Surface Studio - Expectations and reality
Incredible design, excellent performance, seamless interaction between hardware and software, and a very high price. Five years ago, these few words would have described a new product from Apple, but this is Microsoft's new computer, with which the company is trying to conquer the creative professions market. This time, the company is holding all the cards.
Microsoft had not launched a product entirely of its own making for a long time . The launch speech and product presentation were clear: the company is targeting us, the creatives, graphics and other designers. So I've listed below the requirements I think the Surface Studio should meet in order to outperform the desktop computers Apple is offering.
No parallax issues
Working with the Surface, the portable version, is already very enjoyable. Microsoft has decided to take it to the next level and incorporate N-Trig's tried and tested technology into its brand new Surface Studio, a beautiful desktop computer.
Wacom is one of its main competitors. Its cutting-edge products tend to have a gap between the stylus tip and the image source, where the drawing appears. In our jargon, we call this a parallax problem. But that's not the case with Surface Studio. A few artists report latencies, which I didn't observe during my hard day's work.
High pressure sensitivity
As I've hinted at before, we're working with more or less the same stylus and settings as a Surface laptop, i.e. 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity. That's half the sensitivity of any Cintiq tablet. If Microsoft wants to make its mark in the creative professions, it needs to be able to perform at 8192 levels, like Wacom's Cintiq Pro and Mobile Studio Pro. And that would come with some parallax issues. It's up to you to decide what compromises you're prepared to make.
Let me be clear: while I loved working on a Surface Studio, I can understand why artists used to their good old pen tablet would notice these weaknesses. But those starting out in the business with a Surface Studio, without being able to make a comparison, will certainly be delighted with the top-of-the-range screen.
In addition, the stylus is magnetic and hooks onto the side of the screen. It's a stylish way of always having it to hand. Pens may disappear, but misplacing the stylus you use with the Surface Studio... that's another story.
I can't forgive Microsoft, however, for not making the one button on the stylus configurable. It only serves as a right-click. For creative professions, this is unacceptable, as it is one of our key functions. But there is hope: a software update could remedy the situation.
Intuitive Surface Dial tools
I'm very disappointed. Not only does the Dial not come with the computer, it's barely supported, with the exception of rare third-party programs.
Let's take an example: the Dial only zooms, unzooms or rotates images in Photoshop . I can do this just fine by moving my fingers on my smartphone. I don't see the point of the Dial on the Surface Studio at the moment.
When the Dial was launched a few months ago, I tested it on a Surface laptop in one of the supported programs, and loved it. It has a few features that I haven't seen on any other gadget yet, such as a fluid change of stroke colour. So it has potential.
This gadget was supposedly developed for use on the Studio. In reality, I end up with a nice clipboard next to my powerful computer, but none of the promised functions. I was told that a colour palette and a ruler would appear when I placed the Dial on my screen. Did they? All I did was transfer the fine dust from my desk to my screen. If you want it to have any use, work in Sketchable or use it to adjust the volume on Spotify.
Compatibility with various software
The technical data wonderfully complements the Surface Studio's well-balanced design. It's powerful enough to run any program with the stability of Windows 10. What do the people want?
Some programs, especially older software that doesn't scale, lose aesthetic appeal on a 28-inch PixelSense display. Text and graphics are blurred, but updates should fix the problem.
A new player
From a desktop as revolutionary as the Surface Studio, I expected more software to complement the hardware aimed at creative professionals. Not much new under the sun from that point of view, but let's be patient. We all thought we'd end our careers with Apple computers.
Summary
The Surface Studio offers far more than any Apple product available at the moment. It would be unfair to compare it with a Wacom or other screen/stylus combination whose processing capability is often less.
The excellent transposition of the hardware almost made me forget about the Zero Gravity Hinge device , which makes the screen very mobile and thanks to which I was able to work for hours on end in any position without having to make any compromises or extra effort. Such ergonomics on a screen developed to offer high performance in artistic fields is a real revolution.
All in all, the Surface Studio is a solid desktop with an elegant design that's just what you'd expect from Apple. It offers the capabilities of a Wacom pen tablet and has been designed to fully support Windows 10 and deliver the best possible user experience on the market.
Let's face it, Apple isn't offering any truly innovative products at the moment. I can well imagine design agencies upgrading their old iMacs in the future and opting for Surface Studios. And I really hope the rest of the industry takes note of all the points Microsoft has just scored on its first try.
Hats off to you, Microsoft!
Pre-order the CH version
Mariana Hurtado
Grafik-Designerin
m@arianahurta.doI might be a graphic designer, a Pokémon trainer and tech-savvy but I'm no creative writer. I'm on a non-stop quest against bad design. Since 2014, I call Switzerland my home.