Poll: Surface Pro 3 vs. MacBook Air

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Which one do you think is better for notetaking, PowerPoint, etc?

  • Surface Pro 3

    Votes: 47 58.8%

  • MacBook Air

    Votes: 33 41.3%
  • Total voters
    80
I think it depends on what works best for you. If you'd prefer the option of using the stylus to take notes, then the SP3. If you'd rather type notes, honestly, just about any laptop would be fine.

Personally, I'd hold off on the SP3 though, since the SP4 should be out pretty soon (probably around W10's release). MS isn't known to significantly lower prices on their old surfaces, so it may be more worthwhile to either get Surface 3 or the SP4.

Personally, I have the SP2 right now, and I'm trying to decide between the S3 and SP4.
 
I had a MacBook air and an iPad. It worked out fine. However, I got rid of them (older models) both for a SP3. I'm very very happy with it. I really like being able to mark my PowerPoint with the stylus. Both will get the job done.
 
I'm getting an SP3, if you want a full fledged laptop get something other than a Mac, nothing justifies its high cost.
Also check the HP Spectre x360.
 
kp11 said:
I had a MacBook air and an iPad. It worked out fine. However, I got rid of them (older models) both for a SP3. I'm very very happy with it. I really like being able to mark my PowerPoint with the stylus. Both will get the job done.
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Is it comfortable on your lap because I would be using it like that a lot.
 
I want something I can do everything with (annotate PDFs, PowerPoint, word, etc) but be able to type notes as well. I currently have the first iPad Air but I need a new laptop. I want to be able to use the new laptop for note taking purposes. It just bothers me to use more than one device for school I don't know why.
 
FWIW, you can do all that you outlined/require in the post above this on a Mac with out issue or trepidation.

- Sent from my iMac

@Tortaspie
 
Macbooks justify their high cost because you can buy one and they will last you 4-5 years (and that's because you can't stand looking at the new ones anymore because they are so pretty, not because your mac died), where as PC's have to be replaced every 1-2 years (from my experience anyways) as they have a short half life and become glacially slow.
 
OK enough with the Apple spam, no one said they were bad, I just said they aren't worth the high price tag. I have a Toshiba laptop that I've been using for 5 years, the only thing I had to replace was its battery (battery last 4-5 years). I'm getting the SP3 due to the touch, stylus, Windows OS, and portability. I've seen a lot of user reviews and some by med students to convince myself it's right for me.
 
slopes23 said:
That's because your PC is too slow, and its making you use too much energy and time trying to get it to work.
Invisible message:Ha.Ha. Get it. it's a Joke.
Click to expand...

Hahaha
giphy.gif
 
Theres absolutely no reason you should spend the money for a macbook air at this point. Get a refurb retina macbook pro if you have to go mac
 
The SP3 works for me because I like the touch screen aspect. I can draw stuff out (Biochem, anatomy, ect), and also have the split screen aspect for recorded lectures and the actual PDF of the lecture. It was time for me to get a new laptop/tablet as it was, and I didn't want to buy a laptop AND a tablet.
 
If you have no idea how to use technology and thus need an interface for monkeys, or have no concept of money, you should definitely get the macbook
 
You don't realize how amazing a full fledged touch screen computer is until you use it. After switching from MBP to SP3 (after >7 years with apple) the question feels a bit like when people were considering Blackberry vs iPhone. Except in this case, Apple is the outdated one. Windows 10 this summer will only make it better.
 
Just got a SP3 in anticipation of starting M1 this fall and I have to say, the pen + digitizer is a killer feature. Gone are the days of paper notes, messy eraser marks, and the burden of having to print out PowerPoint slides.
 
slopes23 said:
Macbooks justify their high cost because you can buy one and they will last you 4-5 years (and that's because you can't stand looking at the new ones anymore because they are so pretty, not because your mac died), where as PC's have to be replaced every 1-2 years (from my experience anyways) as they have a short half life and become glacially slow.
Click to expand...

1-2 years no way, 2-3 years maybe. In reality if you don't mind a bit of a slowdown they can last 4-5 years. For example, my PC right now is 3 years old. I'm getting a new one mainly because I want one rather than because I need one. It works perfectly fine, its a Sony VAIO.

What I don't like about Mac's is they all look the same, and the fact that once you are on the Mac bandwagon you are subtly encouraged to get entirely on the Apple bandwagon as their products all seem to work better together.

Another thing is because literally everyone and their mother has a Mac now I prefer to have a unique looking laptop. Theres so much diversity in the manufacturers and the price of a PC is about half the price of a Mac. You can literally afford to replace your PC every 2 years for the price of a Mac that you replace every 4.

I assure you that you will have a faster PC than Mac if you are willing to spend the same amount of money.
 
Medstart108 said:
1-2 years no way, 2-3 years maybe. In reality if you don't mind a bit of a slowdown they can last 4-5 years. For example, my PC right now is 3 years old. I'm getting a new one mainly because I want one rather than because I need one. It works perfectly fine, its a Sony VAIO.

What I don't like about Mac's is they all look the same, and the fact that once you are on the Mac bandwagon you are subtly encouraged to get entirely on the Apple bandwagon as their products all seem to work better together.

Another thing is because literally everyone and their mother has a Mac now I prefer to have a unique looking laptop. Theres so much diversity in the manufacturers and the price of a PC is about half the price of a Mac. You can literally afford to replace your PC every 2 years for the price of a Mac that you replace every 4.

I assure you that you will have a faster PC than Mac if you are willing to spend the same amount of money.
Click to expand...
Diamonds look the same too. I imagine then you will tell your wife you got her a CZ as a wedding ring because everyone has diamonds?

What negative is there in a company that makes their products to work well with each other? Sounds like a nice feature.

Maybe things have changed but I had 2 Sony Vaios, and a Dell XPS in a 3 year period before I went to the MacBook black which lasted me 4 years till I sold it on eBay for 40% of what I paid for it and got a MacBook Pro, which I still have today 5 years later. My experience is anecdotal to say the least but I'm done with PC's and no, I'm not okay with a little bit of slow down. I didn't buy the one with an i7 processor just so it could slow down a bit 12 months later.

Buy once, cry once. That's my philosophy.
 
Last edited:
slopes23 said:
Diamonds look the same too. I imagine then you will tell your wife you got her a CZ as a wedding ring because everyone has diamonds?

What negative is there in a company that makes their products to work well with each other? Sounds like a nice feature.

Maybe things have changed but I had 2 Sony Vaios, and a Dell XPS in a 3 year period before I went to the MacBook black which lasted me 4 years till I sold it on eBay for 40% of what I paid for it and got a MacBook Pro, which I still have today 5 years later. My experience is anecdotal to say the least but I'm done with PC's and no, I'm not okay with a little bit of slow down. I didn't buy the one with an i7 processor just so it could slow down a bit 12 months later.

Buy once, cry once. That's my philosophy.
Click to expand...

I guess I might haha.

But seriously I understand your point but for me my experience has been decent with my Sony VAIO. Macs just all seem like clones of each other. I prefer switching laptops every 2 years if they are affordable rather than having one for 4.

That way you don't have to properly maintain your laptop and you can get the latest in terms of hardware.
 
theSmurfette said:
Macs can do with 4GB what Windows needs 16GB for.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I have a 2010 MacBook Pro with 4GB of RAM, and while your statement might be technically correct, there's no way I'd buy a "new" Mac with only 4GB of RAM given the memory usage of current common software.
 
gettheleadout said:
I have a 2010 MacBook Pro with 4GB of RAM, and while your statement might be technically correct, there's no way I'd buy a "new" Mac with only 4GB of RAM given the memory usage of current common software.
Click to expand...
I have an early-2014 MacBook Air running Yosemite. i5, 4GB RAM, 256GB HDD. I haven't had any issues with any program I've thrown at it. Granted, the most taxing thing I do is podcast my lectures with VLC. I can podcast with Word for note taking running right beside it. No lag, no issues.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
The SP3 is incredibly useful for med school. My notes have never been more organized and the stylus is amazing.
 
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