Surface Laptop Studio - 14.4" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i7 - 32GB Memory - 1TB SSD - Platinum

I’ve had the pleasure of using three different Surface Laptop Studios. They each far exceed my expectations.I currently have one at work and one at home. (I don’t like mixing work and home on the same computer). This means I have one to pamper and one to abuse. I won’t disclose which is which.My background: I’m a senior software engineer for a Fortune 300. I need virtualization, horsepower, and flexibility at work (Visual Studio, Docker, Kubernetes). I’m also a 3D artist at home (Blender, TopoGun, Maya, 3DS, Chitubox, etc.).When I have to, I use Office.My usage patterns are all over the place.First: I was skeptical of the “cloth hinge”. I flipped the hinge over and over for two days. I can safely say, I t’s not gonna wear out quickly.Having used Wacom products for years, I didn’t know what to expect from “the pen”.The Physical Pen Integration is well thought out. It pairs, charges, and stores in a well hidden (and easily accessible) location. The Pen is also well integrated with the latest version of leading artists’ software.From an artist’s standpoint, when you draw on the screen, you’ll probably need an external keyboard. I haven’t tried “the dial”. The “feel” is different from a Cintiq. It’s a bit squishy, but acceptable if you can adapt.Windows Home can be easily upgraded to Enterprise with the appropriate ISO and Product Key.I would prefer a larger amount of available RAM. 32 GB is too little for me. (Apple has 64GB laptops, just sayin’).This is probably “more laptop” than the average user would need. It’s also on the heavy side.The Screen-Flipping-Feature isn’t for everyone. Although, it does more than you’d expect. It allows you to tilt the screen forward (over the keyboard) when using an external keyboard. You can also flip the screen away from you and use the computer as a Hotel Movie Screen.Unfortunately, The Pen isn’t included.Heavier than anything “traditional”Anything but “traditional.”

I bought the Surface Laptop Studio along with the Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel in order to compare them. The color and contrast on the Acer were obviously much better, and the Slim Pen 2 gets jittery when drawing slowly/carefully. However, the Surface display gets much brighter, and writing/drawing on it feels much more natural, mostly because of the awkward aspect ratio on the Acer and a very noticeable gap between its display and digitizer. I had also anticipated that the three set positions for the screen on the Surface might compare poorly against the Acer's infinitely variable "Ezel", but it didn't end up bothering me at all. I tend to use the middle position, where the display sits between the keyboard and touchpad, even when I'm holding it in one arm and using it in portrait mode. For some reason it just works for me.The speakers on the Surface are very impressive. It's quite a bit louder than my MacBook Pro, though not quite as pleasant to watch movies on, since the display has less contrast and the audio isn't as full on the low-end. The Acer's speakers are a complete joke, but all of this is really a side note, since I wouldn't use either device for watching movies and I use studio monitors for audio. Really, my only complaint about the Surface is the stupid, stupid, stupid proprietary "Surface Connect" charging/docking port (don't waste your money on the dock, since there is no way to use it without continually charging the laptop and inevitably ruining your battery, "kiosk mode" notwithstanding). The fact that the Surface with $400 of accessories still costs $1200 less than the ConceptD certainly doesn't hurt.Ultimately, I returned the Acer and I have no regrets.