Requiem for an Original Surface Pro
frank freedman
Posts: 1,983
Heater please don't pull my Linux card after reading.......
My Surface Pro (original model) has at last come to its final resting place. On the floor. Would have probably survived had it not hit a very square table foot side on, spidering out the entire front glass panel. Went hunting for a replacement part, but what vendors I found showed out of stock with no date of new stock listed. :$:; $ I hate microsoft! Mostly I use it for work, because it helps me keep on top of service reports and all the other things I do in the medical imaging. M $ did so much right and the device became so central to how I work, not having it at hand was not good. I actually did like 8.1, and tolerated the switch to Win10 for mostly the print to PDF and some other things.will still look for a part, but a refurbished is so cheap, doubt I will find anyone carries a replacement screen. Not sure if I could trust the non-M $ refurbished and that price is too close to new the only solution was to go to Costco for a new one. Still lower price than the original , 2x ram and 2x SSD. The w a y I bought it gives me about 4 years warranty and got the break spill coverage. It's pricey to be sure, rather mess with a throw away for some things, but for work and all the rest I do with it entirely worth it.
So now I hate M $ for putting such an excellent device out there after all these years. It really kicks the post-processed organic product out of the competiton.
One further annoyance come from the power cover, or lack thereof. I bought two of them last year and with some Google help figured out how to get the cover to take a charge. Could then run 6 hours worth of PMS or service without ever having to plug in. The new pros don't have a power cover to offer. So we will see how long it holds up on the next longer maintenance event. And of course now I have three of the Wacom based stylus pens that don't work on the new ones. Maybe eBay them as no one carries them any more.
M $........ can't love em, can't hate em.............
My Surface Pro (original model) has at last come to its final resting place. On the floor. Would have probably survived had it not hit a very square table foot side on, spidering out the entire front glass panel. Went hunting for a replacement part, but what vendors I found showed out of stock with no date of new stock listed. :$:; $ I hate microsoft! Mostly I use it for work, because it helps me keep on top of service reports and all the other things I do in the medical imaging. M $ did so much right and the device became so central to how I work, not having it at hand was not good. I actually did like 8.1, and tolerated the switch to Win10 for mostly the print to PDF and some other things.will still look for a part, but a refurbished is so cheap, doubt I will find anyone carries a replacement screen. Not sure if I could trust the non-M $ refurbished and that price is too close to new the only solution was to go to Costco for a new one. Still lower price than the original , 2x ram and 2x SSD. The w a y I bought it gives me about 4 years warranty and got the break spill coverage. It's pricey to be sure, rather mess with a throw away for some things, but for work and all the rest I do with it entirely worth it.
So now I hate M $ for putting such an excellent device out there after all these years. It really kicks the post-processed organic product out of the competiton.
One further annoyance come from the power cover, or lack thereof. I bought two of them last year and with some Google help figured out how to get the cover to take a charge. Could then run 6 hours worth of PMS or service without ever having to plug in. The new pros don't have a power cover to offer. So we will see how long it holds up on the next longer maintenance event. And of course now I have three of the Wacom based stylus pens that don't work on the new ones. Maybe eBay them as no one carries them any more.
M $........ can't love em, can't hate em.............
Comments
Your Linux card is stil intact.
I think we are in similar boats. I would never have thought of buying a Windows machine, never mind one from MS itself. If it were not from pressure from the boss to get all kind of Windows only software working. Skype for example. And some Windows only tools I need to get my job done.
Besides, he was paying for it...
Turns out the Pro has been great, runs all my fav Open Source code that I know and love from the Linux world and has the Linux Subsystem for Windows so I can get real work done. It's small and very portable. Has a great screen and the grunt of of my old PC boxes.
I have no expectations of it being repairable. Even just a worn out battery never mind changing a cracked screen. My plan is that when that happens I may well be taking a Dremel or even a more serious mill to its case.
Battery life is a concern. I can't report much in that respect. If I'm actually using the thing and have the screen brightness turned up battery life can be down to an hour or two. On the other hand my 2 years old Pro stayed alive for a 7 hour road trip yesterday. Checking mail and other things occasionally along the way.