One of the pandemic quarantine effects has been to watch more online video reviews. I watched a couple of Surface Pro X reviews and then YouTube, via its algorithm, decided to offer up a further selection.
Windows on Arm isn’t really Windows on Arm. Its Windows on Qualcomm, albeit with a Microsoft twist of a customised chip. There appears to be little interest beyond Microsoft to produce Arm based PCs. From a pricing perspective there seems little reason for me to consider an Arm based PC.
Generally, the build quality and look of the Surface Pro X is praised. Almost no one has a bad word to say. The pen charging position seems excellent. Comment is made about the key Microsoft productivity apps running well. Where it starts getting murky is the application situation in general. The Surface Pro X, because it is Windows, is expected to run the range of legacy applications. Microsoft’s traditional business customers expect that inventory program that ran 15 years ago on XP to keep on running. Any software built for the 64 bit world won’t run at all or just crawls along.
Some reviewers suggest the Surface Pro X is a great “Chromebook”. In the sense that it is an expensive browser replacement.
Apps are the problem. It struck me I have heard this before. My Lumia 950, and previous Lumia’s tell me that. This finally led me to adopting Apple’s Iphone as my primary mobile device. Shortly IOS 14 will give me live actionable widgets that look like tiles I can just glance at. I wonder where that idea came from? However, I digress. I wonder how the Surface Pro X is doing? I haven’t seen much written about real life movement from Intel based PCs to Qualcomm based PCs.
Intel are treading water right now. They seem to know this. The generational performance boost is still there but there seems little evidence of a new modern Windows experience on Qualcomm. There seems little incentive for PC makers to build them. There seems nothing priced in the consumer space. There seems little interest from developers. The false dawn of Windows RT seems to be repeating itself.
I am not sure if Windows 10 X is the “modern Windows” to get excited about either.
While my work life is all on traditional PCs and Microsoft Office 365 the same is not true at home. My Microsoft ecosystem consists of Office 365 Family subscription and an Xbox. Ten years ago Microsoft supplied music, movies, mobile phone and much more. With my consumer hat on a consistent modern, consumer-based ecosystem looks more like an Apple PC than Microsoft.
Surface Pro X seems to tick almost none of the boxes for a future Windows other than being able to compile the OS for a Qualcomm chip.