On Monday I got an email from Microsoft telling me that a $2700 Surface Book was waiting for me at my local FedEx. I hurried over to pick it up and then I immediately went to the Apple Store in town to buy (what I thought was) as comparable MacBook Pro.
Before entering the Apple store I opened up the Surface Book and checked the specs; 512GB SSD Intel i7 2.6GHz, 16GB of RAM. I then looked up the actual value of this laptop on Microsoft's website; $2700, wow....
I went in the Apple store and started looking at 13 and 15 inch MacBook Pros. Every 13 inch MacBook Pro had an i5 processor and was significantly cheaper than my $2700 Surface Book. Luckily I found a 15 inch MBP that appeared to have almost identical specs; 512 SSD, 2.5GHz i7, and 16GB RAM. The price was $2500, $200 cheaper than the Surface Book but it was close. Before I swiped my credit card I showed the Apple employee the exact specs of the Surface Book and asked if the processors were comparable, he said they were, but we both ended up being wrong.
I got back to the studio and started filming speed tests in Photoshop, Lightroom, and Premiere. The tests did not go well for the Surface Book. In Photoshop and Lightroom, the MacBook Pro was able to burn through jpeg and raw files at twice the speed of the Surface Book. In Premiere, the MBP was able to render 4k footage with up to 4 effects on the fly while the Surface Book couldn't even play 4k footage smoothly at 1/8 resolution. As one of the last photographers I know using Windows, I left defeated that night.
Later that night one of our writers pointed out that although both processors are Intel i7 chips, the Apple chip is a quad core while the Microsoft chip is only a dual core. This explained why the Apple was twice as fast, it has a processor that is literally twice as fast.
Once I figured this out I felt better because I knew that Apple didn't have some magic software that could make its hardware twice as fast but I also felt worse because the MacBook Pro was actually $200 cheaper and it was still twice as fast as the Surface Book.
If you're deciding which laptop is better based on power alone, the MBP is the clear winner. If, however, you are looking at all aspects including design quality, included accessories, touch capabilities, and of course the fact that the Surface Book is a laptop and tablet in one, the decision isn't so clear.
As someone who appreciates design and craftsmanship, I've always admired Apple products. Every aspect of an Apple laptop feels completely thought-out while my plastic Windows laptops feel cheap and disposable. In the video below I compare the design and craftsmanship of each laptop.
At the end of the day the Surface Book is an amazing achievement. I don't understand how they made that magnetic hinge, it works so well that it's a pleasure every time I detach the screen from the keyboard but the poor battery life of the tablet portion of the Surface Book makes it pretty useless to use without the base. It's also not the power house that I thought it would be. 4k video footage is quickly becoming the new standard and the laptop was unable to edit it without rendering first, that alone would keep me from spending $2700 on it but I realize that the average Surface Book user, and even the average Fstoppers reader, does not edit 4k video footage. For you, the Surface Book may be powerful "enough" but that's up to you to decide.
Because the Surface Book is so expensive, and the tablet portion has such limited battery life, I personally lean toward the Surface Pro 4 myself. You can read my full write up on the Surface Pro 4 here and you can watch my comparison video between the Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book below.
thats fair and we will
I saw you were using an Alienware Desktop. I would like to see a Desktop test between the Alienware and an equivalent Mac Pro.
There is no equivalent MBP, lol. Probably no equivalent laptop in general.
How did you get your hands on an i7? They aren't shipping until Nov. 20th!
Some how you are the only person on the Internet with a review of a surface book with an i7. Which leads me to the following question. Are you sure you have the i7? Can you post a screen shot of the system settings?
Microsoft sent me a pre production unit.
I myself don't believe that Surface Book is faster/powerful than the 15" MacPro OR any machine with same category of15" MacPro's specifications. But in all fairness, Microsoft did not compared SB with the 15" Mac but the 13" model instead. The intel CPU with integrated GPU has no match with the the newer generation CPU with a DISCREET GPU. It may not be fair, but that what it was. That is the target market Microsoft is aiming for (Premium mid-size). You on the other hand decided to do your own testing but you did it on a different machine? You believe the test should be based on cost and not by class/model. If that were the case then it's not PREMIUM by class anymore? You are paying the premium price for the features that other competitors don't have in the same model class. Microsoft believes that having a device that detaches and becomes a tablet but at the same time when dockes becomes a totally different powerful machine, WARRANTS a premium price. All this with touch, pen, newer CPU with an advanced discreet GPU gives a boost in performance make up for the difference in cost of what MacPro can offer in the same class. That is what you call PREMIUM, but in all fairness I think it's a good buy!
This is an unfair comparison, the surface book its a tablet and its design for extreme mobility, the mac book pro its a full laptop thats why obviously will be more powerful, you can't compare this two devices.
The entire point of the SB was to be Laptop first, unlike the previous computers in the surface lineup which are tablet first.
New processor, new OS, new hardware... Probably a good idea to take a breath before making the big calls... At least for everyone else. Lee, this sort of stuff pulls that traffic and conversation, so well done!
There was a firmware update on the 23rd apparently. Poor performance in Adobe CC has been flagged as an issue. http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/forum/surfbook-surfperf/surfa...
Would be worth trying again I think... And maybe watch this space.
Microsoft asked for the Surfacebook back to "test" it because they said it should have performed better. I have ordered a comparable 13inch MBP and MS should send me another surfacebook soon. Another video will be made the second I am able to.
Cool product and fairly flexible device really. Granted the test is fairly pointless from a comparable product standpoint. I personally use a powerful Xeon workstation coupled with a full size GPU for all my editing, I can't see that at any point in the future I would replace it with a portable or Mac, but that's just me.
Mac's generally don't appeal to me at all, I have used them over the years and they don't improve my workflow. Again, that's just me.
After seeing your clickbait review on YouTube, you got me. Came here to register and post on this and your laugh of a post about fighting Apple fanboys off of font vulnerabilities that exist in Windows (and Mac OS, which you did not know).
https://fstoppers.com/software/dammit-windows-youre-making-it-hard-fight...
Pretending not to be a Apple fanboy yourself is quite the laugh.
Regarding your hardware review, posting a comment there. But glad you videoed it with the odd grins looking at the Surface Book as you compared weak speakers in the MacBook vs weak speakers in the Surface Book. "The touchpad just has a feel to it" right? Feels like "quality".. Fit the capabilities of the Surface Book in a equivalent form factor (notable you bought and compared a brand new 15 inch Mac Book... Not a 13 inch or a Mac Book Air).
As others noted, you had an Alienware laptop as a video/phot editing device and then complain about it being plastic/cheap compared to the casing on a Mac Book? Really?
Seeing comments on this post by others about i7 vs i7 (not the same) and your original post with details that hyperlink to where I suspect you got your expert opinion on "comparable" Mac Book to a Surface Book (links following from your post):
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1151722-REG/apple_mjlt2ll_a_15_4_m...
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1188605-REG/microsoft_cr7_00001_13...
Posted details:
Mac Book:
2.5 GHz Intel Core i7 (Crystalwell)
Surface Book:
2.6 GHz Intel Core i7-6600U (Skylake)
I mention the above, as it is not uncommon for Apple to not post specific CPU models
FYI, one referenced above is:
http://ark.intel.com/products/83504/Intel-Core-i7-4870HQ-Processor-6M-Ca...
Surface Book:
http://ark.intel.com/products/88192/Intel-Core-i7-6600U-Processor-4M-Cac...
In either case, important details in there.. And as others have shared, believe it or not the are many i7 processors new and old that are slower then upper end i5 processors.
So, last... Remember hwo I noted the size/form-factor not being the same.. You payed a bit for smaller and tablet.. But beyond the i7 not being a identical i7, you got the memory right and storage on both for the most part at least.. But here is the thing, big differences in discreate/dedicated video card. and AMD R9 device with 2gb of ram vs the Nvidia device with only 1gb of ram.
Since it isn't probably quite as good of quality, no comments about the Apple device "Retina" display?
15.4" LED-Backlit IPS Retina Display
-2880 x 1800 Native Resolution
vs
13.5" PixelSense Detachable Display
-3000 x 2000 Screen Resolution (267 ppi)
Heads up, as apple rearely post "ppi" calculations as it would show actual detail of a display when factoring size of the display, that 15.4 inch Retina display is a weak 220.53 ppi. But I will assume your eye could just tell quality of the screen at a distance.
Finally, lower performance CPU, yes.. Smaller screen yes.. both of which may be for another performance factor you can't tell by feel of a touchpad. Lower power consumption could = better battery life (if you compare mah to mah sized batteries).
Someone else noted comparing megapixel to megapixel isn't everything, your "review" of peroformance and/or quality/craftminship sucks. By that standard, I will put out benchmarking apps and show how you can see performance across platforms. Also talk about quality of hardware when I see Apple device thermal throttling components because of the "craftmanship" in casing design (looks, "nice", is a subjective statement and I am not talking appearance as functionality comes first).
All in all, if you wanted a 13.x inch Surface Book that looked like a 15 inch Mac Book with a hinge on it that can not disconnect a display that has a touch screen, guessing one could have easily taken the components of the much smaller Surface Book and shoved them in a 15 inch Mac Book Pro casing if Apple would license it. But I guess then I wouldn't have a tablet (let alone a device with a touch screen that could fold over onto the device or a totaly removal screen).
Good to see you got rid of your Alienware plastic device and bought the secret love of your life in an Apple device (maybe not that much of a secret given other posts you share on this site that clearly demonstrate Apple fandom).
My appreciation for Apple design is real and the fact that I don't own one and never have is also real. I returned the one in the video.
I'm extremely pleased and extremely disappointed.
Please for the videos and the article, thank you for them, they were very informative. I recently bought a Surface Book i7, and for the most part Microsoft has ironed out the major bugs via updates. However there are still some issues, like scaling between external display devices at different resolutions. When I went out to purchase a laptop, I wanted the best performance my money could buy, but, not sacrifice a slim sexy look. Hence why I won't be purchasing an Alienware. It's a monster from a performance standpoint, but it looks like you could kill somebody with it. Ultimately, I determined the book had pretty much everything I needed. SSD, lots of ram, high resolution display, a Skylake i7, and it looks and feels great. However I almost feel duped because the initial reports from Microsoft was their top dog vs Apple's middle of the row 13" laptop. I mean I get it, 13" to 13ish"... but I wanted to see the best vs the best, which it appears you've done in the video, hence the disappointment. If I'm spending upwards of $3,000, I want it walk into my office with my head up knowing my little Book can blow their Mac's out, but unfortunately that is just not the case.
Needless to say I am in a position now where I need to re-consider my purchase. Will the Book suffice my needs? Am I going to be able to justify the amount spend on it knowing there are superior options? I don't really have use for a pen, or touch screen, or a tablet really. I do enjoy the look and feel of this machine aside from all of the above.
Thanks again.
Microsoft actually asked for my surface book back to "test" it after i released this video. They never sent it back and I'm not sure if they are going to. I wanted to another test to compare it to the 13inch mbp at the exact same price point but it's not looking like that is going to happen.
I think that if you are using a graphics card then the surface book might be a great choice but if you are using Photoshop and Premiere, the graphics card isn't that important. The most powerful processor and ram may be your best bet.
I'm personally trying to figure out what my next laptop is going to be. It may be the new Dell XPS 15.
I'm actually happy that you used the MBP 15" i7.. your video was the ONLY I could find that had the best laptop of Microsoft vs the best laptop of Apple. When making my purchase, the price did not matter, I just wanted the best. I understand the argument people are making that it should be compared to the 13" mbp, but that's really not what I was looking for. I know the top end MBP has an dedicated GPU as well, which from my understanding is as good if not better than the 940m equivalent that is in my SB.
I use a LOT of Photoshop for work (Web Design/Development) so having the more powerful CPU is important. I am having a hard time right not figuring out if I want to keep this SB, it's a beautiful mess :(