In this post I'll share my experience using the Surface Pro as a developer and whether I recommend it or not. This post is written after a period of use and I'll share my impressions and experience; if anything changes, I will update the post.
Table of Contents
1 - Which Surface Pro model am I using?
When we talk about Surface, we’re referring to Microsoft’s line of laptops and tablets.
In my case, it's the Surface Pro 11th, one of the first models with Snapdragon X series processors on ARM architecture. These are the so-called Surface + Copilot, which we'll discuss later on.
My particular version is the Surface Pro 11th, as mentioned, but the 32GB RAM version. This means it comes with the Snapdragon-X Elite processor. Personally, for my use, the X-Plus would have been more than enough, and it's the one I would have chosen if not for the fact that the only way to get 32GB of RAM is to choose the X-Elite.
As an additional note, the 32GB RAM version comes exclusively in silver, which I don't mind much, but the blue one is prettier.
Within the X-Elite range, there are different processor variants. All Surface devices ship with the X1E-80-100, which is a mid-level processor within the series:
As you can see, the 84 is more powerful than the 80, but it also consumes much more battery, and from what I've read, very few laptops currently use it. It feels like the 84 was created just for benchmarks to compete with Apple.
A key thing to note about these processors is that some hardware vendors, like Samsung, will sell you the X-Elite without telling you the specific model, so you may get either the 80 or 84 in the same laptop model, and you just get whichever one they send you.
Personally, the 80 works fine for me, as I said, the Snapdragon X-Plus would've been good enough, but that’s another story.
If you're going to use the Surface, or any device for development, don't buy it with less than 32GB of RAM. When I’m programming, I usually use between 14 and 16 just for Docker + IDE + browser. If you’re only using it for documents, 16 will do.
I also bought a keyboard, not the Flex, but the regular one. I would've bought the Flex, but it had a 20-day delivery so I went with the other, which is very expensive for what it is.
2 - Why buy the Surface Pro?
Here I'll talk about why I personally decided to buy the Surface Pro. The reasons that made me do it, because it’s a very expensive device.
What I look for mainly is portability, that’s my main reason. I travel a lot, sometimes for a week or two, and when I’m away for a long time, I take my work laptop (dedicated to my company) and usually leave my personal machine at home.
My previous laptop is a 2019 Razer Blade Advanced model. Honestly, it was a beast in 2019, but with great power comes not only great responsibility but also huge battery drain.
Another important thing for me is battery life. The Razer lasts 2 hours on a good day (after 5 years), and for me that’s not a laptop, that's a problem, because I have to carry the charger everywhere. Same issue with my professional laptop (Thinkpad P16s).
My idea is to have a portable device whose battery lasts a full workday. I used to think it was impossible until my startup gave me a Macbook Pro M1 and I discovered it actually is, it's amazing.
I also wanted it to charge by USB-C. Now, when I travel I only carry one charger for my work and personal laptops, plus my phone. It's a big saving in space, weight, and cable mess.
On a normal day, I'm not going to use the Surface for writing posts; I'll use my "main" computer, a tower with Ryzen 7, 64GB RAM and a 4070. But for this test period, I’ll use just the Surface. Normally it’s my secondary device, not my main one.
At this point you might ask why not get the Surface Laptop (the comparable laptop to the tablet)? When I'm at home, 99% of what I do on the PC is with the mouse, but on the tablet I can just use my finger, which is much more comfortable. And for travel, I prefer the tablet over a laptop (even though the laptop also has a touch screen).
3 - How have I evaluated the Surface Pro?
The way I’m testing is with my daily usage. Most reviews out there are running video editing software, or looping YouTube videos, or gaming for a bit.
These types of tests only create fancy charts and show who “has the biggest specs.”
In my case, I wanted to test it using a regular developer workflow.
So I'll be programming in C# with Rider (Jetbrains IDE for .NET), creating blog content in Google Docs via the browser, making thumbnails, etc. Sometimes browsing the internet or attending a Teams/Google Meet meeting. It's the typical daily work usage.
That’s why I say pure benchmarking tests are meaningless in the real world, especially for developers, because NOBODY is watching a video all day long.
Finally, the device settings I use are:
- Brightness at 50%. This screen looks better at 50% than my "old" laptop at 100%, so I don't need more. In dark environments, or without a window nearby, 35% is enough. Note: by default, brightness auto-adjusts to ambient light, but you can disable it, mine is set to a fixed 50%.
- Light/white theme. Those who follow me know I always use a white IDE in videos; same in my system. I don’t like dark themes, and while it drains more battery, I don’t care.
- Power mode on recommended. I could go further and use higher-performance modes at the cost of battery, but for my use case, it's unnecessary. Having a build take 2 seconds instead of 2.1 isn't worth the extra drain. Maybe I’ll write another post on Windows power modes, they’re a mess.
For the rest, it’s default settings, including all the fancy effects and stuff, which again, consume a little more battery.
4 - Surface Pro analysis
Let's look at the results, or conclusions, from my tests, completely subjective but impartial.
4.1 - Artificial Intelligence on the Surface Pro
The first point I want to make is about AI, because these devices are marketed as AI-ready because of the type of processor. They’re actually called Surface Pro + Copilot.
Since the original announcement, a lot has changed. For instance, the "Recall" feature (which takes screenshots and has a keylogger) is NOT enabled and cannot be enabled. Let's hope it NEVER is.
Initially, AI on these devices was going to be integrated into the device itself, so you could "talk" to it anytime. But in reality, it ended up being a desktop app you can chat with. It's like ChatGPT, but much less useful. Honestly, it doesn’t add much.
Besides Copilot, other apps have AI support, like Paint, where you can sketch and it turns it into something more professional. But honestly, aside from that there isn’t much; I barely use it.
Personally, I’m quite disappointed. I'm glad they removed Recall, but I expected I’d be able to write a blog post like this one and tell Copilot: "Hey Copilot, give me the keywords and description for SEO," and it would just do it automatically.
That you could open a news article and ask questions about it, etc. Anyway, I’m disappointed so far. I like having Copilot there mostly as a search assistant, but they missed a huge chance to integrate it with Windows. I don't know if that’ll come in the future.
Finally, a feature that is enabled is automatic captions when you watch a video or whatever, the NPU can detect the audio and display subtitles. Right now it doesn't translate, but at least you get captions, though the accuracy is about the same as YouTube’s automatic subs.
Still, I think this is a great feature for people working in companies where their native language isn't spoken; it makes following conversations easier.
4.2 Hardware on the Surface Pro
Now moving on to hardware, I won’t go into whether the tablet has good hardware or not. It's a tablet, made of aluminum or something similar. Propping it up on the table works well, feels sturdy, and hopefully in a few years it still will be, but we’ll see.
The less obvious hardware is the camera. Laptops usually have terrible cameras, but in this case it’s very different. The image quality is great, which is essential in today’s remote world.
Finally, the keyboard and pen. Both are very, very expensive. I have the “cheap” version, where you can store the pen in the keyboard without it getting in the way, and honestly... I think it's a rip-off. The pen works fine, and some people will use it, but I barely do. Maybe I will one day, but not now. I also should mention I can’t draw, which may be relevant, and for taking notes, I use the Remarkable2.
The keyboard: typing is fine, I mean, it’s on par with a mid-range keyboard. The problem is it costs €200 and €350 for the expensive one, when it should be between €50 and €90.
Of course, it’s flexible and the material (some sort of velvet or suede) is at least interesting. You can get much more comfortable keyboards for a lot less money, though they won’t fit the Surface Pro, they’re standalone.
The trackpad in the keyboard is decent, but it's still nowhere near Apple’s trackpad. Nothing else comes close.
To finish this section: it barely gets hot and is totally silent.
4.3 - Battery on the Surface Pro
While technically the battery is part of the hardware, I wanted to give it its own section since, in my opinion, it’s a key factor.
I’ve been able to finish a full 8-hour workday with about 10% battery left, which for me is great (it uses about 11% battery per hour).
I don't know how long the battery would last on a power mode that boosts performance, as I've never needed to use it, so I’m happy as I am. The same would probably apply if I lower the brightness, I could easily do so by pulling down the blinds.
4.4 - ARM vs X86 in software
Quick mention about architecture, not a post comparing them, but you don’t need all your apps to run on ARM. These chips include an emulator for x86 apps.
So, if your app is x86, it will work (with slight overhead for emulation). Personally, every app I use is ARM-native: Rider, Visual Studio, browsers, Docker, etc. The only x86 app I installed is Git, and honestly, you can't notice a performance difference in a simple app like Git unless you’re really looking for it.
4.5 - Is the Surface Pro comfortable on your lap?
One of my main questions was whether the tablet is comfortable on your lap. Honestly, I’m surprised, it's much more comfortable than I expected. Obviously, it isn’t a traditional laptop, but I thought it would wobble a lot when used on your lap, and it really doesn't, it’s almost as stable as a laptop. So I’m happy with that.
4.6 - Gaming on the Surface Pro
To be quick and concise: If you want to game on a PC, buy a desktop. If portability is key, get a Steam Deck. These devices can run some games, but they aren't made for it. I haven't played any games on it, so I can't say more.
4.7 - Surface Pro price vs value analysis
The device is extremely expensive. As a tablet, there’s nothing better, it’s the top of the market, with the iPad Pro as the closest rival, but you have to put up with iOS, so in this case you pay for rarity and exclusivity.
If you want a laptop, it’s not a good deal, actually, within this group, even the Surface Laptop seems pricey. If you like the looks and don’t mind paying extra, fine, but if you want a powerful laptop, there are much cheaper options (half the price) that will give you the same performance.
To sum it up here: it's a powerful device, but very expensive, maybe too much. If you don’t need 32GB RAM, there are cheaper versions, but they still start at €1600.
5 - Conclusion - Can I use the Surface Pro for development?
My main idea was to analyze if this tablet is recommended for development. Honestly, I haven’t run into a single negative point, especially compared to the Razer Blade, my other laptop. It’s better in every way (well, I guess it’s worse for gaming, but I have no intention of gaming!).
Every app I use runs natively, it’s portable and lightweight, plus it charges via USB-C, which is essential now.
Battery life is excellent and more than enough, and the camera is surprisingly good.
Programming on it is exactly the same as on any Windows computer. Personally, I wouldn’t choose the Surface as my primary device, since I think the screen is a bit small for that. Yes, you can connect it to a monitor, but I’ve never been a fan of using a laptop with an external monitor. For that, I’d rather use a desktop.
If you’re looking for a secondary device, especially for travel, it’s ideal. But as a primary machine, I’d still choose a desktop, or a laptop if you’re actually going to use it as a laptop.
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