Surface Laptop vs Surface Book 2 (Artist Designer Review)

Here's a comparison review of the Microsoft Surface Laptop and Surface Book 2 from the perspective of a visual content creator, a graphic designer, and someone who edits photos and videos.

Text review:

More reviews and Amazon affiliate links:
SURFACE LAPTOP:

SURFACE BOOK 2

My other tech reviews:

--------------------------------------------------------
Find me on

[RenyxGhoul]

You may be the only channel that compares these two devices. Thank you!

[TheMarketSolves]

I like that we now have a new measure of resolution: Pens Per Screen. :)

[miramarensis]

I initially bought the Surface Pro 6 as a mobile device to do some light duty 3d work in Blender but realized that the integrated video wasn't able to run the Eevee real-time renderer so I had to return it and spent a bit more (well, quite a bit more) and got the Surface Book 2 13.5 with an i7, 8 GB, 256 SSD and 1050 graphics. All I can say is WOW. Love the machine and the convenience of detaching the slate when needed and how well the Surface Pen works with the whole machine. Definitely a winner and a keeper. Great review, by the way.

[benechobox]

What a rare sight seeing a Singaporean reviewer! Keep up the great contents!

[junokeyesvalentine]

i use the surface book 2 for art when i want something a little more relaxed and convenient than sitting at the desk with my proper display monitor. i sometimes have issues with the resolution of the screen being too high and making it so the UI for programs i use is very very small, which is tough if i want to work with the screen reversed since i cant use shortcuts and would have to navigate the UI for commands. making the screen resolution lower tends to look strange or make the UI elements too big for the small screen. i also had issues getting pressure sensitivity to work in some programs.


the main issue with using this laptop for drawing/digital painting/etc is that you have to choose between:
-having the keyboard accessible, makes it so the screen is awkwardly far or you are hunched over the screen and keyboard, the hinge does not always hold steady
or
-not having the keyboard accessible, much more comfortable drawing position but with the resolution making the UI so small it is much tougher to work with


definitely convenient and great for note taking, for work as a drawing tablet its not the best but its functional

[yousefalmazer]

Excellent review, informative and yet concise..

[RubyDehad]

From all the video that i watch about Microsoft laptop, only your video that i found useful because you explain very detail specially about the keyboard.
Thank you, now i know which laptop i can buy

[roscodotemmas]

Please we will need the surface book 2 & 3 compared.. thanks

[nnnnnn]

Why has this great review got so less views.

[volcanowb]

See you're working very hard, as usual making it look easy! 😎

Thanks Teoh!

[darmansani]

Nice review. Hope you can make comparison review between microsoft surface book 3 vs latest macbook pro later, as a designer :-)

[SerenaLewis]

Great review, Parka! I bought the Surface 3 laptop - 15", AMD Ryzen7 processor, 16gb RAM, 3:2 aspect ratio, AMD Radeon Vega 9 graphics. I love it! I am thinking of trying an external monitor for photo editing etc.

[greyareaRK]

Great comparison. I believe Karabiner will allow you to switch that menu key to a control key, plus any other changes to the keyboard you want to make.

[ntnlaaron]

Brilliant video! Made the differences clear and understandable, keep it up!

[muezz]

The price in Malaysia for now is much cheaper. For the Surface Book 2 13.5 inch, i7, gtx1050, 8gb ram, 256gb cost about RM6699 which is about SGD 2213 or in USD, USD 1605.

[quynhphuong]

thank you so for the super helpful review! 1000 thanks

[gosiaplummer]

Teoh, what would you choose between surface or iPad Pro? I would like to try some digital drawing and also have usual access to spreadsheets, word processor etc.... does procreate work on surface?

[vlwebd]

*QUESTION FOR YOU TEOH ...*
What's the brand name and model of the External Monitor
that you're using to connect to these Surface devices?
Thanks.

[Maks-vouo]

Review the hp zbook x2! this isn't the first time. this is a professional laptop tablet for artists. and the Surfface is not for sale in my country.

[KreativeHogwartsLegacyGUIDES]

i didnt know microsoft had a singapore division. how many countries are they based in