Microsoft is using the SurfaceBook quite late on the trend of convertible and detachable notebooks. But the software giant could learn from the mistakes of others. So you could expect the Surfacebook to be the best convertible on the market. The very high prices of about 1,500 to 3,000 euros suggest at least. A comparison with the Dell XPS 12 (2015) is intended to show whether this theory is true in practice.
Features: 4K display and USB 3.1
Microsoft and Dell provided us with the high-end configuration for the duel. When the price comparison, the Surfacebook must take the same time a damper: The Dell XPS 12 is with 2.040 euros about a third cheaper. The SurfaceBook has a very bright 13.5-inch touch display in an unusual 3: 2 format for around 2,950 euros. A layer of Corning Glass 4 protects the 3,000 x 2,000 pixels (267 dpi) below.
Processing: high quality, not perfect
With the XPS 12, Corning Glass NBT also shields the very bright and colorful IGZO-IPS display in the usual 16: 9 format. Thanks to its extremely high 4K resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels (352 dpi), the 12.5-inch touch display makes images even finer than the larger display in the Surface Book.
Performance: Core i7 vs. Core m7
In the interfaces, the two duelists differ only in two points. While the XPS 12 has two USB 3.1 ports (Type C) with Thunderbolt 3 support and charging port, the SurfaceBook has two USB 3.0 ports and a Mini DisplayPort output. Thus, the SurfaceBook has the slower USB type, but you can connect conventional USB devices without adapters.
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The Dell XPS 12 includes a magnetic protective sleeve and a corresponding USB adapter on type-A. One man. The illuminated, compact keyboard and the glass touchpad of the XPS 12 are not inferior to those in the SurfaceBook. The active pen (2.048 pressure levels), but at Dell only as an optional accessory for around 75 euros.
Both convertibles are very high in terms of processing. Both Microsoft and Dell use a magnesium alloy for the extremely stable Convertible chassis. Dell also gives the XPS 12 a matt black neoprene-like finish. One point is still unpleasant: Display and base do not form a complete unit.
The eye-catching Fulcrum joint of the SurfaceBook keeps the display stable in position, but only allows an opening angle of approx. 130 degrees. In the closed state, there is a gap of seven millimeters in width, which can accumulate dust and small objects.
In addition, the tablet part can only be detached from the base by pressing a button or the soft button and waiting for two seconds. However, if the surface is off, you are not logged in or the battery has less than 10 percent power, the lock can not be released.
You do not have these problems with the simple magnetic closure of the XPS 12, but it fixes the display immovably in one position. In addition, a six millimeter wide groove is created as soon as you lay the display flat on the keyboard - unsightly. This means that the processing quality is the same.
Attentive PC Magazine readers know: Core i7 is not equal to core m7. While in the Surfacebook a full-fledged Intel Core i7-6600U (up to 3.4 GHz) works, the XPS 12 of the power savings optimized Intel Core m7-6Y75 (up to 3.1 GHz). In addition to the SurfaceBook 16 GB DDR3L RAM, an unspecified Nvidia GPU (probably GeForce 940M) and a 512-GB SSD with PCIe connection. Dell's XPS 12 is also a PCIe SSD with 512 GB, but it has only 8 GB DDR3L RAM installed and has to use Intel's integrated graphics solution HD 515 for graphics processing.
Except for the SSD benchmark, the Surfacebook can decide all performance tests. In these, the Samsung SSD in the SurfaceBook reaches a very high read rate of 923 MByte / s. Samsung's PM951 SSD is also about 50 percent faster: 1.369 MB / s. Thanks to the Nvidia GPU, the SurfaceBook in the 3DMark CloudGate is even more than twice as fast as the XPS 12 (7,605 vs. 3,557 points)
Because of the double memory capacity and the more powerful CPU, the Microsoft Convertible surpasses the Dell XPS 12 by 30 percent and the Cinebench R11.5 by nearly 60 percent. Disadvantage of the high performance: Tablet and keyboard part of the surface book become very warm, and the fans rush during the PC and 3DMark 3 loud. The passively cooled, silent XPS 12 warms, however, only imperceptibly.
The SurfaceBook is much larger, but with 24 millimeters as thick as the XPS 12. Because Microsoft has installed two batteries (52 and 18 watts), the SurfaceBook is clear in weight comparison: the XPS 12 weighs 330 grams less than the 1 , 58 kilograms SurfaceBook.
Mobility: Advantage Dual Battery
Even without a measuring tape and measuring scale, these differences can be seen and felt very clearly. On the other hand, the double battery in the SurfaceBook has a great advantage. It should compensate for the three times the loss of the core i7-6600U (TDP 15 watt) in the runtime test against the extremely power-saving core m7-6Y75 (TDP 4.5 watt).
For the test, we switched both convertibles into airplane mode and lowered the display brightness to 50 percent. At the end of the PCMark 8 battery test, the Microsoft Surfacebook had a good 4:48 hours, while the 28-Wh battery of the Dell XPS 12 was emptied after 2:30 hours
Conclusion
In the duel, the Surfacebook can decide the mobility rating for itself, but compared to previously tested convertibles like the Toshiba Portègè Z20t-B-11P, its runtime is modest.
The very high-quality, but also very expensive Microsoft Surfacebook gets almost the overall score very well and decides the duel for itself. The most important factor is the fact that the Dell XPS 12 has a nearly twice the running time and a significantly higher overall performance compared to the Dell XPS 12, which is also very well-engineered, more compact and more cost-effective.
The latter offers in practice enough power for the office, a more modern USB type and silent operation. Both are not perfect. They lack sufficient time to run, a gap-free hinge solution, and a UMTS / LTE module required for real mobile work.
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