Surface Dial 1 year old

Today marks 1 years since the Surface Dial was released/announced.

Did you buy one?

How do you use yours?

What apps do you use it with?

I bought a Surface Dial for my SP4 and had high hopes but alas it looks like developers don’t know how to incorporate this into their apps.

I would still like a version 2 with a touch top like the **cough** ipod classic touch wheel with easier audio buttons like next track etc.

Conversation 7 comments

  • Paul Thurrott

    Premium Member
    27 October, 2017 - 9:12 am

    <p>This works great with CorelDraw, btw.</p>

  • timothyhuber

    Premium Member
    30 October, 2017 - 3:34 pm

    <p>With high hopes I too ordered one for my SP4. I used it on and off for a few months. Mostly for volume and scrolling. </p><p><br></p><p>Then it sat unused. I sold it on Ebay a couple months ago.&nbsp; </p>

  • PhilipVasta

    30 October, 2017 - 10:56 pm

    <p>Yeah I bought one. I<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">t still feels like it has so much potential. </span>Unfortunately Microsoft doesn't have that Apple-like developer base that's so eager to embrace new technologies. Plus it's an optional accessory that probably few people know about. In any case, Dial integration seems mostly limited to remapped keyboard shortcuts, which is not only uninteresting, but also makes the Dial <em>less</em> convenient than the shortcut. If developers really took the time to do something unique, that you couldn't do with anything but the Dial, I think it might have a fighting chance.</p>

  • hrlngrv

    Premium Member
    31 October, 2017 - 12:29 am

    <p>Did MSFT do squat with it for anything in Office? If MSFT couldn't find a use for it in Office, why would many 3rd party developers find any uses for it?</p>

  • jwpear

    Premium Member
    08 November, 2017 - 11:15 am

    <p>The Surface Dial reminds me of the Logitech TouchPad T650. I bought one in the days after Windows 8 to add touch to my desktop. Used it for a bit, but found it to be more work than a mouse for routine things. The biggest issue was the need to switch between the mouse and the TouchPad. I never felt completely comfortable just using the TouchPad with a desktop. Eventually, it went into a drawer with my other misfit/unused tech. </p><p><br></p><p>I was tempted to get the Dial, but remembered the TouchPad. While the TouchPad could potentially replace a mouse, I didn't see the Dial doing that. I thought I'd probably have the same device switch issue with it. </p><p><br></p><p>I ultimately decided to wait and see how well the Dial was adopted. Sounds like that was a good decision.</p><p><br></p><p>The Dial seems like it could be very useful for creative apps. I still hold out hope that it will see some adoption in other apps.</p>

  • lvthunder

    Premium Member
    08 November, 2017 - 11:45 am

    <p>Yes I bought the dial. I use it with Photoshop and Lightroom. It makes using my Surface Book with the screen on backwards a lot easier when I'm editing photos since I just use the pen in one hand and the dial in the other.</p>

  • gregsedwards

    Premium Member
    08 November, 2017 - 5:05 pm

    <p>Yep.</p><p>Nope.</p><p>See answer 2.</p><p><br></p><p>I remain annoyed that they never brought the on-screen functionality to Surface Pro 4 like they promised they would at launch. I've used it a handful of times to change the volume or scroll, but honestly, <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">it takes too long to "wake up" for casual use. Most of the content creation apps I use don't know what to do with it. </span>The Surface Dial remains a gimmicky appliance that looks cool sitting on my desk, and that's about it. </p>

Windows Intelligence In Your Inbox

Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Thurrott © 2024 Thurrott LLC