I don’t use any. But if I had the Surface Studio, I would.
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Surface Studio discussion
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You said you own the cintiq companion. That is different than the mobile studio Pro, which shares the next gen digitizer with the cintiq Pro (which only comes in 13 and 16 inch form factors right now, the same as the mobile studio). In my personal experience - which was side by side in photoshop and auto desk sketchbook, the newest Wacom offering was noticeabley better. Lag and parallax - simply delicious!
Im not really putting anything down - far from it. Just marveling how both Apple and ms both came out with tablets and pens that seemed to leapfrog Wacom thus year. Just when I thought Wacom was caught with their pants down, they came out with new products that again put them at a the top of the heap.
I actually wonder if they would have launched in 2016 at all without the serious competition they now face from ms and Apple. I suspect they launched early. They don't have a cintiq Pro available above the 16 inch size which feels like a rush job to me. And while the mobile studio Pro can be used as a cintiq also, it needs a little converter box to do so that still isn't available. And of course, the adjustable stand for the mobile studio Pro isn't available, either.
I also don't doubt that people can create on any device just fine. . Im still using an intros 3! But My 6 year old self built PC is dying and I'm considering the move to a cheaper model mobile studio and a monster PC or an iPad Pro and an iMac (or an iPad Pro and a Mac Pro, if they ever get updated)
For me, surface is out of the running.
It's from Microsoft, If Apple did that, people's reaction would be really different....don't waste your time!
Dang, I missed the surface vid that tube experience posted on the music software. That's some cool stuff and I do work in music at home.
Ms is really impressing me. So glad they are out there thinking of all these ignored niches. Man, sometimes you guys make it hard to make a purchasing decision!
Ms is really impressing me. So glad they are out there thinking of all these ignored niches. Man, sometimes you guys make it hard to make a purchasing decision!
I don't think Wacom has come out on top - the experience of drawing on that drop dead 28 inch screen trumps anything out there for me. Can't match that with a 15.6 inch screen (or the 13 inch). While the Mobile Pro is certainly the best portable for pure drawing overall, it's also heavier and bulkier than the SP4 and not so great for carrying around. It does have physical buttons, but they still don't have that great adjustable kickstand that the SP4 has. Nobody does. So I don't see a clear winner in the portables category.
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Well, that's absolute truth. There are so many awesome choices that we should be thanking our stars for such selection! The surface book really impressed me with how light the screen only was. At that size and that power it's challenging the iPad Pro for me. Plus it runs a desktop OS.
I dare not spend any extended length of time with the surface studio. I fear that I'd end up getting one and that is one awesome, but expensive piece of kit.
Do you continue to use the surface pro day to day? Have they fixed the wobble that happens with slow pen movement? I read that they fixed the tapering problem with a software update. I hope they can fix any wobble (especially on diagonals)
Just FYI, that is the ONLY video showing stray marks from the pen. We all saw there was a problem, but they seem to be the only one experiencing it.
Yes, two artists using the same computer and pen. All they needed to do was replace the battery in the pen. They didn't even try to fix the problem. A problem That no one else is experiencing. That review was crap. Ever read a review on CNET where a problem was found in a test unit? They ALWAYS contact the maker and try to resolve before just taking a dump on it in a review. You said you'd "happily use the Surface Studio" if it wasn't flawed... well, here's a review that will make you happy - https://www.penny-arcade.com/news/post/2016/10/26/the-surface-studio
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No, I didn’t say that. I meant that I would happily use a Surface Studio, even though it is flawed. I think that it is, in many respects, fantastic.
I wouldn't use the word flawed, but rather lacking in some areas but I agree, I'd happily use it as well. I think MS made some decision choices that are questionable at best, very short-sided at worst but as a whole, I think the the computer is fantastic (as much as I've played with it in the store).
Backhanded praise.
Questionable choices?
If MS hit all your checkboxes, it'd be $5000 or more and nobody would buy it.
Short-Sighted?
This thing had to be in R&D for three years.
Their design choices have led to the invention of a new category of computer, while Apple is focused on coming up with new sizes for all their existing products.
Microsoft may well have made the most DESIRED art tablet in the world, and did so knowing that it would not directly add significantly to their profits.
Far-Sighted, it looks like.
I use the SP4 nearly every day. My Cintiq Companion doesn't get much use anymore, mostly because it's heavier and bulkier, and also because the SP4 screen is so much nicer, which is a big factor for me.
The wobble is still there on the Surface Studio, but I hear that the tapering is improved. I never even noticed any wobble problem, until people started talking about it. Lines need to be drawn smooth, quick and steady to look good, even when using pencil and paper. Yeah, it's not supposed to wobble, but it won't come up much in your work, if you're doing your line work right.
And, of course, wobble doesn't come into play at all when doing line work with Bézier curves (the pen tool).
Do you even know what my checkboxes are?
Yes
So wasn't the MBP and they seemed to be able to roll out a computer with USB-C.
Thanks - I'm investigating the SP4 and the Surface Book again. I'm still curious to wait and see what the iPad Pro update brings, but I figure that drawing in full photoshop and clip studio will ultimately be better than drawing on some app.
I'm basing your checkboxes on what others are complaining about. The processor, SSD, Graphics Processor and USB-type.
You don't really think the MBP was in R&D for three years, do you? It was an upgrade to an existing product, not exactly innovative.
Please don't try to compare adding USB-C to the MBP to what Microsoft has done.
I have worked in R&D in electronics, so allow me to illuminate what this took.
Yes, I don't know your checkboxes, but I can guess that they are similar to what we're hearing from others: The latest processor, an SSD, USB-C, a later edition Graphics Processor. Yes, add those, and then you can't afford it, and it wouldn't be available until 2018. In any R&D, you have put a stake in the ground at some point during the development process, and make PERMANENT decisions about all the components you will use. That is the ONLY way to calculate the cost in parts, components and man-hours, and therefore determine what the price to the consumer will be, and also allow the team to determine the production schedule and delivery date. After initial designs, if the price comes out too high, the team will change the design to accommodate less costly components and also look for other strategies to get the price down. They must get it down to the agreed-upon price, which is set in the project requirements. Once the design and all parts and components are signed off on, the project is allowed to go into actual development. Then they contract for the parts that other vendors will supply them so that there is no shortage of the necessary parts. It's now impossible to change major components afterwards without DRASTICALLY affecting the date and driving the company's costs way up for further design, development, and testing. Testing will be another 5-6 months alone! You would need to regression test every facet of the hardware and software. Again. Unlike a mere upgrade to an existing product like the MacBook Pro, a product like the Surface Studio will take years of planning and prototyping before development even begins, and because of the long-range (Far-Sighted) nature of the project, as well as the costs incurred in man-hours for this, they will deliver it with components that are not the most current available.
I have worked in R&D in electronics for Atari Labs and now as a software developer for 25 years, and I can tell you that this is how it goes, especially when you are making something nobody's made before. I bet the Zero-Gravity Hinge it boasts was two full years of development by itself, developed by a team of very imaginative and expensive mechanical engineers. Being that they don't manufacture a lot of things outside of software, they had to spend time and money and Long-Range planning just to get those mechanical engineers in place. Or they out-sourced them, but they were expensive people. So here we are, with Microsoft calculating that they need to sell maybe 250,000 of these averaging $3500 each to break even on development and manufacturing costs. This, assuming they make $1,000 profit per sale (they don't), because they likely spent 250 Million dollars to develop it over the last three years. So it'll take several years of sales to get even. But they can now do what Apple is doing, and that is upgrade the Surface Studio every year or two for much less money (and time).
The Surface Studio, in success or failure, is a terrific example of FAR-SIGHTED, long-range strategic planning, development and promotion in the computer industry, the most dramatic one in a long while.
Jobs is dead, long live Nadella.
You might want to check out Lazy Nezumi Pro.
It allows you to create smooth lines.
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This.
When developing a new product (as oppose to updating an existing product), it takes a long time.
You start with whatever is available at the time and try, if possible, to accommodate something new.
Eventually, you reach what's call "feature freeze" which means that you are refining the product, but not adding anything new.
At this point, you are ironing out issues so you can be ready for production.
If something new comes along, new processor/graphics, you ignore it, otherwise you'll be stuck in development hell.
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Then you're wrong and my "checkboxes" won't add 2,000 dollars
I think overall the Surface Studio is a nicely designed product but they could have made the internals more accessible, upgradeable ram, accessible drive bay, an option to buy an SSD.
As for the ports, USB-C would have been nice especially if they are providing a spinning drive, i.e., USB-C with a fast external drive array.
Again, what I was pointing out was that is short-sighted because on the cusp of USB-C taking over, they roll out a Premium high end computer that does not contain those ports.
Thanks, I'll give it a shot if I find myself on a windows tablet (which is looking more and more likely, damn)
USB-C is an EMERGING Standard. How could they possibly have planned for that 2 years ago? I've explained how long ago their design and component decisions had to be cast in stone, way before production began.
Accessibility? To make the base accessible it would have to be much larger, and then it would not be able to recline to 20 degrees, and the recline and special hinge are the core concepts of the entire design.
If accessibility/upgradeability is a big factor for you, then you need the Wacom solution - a separate pen-monitor and computer. But to come close to matching the Surface Studio, you'd have to get the 27HD Wacom Cintiq for $2500, plus maybe a MacBook Pro. The new 15 inch MacBook Pro with USB-C will set you back another $2400. That's about $5000 in computer hardware there.
You should by now be beginning to understand why you didn't get what you are asking for, and why their design choices were made. You will get USB-C in their next release, but you won't get accessibility.
The Surface Studio isn't merely nice, it is an extraordinary design. When you post your ideas about what Microsoft could have done, or should have done, in spite of the detailed explanation I made of how these choices come to be made, it's clear that you still can't understand it.
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Exactly. It has to be ignored. The new processor or whatever can be put in version 2.0. It can't be done any other way, unless you are willing to get everybody fired for going over budget and time, and are willing to explain to the board why you are a year late in delivering your product.
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