New Microsoft Surface Go (Intel Pentium Gold, 8GB RAM, 128GB)

Description

Enter your model number to make sure it fits. High resolution 10 PixelSense displays are designed to view, touch and write on the lightest surface. 1,000 pounds of battery life throughout the day and can be turned off with up to 9 hours unplugged. Run Windows 10 Home in S mode Streamlined for security and superior performance. Includes multi-tasking USB-C and fast charging Surface Connect, and headphone jack. Can be used with laptop, tablet, studio mode Size: 128GB SSD New 10 Surface Go provides tablet portability, great touch screen, and laptop performance with Windows and Office experience. From emails, browsing and home projects to rewind to your favorite TV shows, the Surface Lingo has all the ports you need including 1 battery life of up to 9 hours, built-in HD camera, hassle-free connection, and multi-task USB-C. Review: Before deciding to purchase this, I watched and read many reviews online. The Surface Go has received so much hate and I just don't understand why. This isn't meant to be used as the main computer. However, it is perfect as a browsing and media machine. The build quality on Surface products is nothing short of incredible. The body is all metal and is incredibly sturdy and exudes quality. The hinged stand which is a staple of Surface devices is nothing short of amazing. You can set it at any angle and it just works. It is incredibly secure and never slips. The only issues I have with the Go is the bezels (I wish they were a bit smaller), and only having one USB-C port. It would have been amazing to be able to charge the Go through one USB-C connection while I use the other for attaching devices. Yes, I know you can use the included charger which attaches to the expansion slot, but I find it so much easier to just charge though USB-C even if it is slightly slower. Not needing to bring a separate charger just for this computer and instead charge it with the same cable I would for my phone is so much more convenient. As a computer, this works for browsing. I have personally taken it out of S-mode so I can install any Windows application on it I want. With 8GB of RAM and the 128GB SSD, the performance isn't bad at all. It isn't the most responsive when using Chrome on large web pages, but that is to be expected. Chrome is fairly resource intensive. On the other hand, using Edge it easily handles any page you can throw at it. Windows productivity software like Excel, Word, and Power Point work exactly as you would expect them to. Communication software works perfectly as well. One of the things I really like about the surface line is the face unlock. It does use an IR light so you won't have any issues unlocking it even in the dark. Doing so is incredibly fast and it pains me having to type in a password manually on my desktop computer. One thing I am unable to review is the Surface keyboard. If I need a keyboard I will just connect to one wirelessly through Bluetooth. The stylus is great though. It does fall short of something like a Wacom tablet but is usable for drawing and perfect for a mouse substitute. For a media tablet this checks every box as well. I installed K-Lite Codec Pack on it and it has no issues playing anything I can throw at it. Even 50GB+ 4k movies with DTS audio streamed over the network from my server are no problem at all for this. Same with 4k YouTube videos. The speakers are quite surprising. They are loud, clear, provide a decent amount of bass, and are actually stereo. The screen is excellent quality with a great contrast ratio and vivid colors. The battery life when viewing media is also more than enough for a cross-country flight. Now, the heart of the matter is value. The Surface Go isn't a cheap device. Yes, it is primarily a tablet. But it is also so much more. The build quality is on par with the new iPad Pro's. But the iPad is almost twice the price, has half the storage, and is running a mobile OS. You can do everything on this you can with a tablet, while still having the flexibility of a full computer. To me, this is a win-win situation. The intended customer for this isn't someone looking for a $250 Android tablet. The customer who should be getting this will mostly be using it as a tablet, while still wanting the option to use it as a full computer when they are on the go. For that, the Surface Go is perfect. Review: EDIT, 8/18/18 - So it's been almost a week since I've had my Surface Go. I still love it, but I'm beginning to see the limitations of this device. The limitations are due to Windows 10, not the hardware itself. And I feel that these limitations are very slight--slight enough for me to keep the rating at 5 stars. I feel that these tiny issues are ones that can be adjusted or fixed with software updates, and that's fine with me. The device is still great as-is, but Windows 10 needs little tweaks to make the device better--that's all I'm saying. Personally, I think the issue here is that Windows 10 isn't built for mobile devices. It's still for devices that are meant to sit on a desk or table and aren't nearly as portable--like PCs. The Surface Go is great because it's so portable, but it can be better. For that to happen, Microsoft needs to tailor Windows 10 to make mobile devices like the Surface Go function like a mobile device should. For instance, as it stands right now, I can't listen to music or podcasts with the screen off. I can do that with my iPhone or iPad. But I have to babysit the Surface Go, just like I have to babysit my PC at home. I have to be sitting around, making sure the Surface Go remains awake. Sure, I could mess with power management settings, but why should I have to do that? The competition doesn't require me to do that. Microsoft needs to match that. Many mobile devices have widgets or other controls that can be accessed without unlocking the device. I feel that Microsoft has to match this, too, with Windows 10. It also needs widgets that can be accessed without having to unlock the device. Just very basic controls--turn wifi on or off (for real, not this garbage with Apple disconnecting from wifi for a day), and basic audio controls. Finally: Windows apps should be optimized so that a user can get away with using programs without a stylus or keyboard of some kind. Along with the Surface Go, I have an Ockel Sirius A that I got through an Indiegogo campaign earlier this year--that device has a screen that's about the same size as your average phablet, and it runs on Windows 10. A stylus, mouse or trackpad is definitely needed if you want to get work done on it, even if you plug a lager monitor into the Sirius A. I understand that--Windows 10 just isn't built for a screen that small. But I don't think there's any excuse for a device like the Surface Go that has a screen that's, what...about 10.5"? Like an iPad? And on an iPad, users are expected to be able to use apps on that tablet without needing a stylus or trackpad of some kind. But I can't say the same for the Surface Go. Some of those icons--like taskbar icons, or some of the buttons or drop-down menus I've seen in iTunes, as two examples--are still too small to select them with just a finger. You'd still need a stylus/mouse/trackpad to use the Surface Go as-is. And, sure...of course you can mess around with the display settings on the Surface Go to fix this. But again--why should I have to do that when the competition doesn't require me to do that, and the apps on the competition's devices work just fine without extra hardware of some kind? Overall: Microsoft is getting there when it comes to mobile devices, but it also still has a ways to go to keep up with the competition. ORIGINAL REVIEW: I just got my Surface Go yesterday, and I have to say—it’s a genuinely nice device to have. I like it a lot. I plan on using the Surface Go as a “workhorse” device. I do a lot of writing and I work with spreadsheets, so that’s mostly what I’ll be doing on the Surface Go. I also have iTunes on it—I’m in the middle of downloading some albums to it right now—and I’m downloading some Netflix shows to watch later. The Surface Go can handle all of this very well—and I plan on keeping it in S mode, just to see how far I can go with this device being this way. Word and Excel docs, along with iTunes and Netflix, is pretty much all that I need a device like the Surface Go to handle. I’ve seen at least one tech reviewer (iJustine?) play Fortnite on her Surface Go review unit, so it’s not impossible to do it. It’s just—playing games is not a priority of mine for a device like this one. I want this device to be the one that I’ll do some actual work on. If I want to do fun stuff, I’ll use my smartphone. Overall: I think the Surface Go is a nice device to have if you want a backup computer—something to do the bare minimum of what you expect your average computer to do. Also, just remember who this device is supposed to be for: students and enterprise. If you’re in a school or business environment, then this’ll be a great device to have.