Whether you ’re looking at theSurface Pro 9or theSurface Pro 8 , the Microsoft Surface Pro lineup is filled with heavy option . But they can be a bit expensive , and if they ’re just not quite what you ’re looking for , you should know that you have other options .
To help you research those option , we ’ve collected our five preferred Surface Pro choice for you below . And , if you ’re still not confident and want to snaffle yourself a Surface Pro , then at least check outthese Surface Pro dealsto supporter bring through yourself some supernumerary cash .
Best Apple Microsoft Surface Pro alternative
M2 Apple iPad Pro
If you ’re in the Apple ecosystem , then the obvious alternative would be theM2 Apple iPad Pro , particularly since it has the 2d genesis of M - Chips from Apple , and they ’re quite good . For starter , it comes with a substantially sized 12.9 - column inch screen that runs a 2732 x 2048 closure . Even better , it has the gorgeous liquid state Retina XDR presentation , so it ’s perfect for watching mental object or working on creative poppycock like graphic rendering and design and is likely one of the best screens Apple has to put up . Also , it can hit a whopping 1,600 nit of peak light , meaning you may use it pretty much anywhere .
As mentioned above , it has the M2 Chip , which is more than potent enough to pink productivity tasks out of the park , so you do n’t have to worry about that . Apple ’s mathematical product are also very well fuck for how serious they are for creatives , and you have a whole host of apps that will lick with the iPad when it comes to anything from artwork blueprint to euphony production . Luckily , you also get the much eminent 16 GB of RAM , which is pretty uncommon in Apple products , so it ’s nice to see here , especially since it will give you an overall smoother experience .
You ’ll also be glad to know that the version we ’ve linked below has a monolithic 1 TB of reposition , although that does tend to dislodge the price up quite well . Luckily , there is athat you’re able to get that ’s nigh $ 500 gaudy , although that might not be enough computer memory for most folks , depending on what you need this for . As for barrage fire animation , you ’ll get up to nine to ten hour out of it on the lowest usance , which is moderately good , and it comes with both Wi - Fi 6E and 5 G Cellular , so you have a ton of connectivity options , which is swell .
Best overall Microsoft Surface Pro alternative
Samsung Galaxy Tab S8+
If you just want a good overall alternative to the Microsoft Pro that is n’t in the Apple ecosystem , then it ’s expire to be hard to beat theGalaxy Tab S8 + , especially since even the S8 Ultra has similar spec under the hood . In damage of performance , the Tab S8 + is surprisingly powerful , with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 , only one contemporaries behind the tardy theoretical account , and one of the most knock-down mobile CPUs on the mart . That means it will easy wield most productivity tasks , as well as many graphical and audio types of software system you require to use on it , assume they ’re available on Android .
Arguably , the lack of Windows is probably the biggest effect here , which makes it gruelling to compete against the Surface Pro , although that enunciate , if you do have memory access to the creative apps you utilise on Android , then you ’re all set up . Luckily , a lot of the other specs make up for any possible pitfalls with a large 12.4 - inch concealment that run a 2800 x 1752 resolution . It also has 16 GB of Aries for you to work with , so you ’ll have a generally politic experience . Android is pretty lightweight anyway , so it ’s even right than if you were run Windows .
One other downside that ’s deserving mention is that , much like the iPad Pro , you do n’t get a keyboard include with this , so you will have to corrupt that individually . That said , the Tab S8 + is considerably chinchy , so it ’s not that magnanimous of an expenditure to sum it on , especially if you could discover a mess that rap off some of the MSRP . Another gravid characteristic is that the Tab S8 + has a MicroSD expandible slot , which means that you may significantly increase on the 512 GB that it comes with .
Best budget Microsoft Surface Pro alternative
Chromebook Duet 5
While both options above are quite pricey , you’re able to get something that ’s a lot more budget - friendly in the form of theChromebook Duet 5 , which actually has the sum up benefit of coming with anOLED show , so you get some gorgeous color reproduction . The 13.3 - inch silver screen runs a 1920 x 1080 resolution , which is absolutely fine for this sizing of screen given the pixel density , although it may cause some issues for those who ask a 2k or high display for doing their graphical employment . Even so , it can astonishingly hit 100 % of the DCI - P3 gamut , and the 400nits of height luminance intend you’re able to apply it in well - lit rooms and somewhat much anywhere that does n’t involve direct sunlight , which is telling .
Under the hood , it runs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 , a slightly older roving CPU , although still quite capable for most creative and productiveness tasks , so you should n’t need to care about that . In fact , the biggest trouble is , again , software compatibility since this is a Chromebook and does n’t scarper Windows but rather ChromeOs . That means that you should absolutely double - confirm whether your preferent software is uncommitted before taking the dip with this one .
Besides that , it add up with 8 GB of RAM and 128 Gbit , both of which are on the lower end but to be expect for this price point , especially since this is a budget - oriented machine . Luckily , it does come with a keyboard , and while the storage is low , you could somewhat add on it with anexternal voiceless driveif you really need the extra space . Also deserving take down is that it has a pretty excellent body-build quality and a pretty unbelievable battery life sentence , hitting almost 15 hours with internet browsing , although that ’s likely to decrease if you ’re doing productivity or redaction study .
Best Microsoft Surface Pro alternative for gaming
ROG Flow Z13
While the Microsoft Surface Pro is great , it ’s not that good for play , and while it ’s uncommon to find a 2 - in-1 that is essentially a tablet and can manage gaming , the AsusROG Flow Z13is the one . credibly one of the few tablet - like gadget that runs a discrete GPU , it has an RTX 4050 under the hood , which , admittedly , is n’t incredibly powerful , but it ’s still somewhat great give its size and how thin it is . That say , it does give you admission to the latestDLSS 3technology , so you could use that to help with the game it supports to get better framerates and graphics .
As for the CRT screen , you get a prominent 13.4 - column inch display that fly the coop at a 2560 x 1600 resolution and has a far ranking 16:10 vista proportion , at least as far as gaming exit . You might also be impressed to recognise that it can strike a whopping 165H refresh rate , which will not only help in gambling but also in ecumenical day - to - day use since it will give you a better experience than a flagship phone that can only hit 120Hz . It also covers 100 % of the DCI - P3 gamut , make it an splendid machine for originative and graphical work . Plus , the RTX 4050 will for sure help oneself quite a bit with graphical rendering .
What also helps is the incredible Intel Core i9 - 13900H , one of the highest - end central processing unit on the market place , and perfect if you need to do a portion of processor - intensive tasks , such as audio product , mould , and rending , or things of that nature . You also get 16 GB of RAM , although that ’s to be expect for the price , as well as a 1 TB SSD , which is usually a big amount of storage , but if you plan to plot on this , then it you might demote into it ’s limit from time to metre , especially if you ’re also using it to store large graphical files .
Best fixed keyboard Microsoft Surface Pro alternative
Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro
While theGalaxy Book3 Prodoesn’t have a detachable keyboard like the Microsft Surface Pro , it ’s really quite a powerful alternative , and it ’s probably as slim , if not svelte , even though the keyboard ca n’t be removed . Another big positive is that it has a massive screen at 16 inches ; you get a ton more veridical demesne , which is particularly useful if you feel your average laptop is a snatch too minuscule . It also runs a 2880 x 1800 resolution , and is AMOLED , so you get some really excellent colour reproduction and truth , another handsome plus for those working with art and graphics .
Even though the Galaxy Book3 Pro does n’t do with an integrate GPU , it does come with a reasonably powerful CPU in the form of Intel Core i7 - 1360P , which is a mid - to - high - end processor that should handle most redaction and production work mulct , as well as exonerated productiveness employment without upshot . You also get a very telling 32 GB of RAM , more than any other option on this tilt , and will actually help quite a draw with things like telecasting editing , CAD , and even programming which tends to require a lot of random memory .
Another great thing about the Galaxy Book3 Pro is that it comes with quite a substantial barrage fire , specially for something with such a good silver screen , with up to 12 hr of use or so . Also , the 1 TB of storage is passably handy , and interestingly enough , you may really expand the internal storage with up to a 2 TB MicroSD , which is pretty rare for most 2 - in-1s like this one . Of course , one of the big benefits of going with a Samsung machine is that you get into its ecosystem , much like you would with Apple , so if you ’re already in it , this machine and the Galaxy Tab S8 + are the way to go .
How We Chose These Laptops
Portability
There ’s a lot to be said about any Microsoft Surface Pro , but probably the great vantage of it is that it ’s ultra - portable ; given its thin designing and whippersnapper , it ’s almost basically just a laptop computer that ’s masquerading as a tablet . Of course , that mean that any other choice we make has also to be quite portable , and finding something that is on the intersaction of a traditional laptop and a pad of paper can be quite severe . That ’s why we ’ve mostly picked things that are very portable while still take some considerable index under the hood , even if they do n’t inevitably run on Windows . This can be baffling if all your apps are indeed on Windows , but if you ’re looking for alternatives , a lot of them are outside the Microsoft ecosystem .
Processing Power
Another important aspect of the Microsoft Surface Pro is that it ordinarily comes with a mid - to - mellow - final stage processor and can handle a lot of complex tasks . That could be anything from nontextual matter rending to running simulations to music production , so there ’s a lot of versatility with the Surface Pro . Unfortunately , the Sojourner Truth is that it can be quite hard to find something with the same processing power while still being as light and thin , which intend that we had to get a moment creative . That intend that while some of these picks do n’t all have high - remnant desktop - level CPUs , theCPUsthey do have run great on the operating system that they ’re on . For example , ChromeOS is n’t as resourcefulness - intensive as Windows is , so even though you might have a slimly unsound - off CPU , you ’re actually getting roughly the same storey of processing mightiness . However , again , as we observe above , if the apps you require are not on the specific operate system available , then that can be a problem .
Battery
While not as bighearted of an way out as portability and processing power , the Surface Pro does have a middling excellent battery , especially since devices of this salmagundi are made to be bear around , even more so than a traditional laptop . To that end , we did our good to make picks that let in gimmick with long assault and battery power , whether it ’s a gamy - end tablet that ’s well optimized or just something that ’s maybe a bit bigger and comes with a more considerable battery . The only real freedom to that is the Asus ROG Flow Z13 , which has a discrete graphics menu , which often means that the barrage fire is going to be drained cursorily when play , so it ’s important to keep in mind that if you go for the Flow Z13 , how long you could use might not be up to equality with the Surface Pro .
Keyboard usage
One thing that go under the Surface Pro aside from other tablets is that it ’s designed to have a pretty good keyboard , which then puts it closer to laptop computer than pill . So , of path , that meant that we had to purpose for picks that not only include a keyboard but did n’t just have it as an reconsideration . That crop from the Galaxy Book3 Pro , which actually ca n’t have its keyboard disconnect , to tablets where the keyboard are available , but you have to buy them separately . That does slightly put the tablets at a disadvantage when compared to the Surface Pro , but give that they both havekeyboardsmade by their respective trade name means you ’re going to get a pretty in force experience overall , especially since both brands have a lot of experience and bloodline behind their innovation and manufacturing .
