Microsoft's first all-in-one PC, the Surface Studio, has been announced. The iMac killer? First look at the $3,000 Microsoft Surface Studio touchscreen all-in-one

Along with a laptop and tablet, Microsoft also presented the Surface Studio 2 all-in-one. This device is positioned as a professional assistant in creative activities. Therefore, the company emphasizes that graphics performance has increased by 50 percent compared to the previous generation of all-in-one PC.

Surface Studio 2 features a 28-inch touch display with a resolution of 4500x3000 pixels. It recognizes 10 simultaneous clicks and also supports the Surface Pen, which is tilt-sensitive and has 4096 pressure levels. The all-in-one computer allows you to connect two external 4K monitors.

Characteristics

The processor is responsible for the performance of Surface Studio 2 Intel Core i7-7820HQ paired with 16 or 32 GB random access memory DDR4. In addition, the all-in-one PC has either a card installed Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6 GB, or Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 8 GB. The device has a 5 megapixel camera and acoustic system 2.1. As for the connectors, here you can find four USB port 3.0, one USB-C, SDXC, Gigabit Ethernet and a headphone jack. Supported and wireless interfaces Wi-Fi 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.0.

The kit, in addition to the candy bar itself, includes: Windows 10 Pro, an electronic pen, a keyboard and a mouse. The Microsoft Surface Studio 2 is currently available for pre-order, priced at $3,499 for the base version.

So, the Microsoft Surface family of computers now includes an all-in-one model. The Surface Studio PC was officially unveiled at an event in New York. The new product, according to the developers, should lure away Apple experts in the field of graphics, designers, illustrators and other representatives of creative professions. The device has a 28-inch touchscreen, an ultra-thin body and a built-in hinge that allows you to position the screen in both horizontal and vertical positions.

“We believe that Surface changes the way you create content, produce, and learn,” said Panos Panay, who leads Microsoft's devices team. - The product that I am going to show you all is a new step forward. He will seem familiar, but the experience of meeting him will be completely different.”

Microsoft calls the Studio the world's thinnest monitor. Its thickness is really small - only 12.5 mm (other dimensions are 637.35 × 438.9 mm). The 28-inch touch screen is housed in an aluminum housing. The display resolution is 4500 x 3000 pixels - 63% higher than the 4K resolution used in latest models TVs.

It is worth adding that when creating a competitor to the iMac, the emphasis was placed on outputting the most accurate colors in an extended range (Adobe sRGB and DCI-P3 spaces are supported), which is extremely important for photographers, video editors, designers and other creative professions related to working with graphics.

The Studio base (dimensions 250 × 220 × 32.2 mm) can offer a variety of connection options: a 3.5 mm audio jack, an SD card slot, a Mini-DisplayPort connector, a gigabit Ethernet network port and four USB 3.0 ports. The computer weighs 9.56 kg. There is a 5-megapixel camera on the front with support for 1080p video and a camera on the back with autofocus and support for 1080p video. There are two microphones and a built-in 2.1 Dolby Audio Premium audio system. Among wireless standards Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and Xbox Wireless are supported.

Microsoft offers three main all-in-one configurations: Intel Core i5, 8 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M 2 GB GDDR5 graphics card; Intel Core i7, 16 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M 2 GB GDDR5 video card;
Intel Core i7, 32 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M 4 GB GDDR5 video card.

Of course key feature An all-in-one PC is its ability to be converted into a tablet with a huge working touch surface: the all-in-one format allows you to position the display almost horizontally with a slight movement of your hand.

Surface Studio is designed to work not only with the touch pen, but also with the new round Dial touchpad, which can be used either on the screen (in compatible applications this gives new capabilities) or placed on the table. Dial is sold separately and costs $100.

Surface Studio will go on sale at a price of $2999 (about 190,000 rubles), the device in the top configuration will cost $4199 (almost 265,000 rubles).

Microsoft has been releasing devices under its own brand for a long time. The company has developed its own gaming console, Lumia smartphones, Surface tablets and hybrid laptops, and sports bracelets. All of these products had their own strengths and weak sides, but none of them could ever be said to be the best in their class. Yesterday, Microsoft announced its own all-in-one Surface Studio, which will undoubtedly become one of the most desirable computers in 2017.

Specifications

Processor: Intel Core i5/ Intel Core i7 (sixth generation)

RAM: 8/ 16/ 32 GB

Video card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M 2GB GDDR5/ NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M 4GB GDDR5

Screen: PixelSense 28, resolution 4500 × 3000 pixels, aspect ratio 3:2

Storage: Hybrid 1 TB or 2 TB

Ports: 4xUSB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort, Ethernet, card reader

Operating system: Windows 10 Pro

Size: 637.35 × 438.90 × 12.5 mm (monitor), 250 × 220 × 32.2 mm (pad)

Weight: 9.56 kg

Price: $2999/ $3499/ $4199

Many people compare Surface Studio to iMac, but that's not entirely true. This computer is more of a continuation of the ideas of the very first Surface. Few people remember, but this brand originates not from the tablets of the same name, but from the “smart” table that Microsoft developed for educational institutions and businesses. This device never made it to the market, remaining exclusively in the form of concept models.

Turn your desktop into a studio - this is the slogan of Surface Studio. Microsoft doesn't want you to use it like a regular computer, which is why there's a touchscreen display and a mechanism that lets you drop the display onto your desk at a 30-degree angle. This isn't a boring iMac that looks like a piece of furniture you can't touch. You need to interact with Microsoft Studio. You can draw on it using the included Microsoft Pen stylus, you can communicate with it using Cortana, which will hear you at any time and tell you necessary information, it can be turned into a huge tablet. Communication with this computer is much closer than with any other.

Microsoft did a very clever thing by hiding all the computer hardware in a stand under the display. This allowed it to be thin across the entire surface, and not just at the edges, like the iMac. Just think about it, the thickness is only 12.5 mm.

The display resolution is 4500 × 3000 pixels. This is more than regular 4K, but less than Aimak’s 5K (5120 × 2880). According to Microsoft, the matrix has very precise color rendering settings, and the ability to quickly switch has also been systemically added color profiles. This display is designed for people who work professionally with color: photographers, colorists and designers.

Separately, I would like to emphasize that this display has an aspect ratio of 3:2, like iPad tablets, which is not very convenient for watching videos, but for working with images and text - just perfect. I liked the example that was shown at the presentation: the Surface Studio display fits two full-size A4 sheets. Making out Text Document on this computer, you can immediately see how it will look in real life.

Surface Dial was presented with Microsoft Studio. This is a kind of joystick that connects to a computer via Bluetooth. He has several touch buttons and a “spinner” that allows you to scroll through various menus in applications. The bottom surface of the Surface Dial can interact with the touch display, causing various context menus. The app's ability to interact with the Surface Dial depends on developer support, but given that the accessory costs just $99, it will be popular enough to warrant such compatibility. Microsoft has released a special video talking about which applications can already work with the Surface Dial. Adobe or Autodesk are not among them yet, but I think this is a matter of the near future.

Surface Studio is an example of outstanding industrial design that combines beauty, practicality and a focus on solving work problems. For example, the fact that all the hardware was removed into the stand helped not only to make the display thin, but also to fix the computer on the table, concentrating all its mass in the stand. Microsoft Studio comes with a Surface Pen stylus, and to prevent it from getting lost, there is a magnetic mounting pad on the side of the display. The monoblock can detect when the entire hand is on the touch surface of the display, and does not record such clicks. Therefore, drawing with a stylus on the Surface Studio screen is no different from drawing on a regular canvas and paper. Such attention to detail in the new Microsoft computer a lot of.

Many people complain about the price of this all-in-one, but this is a computer not for those who play World of Tanks, but for those who create similar games and other projects. If you are using a computer to make money with it, then this device will totally give you your money's worth because it offers the widest range of features.

Those who think that Microsoft is blatantly plagiarizing the iMac with its desktop version of the Surface will only be partly right. Surface Studio is a different computer, completely different from other all-in-one PCs. If we had to describe it with a succinct phrase, we would choose this: “A giant tablet with a display that can safely be called a miracle of engineering.”

The main part of the computer is a 28-inch display with PixelSense technology and resolution 4500 by 3000 (192 dpi). The aspect ratio is not the usual 3:2 (in fact, Microsoft likes to use it). This means that the monitor is slightly wider vertically than the usual representatives of this segment - perfect for those who like extra space for reading books or designing. It must be said that the display simply amazingly conveys the realism of images or videos - you are unlikely to see even a single pixel on PixelSense.

The display can easily change the angle of inclination, but it will not go all the way down, maintaining at least a minimum tilt (this is explained so that people cannot accidentally ruin a three thousand dollar display by placing it completely horizontally and spilling a cup of coffee, for example). On PixelSense you can use the drawing mode - it's just a huge, expensive and thin (only 13mm) touchscreen.

Perhaps the only, but very serious, disadvantage is the fact that this is not a monitor in essence. More precisely, the Surface Studio cannot be used as a full-fledged external monitor for connecting a TV or set-top box. The monoblock has a special Mini DisplayPort for connecting to a second monitor. But you won't be able to use Surface Studio as a monitor.

Price

The basic version (model specifications below in the article) costs $2999 ( ~200,000 rubles), top model - $4199 ( ~275,000 rubles)

Accessories

For drawing on our large tablet, Microsoft offers to purchase an accessory Surface Dial, which looks very similar to a hockey puck. This stuff costs as much as $99 ( ~ 6700 RUR). It is used to select tools, change the color model, select a color scheme, change the brush size, paint color, and so on. It works exactly in the place where you install it - choose any convenient place on the display, although at a strong tilt angle the Dial tends to gradually slide. Also have questions about support popular applications— for example, Photoshop does not yet have full device support. We hope it's temporary.

In addition, there is a standard drawing tool - Surface Pen

Characteristics

In general, the filling is not revolutionary and can be said to be outdated - quad-core processors Intel Core i7, 32 GB of RAM, HDD 2 terabytes Rapid Hybrid Drive and video card Nvidia GeForce GTX 980m. Not exactly a “gaming” PC - you can play such creations as Gears of War 4 or Forza Horizon 3 on it, but you can hardly expect much more. By the way, Surface Studio supports the technology Xbox Wireless— you can play out of the box with an Xbox One controller. We also have 4 USB 3.0 ports and the ability to read SD cards. One thing can be said with confidence - even for graphic editors we have a very good reserve of power - Photoshop on Studio just flies. However, for games of the near future you will clearly have to look for another option.

*Sold separately.

System software uses significant storage space. Available storage is subject to change based on system software updates and apps usage. 1 GB= 1 billion bytes. See for more details.

Xbox Wireless controller support available in select global markets.

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