Windows talk

englanddg

englanddg

One Little Spark...
lazyboy97o said:
You're the one all worked up over this and coming up with different conditions (an aisle, a display, many sales, completely wrong inventory systems for every store showing them in stock) being attached to a simple statement.
Click to expand...
No, you two are the ones worked up over a simple statement I made that they are no longer regularly available.

Here is what I said, if you have forgotten.

englanddg said:
And, for the record, in 1996, there was still a whole aisle at places like Staples and Office Depot dedicated to automatic typewriters.
Click to expand...

The statement you took issue with. Which is true, but you decided to debate it.
 
englanddg

englanddg

One Little Spark...
Your response...

lazyboy97o said:
Did you ever say that you were "word processing" when typing on a computer?

You can still get an a typewriter at a lot of office stores. There are only a few to see, but they are still there.
Click to expand...

Was I wrong?

As I said, go to an office supply store tomorrow and show me where the typewriter display is.

I'll wait.
 
Jahona

Jahona

Well-Known Member
Well this has been an interesting and pointless argument on if you can buy a typewriter at an office supply store. Anyways, my household growing up always had a computer. Starting off with DOS and Windows 3.2. I still have that computer I think. It had two 1.5 gb hard drives and I think 16 mb or ram and one giant of a video card that would make the Titan look small. It's been a while since I've opened that thing up.
 
StarWarsGirl

StarWarsGirl

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
englanddg said:
As I said, go to an office supply store tomorrow and show me where the typewriter display is.
Click to expand...
Neither of us was saying that there was an entire display. We were saying that you can get them, even if they are just in the back or if they have one in stock. No one said that there would be large displays like in the 1990s.

I'm done arguing with you over this.
 
wdwstateofmind

wdwstateofmind

Well-Known Member
StarWarsGirl

StarWarsGirl

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
I'm thinking about the new Surface 3.

Not the Pro 3, as that is WAY out of my price range, but the new Surface 3.

I currently have the original Surface RT. It's great for school stuff as a back up to my laptop, but it has two problems that are driving me insane
  1. It runs IE
  2. Kindle textbooks don't work on it.
It's mostly the IE part that is driving me bonkers, as I feel like I'm having to lug my laptop to school some days specifically because of IE. Also, it won't upgrade to a version of 10 like when Windows 8.1 came out. I'll be stuck with 8.1 RT

The new Surface 3 runs the full Windows 8.1 system, not Windows RT, and will have the upgrade option once 10 is released. It also runs other programs, like iTunes, Desktop Kindle and, yes, Chrome. So I would not have to put up with IE and I could read my textbooks on it. It also has the pen, which would be great for taking notes in class (something I do a lot of currently with my RT). Since I am a student, I get a 10% discount on it, plus all accessories are 10% off. A family member wants my old Surface. I am really tempted.

Anyone see any downside to doing this? If I don't get it, I'm sticking with my current Surface. In other words, I'm not looking at any other tablets.
 
Jahona

Jahona

Well-Known Member
The only downside to the Surface 3 is the Intel Atom processor. It gets the job done for general computing but it's definitely not powerful. It's the quad core variation on it so it can handle some multitasking ok. If I was to purchase one it would probably be the 128 gig HDD with 4 gigs of ram.
 
StarWarsGirl

StarWarsGirl

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Jahona said:
The only downside to the Surface 3 is the Intel Atom processor. It gets the job done for general computing but it's definitely not powerful. It's the quad core variation on it so it can handle some multitasking ok. If I was to purchase one it would probably be the 128 gig HDD with 4 gigs of ram.
Click to expand...
That's what I was going to do.

I've, amazingly enough, almost used the memory on my current Surface, which has 64 gigs. Would definitely go with the one with more memory.

I'm really just looking to use it like I use my current Surface: a backup to my laptop that I can take to school and such.

Think I'll run to Best Buy today. Apparently, they have models on their showroom floor
 
StarWarsGirl

StarWarsGirl

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Took the plunge and got the Surface 3.

I wasn't expecting the price to go down from my student discount, and then I got a promo code for an additional 5% off, so I saved over $100 on my total order. Got the 128 GB version and bought the pen and the keyboard. Will let you all know how I like it when it comes out.
 
Voxel

Voxel

President of Progress City
Jahona said:
The only downside to the Surface 3 is the Intel Atom processor. It gets the job done for general computing but it's definitely not powerful. It's the quad core variation on it so it can handle some multitasking ok. If I was to purchase one it would probably be the 128 gig HDD with 4 gigs of ram.
Click to expand...
While I'll agree the Atom is far off from an i5/i7 its still a much more impressive processor then it was a few years ago. But it is a low power Quad-Core and with the recent changes to multiprocessing it will far out preform the old Quad core duos that Intel pushed before the i series. It fits the needs of 80% of their market.
 
StarWarsGirl

StarWarsGirl

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Just got my Surface 3 delivered today. As I said before, it's the 128 version with 4 GB of RAM.

After living with the RT for two years, this is a huge improvement. Things that I already like better:
  • Backlit keyboard-I like working in the dark. Weird student quirk.
  • Sturdier keyboard-keyboard is definitely sturdier, meaning you can have it on your lap. Old Surface was better for use on a solid surface. This one, well, I'm typing with it on my lap and it seems fine
  • Kickstand-definitely better than the one on the RT. One of the hinges broke on the RT. It was still useable, but still. This one already feels more sturdy and has three positions. Love it
  • Full windows-that means Chrome, Firefox, iTunes, etc. The program I most wanted was Chrome. IE is just annoying. It will also upgrade to Windows 10.
  • Faster-this is definitely faster than my RT is. Even before I put Chrome on there, IE seemed faster. But now Chrome is here. Debating whether to use memory and put on Firefox as well and just deactivate IE
  • Pen-Surface 3, unlike the Pros, does not come with a pen. I opted to buy one separately because I am a student and can see myself using it a lot for note taking. I really like it. I use a mouse, and this can double as a stylus if I get sick of my mouse or forget my mouse. You do have to keep the bluetooth on to use it, though, so it could potentially drain the battery. Also, the pen uses a AAAA battery. Never used one before, but the pen did come with one, so I hopefully shouldn't have to buy another one for a while yet.

What's not as great:
  • Office-the RTs came with Office. The Surface 3 comes with a free one year subscription to Microsoft Office 365. I get it free through my school, so I'm just using that, but worth noting.
  • Touchpad-it's still terrible. I still recommend a mouse.
  • Memory-Of course it's not going to have as much memory as the Pros. I recommend removable storage
Other random observations:
  • Size: Slightly bigger than my old RT, but weighs about the same. Definitely smaller than the Pros. I think it's perfect
  • Keyboard-my old keyboard did in fact work with my new Surface. The only thing was that the keyboard did not cover up the screen like the new one does, since there is a slight size difference'
  • Buttons-some of the buttons have changed positions as opposed to the RTs. The windows button is now on the bottom if you hold the tablet vertically as opposed to being on the bottom when held horizontally. There is also now volume controls on the device instead of on the keyboard.
  • Charging: the Surface 3 charges with a micro usb cable. One cable to drag around for the day that charges my Android tablet, phone, and Surface? Yes please.
  • All the apps that were on my old Surface downloaded and installed onto this one, even though many are no longer available in the app store.
Overall, I am very happy with this purchase. It's a huge improvement over my RT. I definitely recommend this to students, especially since the Microsoft store gives students a 10% discount on the tablet and its accessories. By the time I applied all of the discounts, I had saved over $100. I think it can replace my laptop enough that I will never have to lug the laptop to school again. Well worth the price to save myself a lifetime of back problems. I'm not sure it can completely replace a laptop, but it sure as heck comes close.

As for my old one, well, it's only two years old, so I'm keeping it around and whoever wants/needs it can use it. So if my dad wants to take it and use it for work, fine by me. If he wants to read the paper on it, also fine by me. If my brother wants to use it to watch Youtube videos outside, I"m fine with that. Or if I need to get work done but don't want to take my newer one, I can use my old one.
 
englanddg

englanddg

One Little Spark...
Right.

You left out a lot (like that the keyboard is extra). The Surface 3 is decent, but overpriced for what you get.
 
Jahona

Jahona

Well-Known Member
englanddg said:
but overpriced for what you get.
Click to expand...

Objectively it's not overpriced for what you get.
Under $729 USD for Surface 3 (128gb) with Keyboard.

iPad Air 2 (128gb) with a keyboard case is roughly $750.

Now if you want to compare the Surface 3 to a laptop then for almost 800 you can probably find something with more power but you're going to trade off portability and build quality.

While the Surface 3 can utilize full windows applications with out relying on the Microsoft Store; we are going to have to see when Windows 10 releases if the Microsoft App Store will increase. Microsoft released a demo a week ago showing how easy it is to take an android app and port it to the Windows 10 platform. If developers catch on to this then the mobile experience for Windows 10 should be better.

A lot of people would rather play their bejeweled clones in a native app than through a web browser.
 
StarWarsGirl

StarWarsGirl

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Jahona said:
Objectively it's not overpriced for what you get.
Under $729 USD for Surface 3 (128gb) with Keyboard.
Click to expand...
And I didn't even pay that for the whole thing, including sales tax and the pen. Thank you MS store for that discount.

A 128 gb iPad, no keyboard, runs $699, and Apple does not offer a student discount.
Jahona said:
Now if you want to compare the Surface 3 to a laptop then for almost 800 you can probably find something with more power but you're going to trade off portability and build quality.
Click to expand...
Definitely agree. My laptop cost less than my Surface, but is so clunky that it's hard to carry around. It will stay at home now, except it will still go on vacation.
Jahona said:
Microsoft released a demo a week ago showing how easy it is to take an android app and port it to the Windows 10 platform.
Click to expand...
Interesting. Hopefully developers will catch on if they realize it won't cost them too much. That would be a huge boost for MS in the tablet market
 
Jahona

Jahona

Well-Known Member
StarWarsGirl95 said:
Definitely agree. My laptop cost less than my Surface, but is so clunky that it's hard to carry around. It will stay at home now, except it will still go on vacation.
Click to expand...

You think your laptop is clunky? You have no idea till you carry around this beast. I had to buy a special bag just for it.

asusG74_5_05.jpg
 
lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
Why does Windows need Android apps expect to get their Store numbers higher? It seems to be counter to the whole One Windows philosophy. Such quick port tools are also not a new concept, but never seem to work as well as promised.

StarWarsGirl95 said:
A 128 gb iPad, no keyboard, runs $699, and Apple does not offer a student discount.
Click to expand...
Apple does offer students discounts. It's only $20 off the 128 GB iPad Air 2, but they also typically do a student special in the fall.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom