) with Debian and a T430s (with 1080p swap) with Windows. Agreed that the X220 form and function is excellent. The 7-row keyboard is amazing. The IPS screen is serviceable. The swappable 9-cell batteries give around 10 hours of battery life each. The i7-3520M is noticeably faster than the i5-8250U in my surface pro 6, even though benchmarks suggest it shouldn't be. Just tried a new T14. The keyboard is decent. I haven't found any laptops with a keyboard as good as the 7-row.
Likes it
If you do not have one, buy a dock! I have a sp6 and 4 , and having the dock makes it quite the device. Speakers, multiple external monitors, keyboard, mouse -- a full desktop setup, I can grab and either stick a keyboard cover on or just use as a reading device on the couch. Back to work? Sit on table, one cable and it's back to a desktop and charging up again. Makes the whole thing make far more sense.
Likes it
Wow, I felt similarly about my Aspire One. There was something special about how tiny and portable it was. It was so nice to be able to comfortably bring it to work with my work laptop if I wanted to work on a side project during lunch, and it travels well in coach. These days my Surface Pro 6 fills that role.
Likes it
After 15 years with Macs I just last week bought a Surface Pro 6. Windows 10 is alright, better to live with than I thought it would be. It was also significantly less expensive than the MacBook Air I was considering (AUD $1250 vs $1850) without being concerned about keyboard longevity. Overall, I’m quite happy with my choice.
Recommends it
Surface Pro 6 is the way. Sold my Macbook Air (Early 2015) for the latest model and did not regret it. 2K display, very decent hardware and responsive. WSL is a excellent way to use linux tools on windows. And you can use it like a tablet. If you can shell out the cash and still don't want to feel like you got gouged, this is great choice.