Microsoft 13.5" Surface Book Multi-Touch 2-in-1 Notebook (Silver)

Without competition. It is certainly powerful and does not make any compromises in terms of performance, and now even with a surprisingly good runtime of 10 hours. The Book easily beats the competition.

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  high-quality case made of magnesium alloy, CPU and GPU performance of a notebook in a convertible, no serious CPU or GPU throttling, good runtime of 10 hours, high resolution, bright display also for outdoor use, native 3:2 aspect ratio for picture editing, accurate colors and high contrast; 96 %...

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  thicker and heavier than 13- and 14-inch Ultrabooks, no USB-C or HDMI, no WWAN or RJ-45, no SmartCard reader or fingerprint scanner, no secondary storage device, no TrackPoint or dedicated mouse buttons, software-undocking still prone to errors, bad upgradeability, tablet warm under load, high price

The innovative Microsoft Surface Book offers comfortable ergonomics, a big, beautiful screen, more than 15 hours of battery life, and the power to make short work of everyday and multimedia tasks. It's the first premium detachable-hybrid tablet to earn our Editors' Choice.

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  Versatile detachable-hybrid design. Light and comfortable to use in Tablet mode. Constructed of premium materials. Brilliant 3,000-by-2,000-pixel display. Electrically actuated mechanical latch. More than 15 hours of battery life in testing. No bloatware.

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  Pricey. No ports on tablet body. Does not lie flat when closed.

We waffled between four and four and a half stars when rating the Surface Book, eventually choosing the latter because we think it's one of the most significant products of the year. But we didn't hesitate at all to name it an Editors' Choice.

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  Stunning screen, Epic battery life as a laptop, Powerful and light as a tablet

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  Expensive, Mediocre battery life as a tablet, Awkward power button placement

For the last few years, PC manufacturers have devoted incredible engineering resources to giving their laptops gymnastic capabilities. Dell made a laptop whose screen could spin quickly inside its frame. Toshiba’s Satellite could fold flat and slide closed, as if slipping under a limbo pole.

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  It's a laptop. A great laptop. Finally, a Windows computer without stickers and logos everywhere. The keyboard and trackpad are excellent---and if you don't like them pen and touch work just great. Screen is gorgeous, and there's plenty of power behind it.

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  Detaching and re-attaching comes with some pain. This is a very expensive laptop.

The Surface Book has attracted a lot of attention in the Digital Trends office. People ask about the hinge, and the display, and then the price. They’re always shocked to learn that it starts at $1,500, and I can’t understand why.

While pricey, Microsoft has created a laptop that I could picture myself ditching my MacBook Air for. I love the sharp and colorful touch display, very long battery life and swift overall performance. The keyboard and touchpad are also comfortable, although I wished scrolling were a bit smoother.

While Microsoft’s line of Surface Pro tablets has proven popular among a certain crowd of productivity enthusiasts, they haven’t managed to truly replace a laptop for most users. Acknowledging that is the case after three generations of Surface Pros, the company has taken alternate direction in the...

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  The best hybrid design yet. Fantastic display complemented by the included stylus. Great performance, especially with the dedicated GPU. Excellent battery life.

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  A collection of software issues hasn’t been fixed months after launch. Compromised cooling solution. The hinge doesn’t fully close. Expensive for a laptop, expensive for a hybrid.

While it's not nearly as refined as the new fourth-gen Surface Pro, Microsoft's Surface Book is a powerful, feature-filled premium hybrid that doesn't forget it's a laptop first.

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  The Microsoft Surface Book packs high-end components, including new Intel processors and optional Nvidia graphics, into a smart, slim body. Some components and most of the battery are hidden in the base, so the tablet half is lighter.

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  Configurations with the optional Nvidia GPU and more storage get very expensive. There are some first-generation quirks, including an awkward gap between the screen and base when closed.

Some days I’ll be seated on my couch, other days I’ll be seated on the floor of a convention center or press event, so I need a laptop that just works and won’t annoy me when I’m in the middle of writing an article.

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  Great keyboard and trackpad, Amazing battery life, 3:2 display is ideal for webpages

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  That weird gap, Display wobbles and feels top heavy, A little bulky as a laptop

Especially the latter has likely disrupted the flow of purchases. Not only that, there were problems in standby while docking and undocking the tablet unit didn’t always go smoothly. In addition, errors where discovered in the two batteries being unable to reach their full potential.

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  Solid coupling mechanism, High quality workmanship, Convincing keyboard and touchpad, Surface Pen, Bright display with good contrast and color reproduction, Relatively high power, Good battery life

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  High price point that lacks some modern conenctions, Getting used to the display format, Driver problems, Dedicated GPU throttling under heavy load, Battery concept

I use my Surface Book in place of my work assigned laptop because the dimensions of the screen are so much better (more square vs. rectangular), the screen is extremely crisp and clear and prevents eye strain.

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  Cutting edge, brilliant screen, fantastic keyboard, extremely fast, versatile, receive compliments all the time

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  A now fixed minor bug related to display when plugged into monitor would have graphics card crash and restart