I can’t count the number of times someone has handed me a USB-A thumbstick, but the number of times I’ve seen a USB-C thumbstick in the wild is precisely zero. Microsoft has placed two USB-C ports on the Surface Pro X, and I actually prefer having the single USB-A and USB-C ports that the Surface Pro 7 offers. Port selection is really where the basic hardware starts to differ. The kickstands on each device feel identical, with the same friction to allow you to adjust it to different angles. It really feels much more like a tablet than the Pro 7, and I love these subtle changes. Rounded edges help here, as does the slimmer form factor.
The Surface Pro X also feels great to hold compared to the Pro 7. It doesn’t always feel that great to use as a tablet as a result.
Microsoft has kept the same hardware design for the Surface Pro 7 display and most of the exterior hardware, which is a more edgy / squared-off look and feel. I sometimes feel like the Surface Pro 7 display is a little cramped to use, but I never really felt like that using the Pro X. If you put the Pro 7 and Pro X side by side, the display is the most obvious change, and the Pro X makes the Pro 7 look old.
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Microsoft has gotten closer than any other OEM with a viable Windows on ARM laptop, but more work needs to be done. I don’t trust it enough yet since the performance and app compatibility just aren’t where they need to be. The machine is beautifully designed, but I’m writing this review on the Surface Pro X with a Pro 7 sitting in my bag just in case. I fell in love with the Surface Pro form factor over the past 12 months, but using the Pro X for the past week felt like a step backward in many ways. I’ve now been using the Surface Pro X, an ARM-based version with an updated design, for the last week, and my wish for a Surface Pro X with an Intel chip inside couldn’t ring truer.Īt times, performance has been erratic, battery life underwhelming, and using the keyboard obnoxious. “I just wish the Surface Pro 7 looked like a Surface Pro X with an Intel chip inside.” That’s what I wrote about the Surface Pro 7 last month after reviewing Microsoft’s latest 2-in-1.