Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Review
by Anand Lal Shimpi on June 23, 2014 3:55 AM ESTLaptop Performance
Just like with battery life, we need to evaluate the performance of Surface Pro 3 as both a laptop and a tablet. As a laptop, Surface Pro 3 delivers performance comparable to other Ultrabooks of similar specs - assuming we're talking about short bursts of performance. In prolonged workloads you'll see a bit of a gap, and even a slight regression vs. Surface Pro 2 due to the thermal design targets for the new chassis.
With the exception of the Work suite in PCMark 8 v2, we're mostly looking at performance in the range of a 13-inch MacBook Air - the prototypical Haswell ULT notebook. Surface Pro 3 is definitely in good performance company. In the Work suite however the MacBook Air (running Windows) is able to deliver around 16% better performance than Surface Pro 3. I'm guessing this has to do with thermals more than anything else.
We see a similar story if we look at GPU performance:
In terms of playable games, with some tweaking to detail settings you should be able to average 30 fps in titles like Dota 2. Running at the panel's native resolution is generally out of the question but for lighter titles on Steam like Transistor, you can have a reasonable experience. The higher end Core i7 Surface Pro 3 does ship with Intel's HD 5000 graphics instead of HD 4400 in the Core i5 review sample I tested. It's entirely possible that we see better gaming performance or thermal management (more EUs at lower voltage) in that design.
Just like in previous designs, Surface Pro 3 integrates a SATA SSD (likely M.2 this time). In this case Microsoft uses an OEM version of Samsung's SSD 840 EVO, a 3-bit-per-cell MLC design that we've found to be a pretty good value. I am disappointed we didn't see a move to PCIe storage but for general use I doubt there's much value in it. PCMark 8 v2's storage test isn't particularly stressful but it does show that Surface Pro 3's SSD is at least competitive with its predecessor and the MBA despite moving to TLC NAND.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
274 Comments
View All Comments
jeffkibuule - Monday, June 23, 2014 - link
30% lower power consumption, 30-40% increase in GPU performance.Morawka - Tuesday, June 24, 2014 - link
It will have either or, not both. It will either use 30% less power at the same performance (GPU included) or use the same power with a 30% increase in performance. You cant have both unless there is a new architecture, and broadwell is simply a haswell shrink.Sure they can take the power savings and add more GPU EU's but that's gonna negate the power savings.
Laxaa - Tuesday, June 24, 2014 - link
Skylake is after Broadwell, right? Maybe wait for that one?I am lookin into buying a new laptop next year, and as a graphic designer, the Surface Pro 3 looks appealing because of the pen. CPU performance seems fine for my needs, but I want lower power consumption and a better GPU(If I had to choose I'd take a better GPU) The size looks fine, and I'm not sure if I'd like it to be tinner. 9.1 mm is still pretty thin.
mkozakewich - Monday, June 30, 2014 - link
I've found that putting everything on low-power mode is still usable, but gives me an extra hour or two of battery life (on the original Surface Pro, even). Everything should be fluid enough for you with the latest one.Just make sure that issue with the edges of the screen is gone, with the move to NTrig.
Krysto - Monday, June 23, 2014 - link
Not the best laptop, not the best tablet. I think that pretty much sums up Surface in general. It's an all-compromise device.eddman - Monday, June 23, 2014 - link
You lug your laptop AND tablet around while those who are tired of it or don't have the means to do so, take an SP3.Is it really that hard to see what and who a surface pro is meant for?
name99 - Tuesday, June 24, 2014 - link
This argument only works if you're frequently in the position of having to carry both.A far more common situation is, for example, you take your laptop to school/work and use it to do laptoppy things well, an you use your table at home to do tabletty things well.
Sure if you are, for example, a journalist or traveling salesman you may be in the position of wanting to carry tablet and laptop functionality with you, and S Pro may make sense. But I think the journalist point of view (for obvious reasons) gets rather more attention on the internet than is warranted by the relevant fraction of people with these sorts of requirements.
PaulC543 - Tuesday, June 24, 2014 - link
No, the argument doesn't -only- work as you outlined, there's any number of reasons one might prefer a single device.I don't travel much, but when I do, I need a system capable of making revisions to work if need be. I have no need for the amount of text entry that would make a traditional laptop more attractive, so a tablet that could run my desktop programs was ideal. I can use it around the house for tabletty things, dock it and use it for real work, and take it when traveling to do both tabletty and work tasks.
People really need to accept that there are other use scenarios than their own. It really seems to be a mental block for the people who don't get the value of the Surface. I'm not saying the audience who do get the Surface is huge, it's clearly not, but it seems to be big enough to support Microsoft's continued development of the device, and that's all that really matters.
I don't comment on and criticize server products, because I have neither the knowledge, need or interest in the hardware that serves the market. I really wish people who don't have the knowledge, need or interest in the market the Surface serves would kindly refrain from criticizing since it's almost entirely baseless and/or misplaced.
gken8 - Tuesday, July 1, 2014 - link
let me shed light on this, the legal profession loves this tablet.ymcpa - Tuesday, June 24, 2014 - link
There is also the position where you might carry only one device but frequently find that you wish you had another device with you. For example, you might be using a laptop for work but when you go on a break, you wish you had a tablet with you to do some browsing or to watch a video. Or you are on vacation with your tablet but you get a call from work asking for some info and you wish you had your laptop with you.