Feast Your Eyes on The New Microsoft iPad Fighter

So we got a new Surface product, the Surface Go 2

which continues this progression towards the what is a laptop conversation. Well, I mean, this thing doesn't claim to be a laptop

It's not called a laptop, but when you pair it up with their signature type cover

it takes the form of a laptop and a tablet, and it's all, well, you know, it's very blurry

but that could be a good thing depending on the user. It gives you versatility

You can pop this off, you're sitting on the couch, you're watching Netflix, you throw it on here to get some work done

And I kind of like what Microsoft has done to the industry in terms of rethinking the idea of what a laptop is

but still providing you with a keyboard or type cover that gives you a tactile feedback

That was my main criticism with the iPad Pro keyboard on a previous generation

I haven't tried the new one yet. I will soon, but I didn't like the squishy keyboards that were out there for tablets in the past

aiming to make them more like laptops. Microsoft, with the Surface lineup in general, was always trying to still give you a laptop

because ultimately their product still runs Windows, and Windows is best interacted with with a keyboard and trackpad for the time being

I mean, it works as a tablet as well, but it's a sit-down operating system first and foremost

So the Surface Go 2 takes the previous version and upgrades it

It gives you a bigger display in the same form factor, so you have less of a bezel

That's kind of a must when it comes to an upgrade, or it's at least welcome on my end

This specification that I have features the Core M3 processor. It seems to me this is the one you're going to want to go for

because it just gives the device significantly more oomph, you know what I'm saying

compared to the baseline model, which has a Pentium Gold chip that I don't think anybody wants

unless you're on a very, very strict budget. This one also has 128 gigs of storage, 8 gigs of RAM

and I guess Platinum stands for the color that this is in. Windows 10 Home

There's also an LTE version, support for LTE Advanced Pro. I don't know if this one has LTE in it, but there is an LTE version available

if you want to throw a SIM card into it. Another nice thing about these products, because they're tablets that also happen to be typeable

the video conferencing, the webcam on here, is a 5 megapixel 1080p capable

So in a previous video, I was showing off the potato cam in the new MacBook 13

That's not going to be the case with this one. It's going to have better webcam performance

Actually, not just for web conferencing, zoom, and so on, but also for unlocking the device

because this does have Windows Hello also, so you can do the face unlock

All right, let's crack into this first, and then we'll get into the type cover

Type cover comes in a couple of different versions. You can get the premium one, the Alcantara

I think that's what this one is, right? Yes, you see that word? That word costs money

If you ever see that word, whether you're buying a car or a type cover

it's going to cost you a few extra bucks. Alcantara. Look at that little guy. That's kind of cute

So I think this machine is going to be popular for people who want some nice battery life

They said they improved the battery life up to about 10 hours now. They want something ultra super portable, sort of in iPad territory, but still want a full operating system, still need to run Windows applications

Well, that's kind of where this thing comes in. So you can see right out of the gate here they identify what in your different locations Oh this is an LTE capable version because it does have the SIM card tray Power switch dedicated volume buttons on the top

The microphone is there, camera for Windows hello. Another microphone on the other side

There's a headphone jack, USB port, and a power port also. Remaining items in the package, SIM card tool, little bit of paperwork

And I guess this is going to be the charger. Now, you guys know I love magnets

I'm a big magnet guy. Their proprietary charger uses magnets, and it's one of the only ways I'm willing to accept a proprietary connector in 2020

is if it is a slight improvement or it does include magnets

I mean, that's the only way to improve it, really, so it pops out easily. But it is a strange..

I'll find myself time and time again reaching for trying to find one of these chargers

See, they do have a Type-C port, but this is the charger, obviously, that they're recommending

and they've been doing it for a while now. So if you kick it when you walk by it just pops out. This is a nice portable little charger here. It's 24 watts

Platinum color with the matte finish on the back. I think it's pretty decent looking you have a camera facing backwards as well

Of course the ever important stand is really what makes a surface in my opinion

Of course the surface brand has expanded into traditional laptops, but that's your magic right there

You can pick any angle including all the way down to an angle that's nice to draw on its versatility

Any angle all the way down and built into a stand that really doesn't add

tremendous bulk to the product whereas if you compare that to something like an iPad you're gonna have to add an

Accessory to be able to angle it and get a nice viewing angle on the bottom of the device

You have your connection points for your accessories for that type cover over here's the type C connector that I mentioned earlier

as well as that proprietary charge port headphone jack. Now the main thing I'm happy about on this device is the shrinking of the bezels

I also like the fact that there's two stereo speakers. They're facing you. They're going towards your ears

That's a big-time deal. That's a big-brain move, as the youngsters like to say

I'm gonna just leave that over there for a moment. We'll get into the type cover real quick

You guys know it by now. It's been an ongoing thing here. I'm very picky about keyboards in general

And of course, it's a compromise you make when you need portability

It's just the nature of the thing. You got to shrink down the sizes and therefore you shrink down your keyboard, you shrink down

your key travel. But to me, as far as the tablet keyboard, weird connection type of keyboards are concerned

they've had some of the best. They're not mushy. There is some click to it

The quick brown. It is smaller. It's important to note it's definitely per key. It's smaller. They had to shrink it into a 10 inch form factor here

But given some time, I think with the tactile feedback, you're going to be able to adapt to it and get used to it and embrace it

Trackpad is down in this location here. And since this is the Alcantara version, you have this. Do you want to hear that

Now you got some quick function keys on the top here for the backlight on the keyboard

volume controls, they also exist on the tablet as I said previously, multimedia, brightness

and so on, and the whole thing, I mean, it's just, that's fun. Speaking of magnets, that's fun

And it's strong. Wow, that's some strong magnetic connection. It's a good time

Big magnet guy Told you before I tell you again Boom So the keyboard has this kind of secondary spot as well where it sit up like that with a little bit of an angle to it or flat on the desk It does depend on the angle of your Surface Go

whether or not it's gonna sit there. If you start looking in the direction of a laptop

this thing, the footprint is way smaller. If you're talking about a tray table, or a little cafe

or on the bedside table, I mean, this thing is going to fit anywhere with this 10 inch display

So it's actually more comparable to something like an iPad from a form factor perspective than a full on laptop

And certainly from a weight perspective as well. Here's the 11 inch iPad Pro

and I'll just put them beside each other. This one with the old keyboard cover

the old type cover, whatever they, whatever name they had for before it became magic

it has less depth to it. There's no track pad on it. But if you're just examining the width and the height

it's almost identical. Now, they're also in different price categories, which is kind of interesting because the iPad, as we're well aware, is a completely mobile OS

Whereas on the Microsoft product, it's equally tiny, but it's full windows

Even for the overhead camera, we can get a really nice shot because we have this impossible angle that is available to us

So we're at the point now to register the face in there

And that little glimpse into the webcam quality was quite promising. It looked half decent

Camera looks a billion times better. Yeah, that's a webcam. Should I run a, let me run a sample here for you

This is the webcam typical studio environment for me here on the new Surface Go 2

They said they improved the audio as well, so we'll get a taste for that. but I actually think this is going to be a popular choice for a little video conferencing machine

which is important to people right now given the state of the world

It's inexpensive. It's approachable. It starts at $400. And you get something that around the house can take on many forms

It could be a tablet on a couch. It could be business during the conference

And you could type something up if you need to. Now on these devices, multimedia, huge component as well

People want to watch video on something like this. It's probably gonna have better battery life than whichever old laptop they might be replacing and when you just pick it up like this, hit the couch, little Netflix session

Oh, little pro tip, when you're holding this thing with the extra grip that the stand gives you, see what I'm saying over here

We drop it back in, push it down, let's load up some YouTube real quick and I'm gonna boost the quality

I don't think this thing can play 4K. Should we try? Oh, wow

This is playing back 4K right now. I didn't think it was going to have the horsepower for it on the full browser version of YouTube

But you can see the little 4K icon is activated there. This is an Unbox Therapy video playing smoothly in 4K on the Surface Go

So now this is a spec'd up Surface Go. You're going to pay over $600 for this version

I think you're really going to want that Intel Core M3. All right, let me turn up the volume

After those videos have been published, people out there listening to some of the cons with the device

the antiquated design and so on. And saying, well, if I do have $400

I mean, I'm happy they're facing me. The language the dialogue in there is very clear but I like a little more volume there Link to cross shop And so that where these two devices come in today

It's kind of unfortunate because I talked about this in yesterday's video with the new MacBook Pro 13

Apple is doing a tremendous job in speaker quality, not just on their laptops, but also on their iPads

And I get it. This thing starts at like 400 bucks and an iPad Pro with a keyboard case

is way above that price point, so you can't ask for everything

But it would have been nice as the ultimate multimedia machine with the hefty battery life

and the improved display. Hit me with the speakers and we got the whole package, don't we

And of course, Microsoft came out with their new Bluetooth headphones. They probably want you wearing those with this

That's the reason. That's why. So who should get this device? Who is this for

It really starts at $399. An actual product like this, minus the keyboard

I think everybody's going to want the keyboard. But still, to start it at $399 puts it in the territory

if you're comparing to Apple, of those budget lineup iPads. For what it's worth, as many quality tablet applications that exist on the iPad side

some people still need a full-out operating system for a number of reasons

I hear students tell me they need a particular application for a program that they're in that they have to install in Windows

I just hear it from time to time. And so now you can kind of, that individual can have a package here in this price category that might be able to get done everything they need to get done

I was very surprised to find out this thing is playing, streaming 4K video content

I think the horsepower should be there for most student-style applications. probably have seen some laptops, full-out laptops

at that price point that might be more powerful than this. But what those laptops won't have is this capability

to just do this, leave this, sit on the couch. Like I said, YouTube machine, Netflix machine

and it's so lightweight. See, that's the thing. Trying to figure out what is the optimal size for a tablet

Of course, I've tried both of the iPad Pros, the big one, the little one

there's something about the 10 to 11 inch size with small-ish bezels that just gives you a really comfortable couch situation

And that's what this is in this format. Then you get the stand and the keyboard and all the work comes to life

And then of course the other thing to talk about is the fact that Microsoft makes other Surface products at higher price points

that you might want to consider if you're looking for more power. But I think this thing is kind of fun

I'm happy that it exists. Especially at the price that it does exist

I know there's a lot of humans out there on old laptops that don't do anything beyond what a laptop does

In other words, it's a single hinge. It comes up. There's no touch input. And here we have something that sort of takes you more into the modern computing space, as many people see it

with a convertible approach and a package that folds up. Super portable

And if the battery is even close to what Microsoft claims, then you've got something kind of cool in my opinion

It is the new Microsoft Go 2 improved battery life, better screen to body ratio with a bigger display, LTE capability, at least if you opt for it in this particular model

And don't forget that usable, nice quality webcam