Gadgetory

well this is David with the verge and this is the surface pro 2 Microsoft may have released its original surface pro only nine months ago but it's already back with a refreshed model that tries to correct some of the original shortcomings at first glance it looks identical to the original surface pro and to be honest it's hard to tell them apart visually it still made of the same vapor mag material that's just like aluminum and unlike the surface 2 it only comes in black unfortunately there's no silver option it really does look incredibly familiar identical even it's still 13.5 millimeters thick with the same ports in the same place and no changes to be found Microsoft does claim to have improved the power connector on the surface pro 2 but it's still tricky to place it into the angle on the side of the device the real difference is kick in when you flip the surface pro 2 around go on is the windows logo replaced with just the word surface but the real star of the show is the kickstand the original surface pro kickstand only worked at one angle and it really wasn't ideal for use on your lap the surface pro 2 addresses that with a second angle that's actually designed to sit slightly further back and dig into your legs a little more to provide some much-needed balance instead of being worried that it would topple over I actually found it a lot more secure it's not perfect but it's definitely improved that stability is aided by a redesigned keyboard cover the type cover 2 is a slimmed down version of the original that now has a fabric touch pad just like the touch cover there are some subtle improvements to the keys but the main advantage is that it's more rigid for use on your lap and there's a customizable backlight so you can use the surface pro 2 in the dark that's crucial too because touch typing on either cover takes some practice the touch cover 2 has also been redesigned with a lot more sensors that improve its accuracy you can use gestures on both covers to activate the windows charms bar but the touch cover also includes a variety of gestures across the keys it's still a weird experience typing on this one and I'd recommend the type cover too if you're going to be typing a lot apart from the kickstand Microsoft really hasn't changed much here it's the same ten point six inch 1080p display that includes stylus support and some impressive viewing angles and color reproduction although the cameras were improved on the surface to model Microsoft kept them the same on the pro - there was 720p and not as good as the surface 2's 1080p front and back cameras but they still work fine Microsoft may not have bumped up the resolution on the surface pro - but there's a really nice trade-off inside the tablet is Intel's latest Core i5 Haswell processor and while it does add speed and bump up graphics power the real improvement here is battery the original model couldn't keep up for all day tablet use but the surface pro 2 nearly doubles that to seven and a half hours in our tests that goes a long way toward making the surface pro two's case for being both powerful and portable speaking of power this thing flies the original surface pro is fast but the surface pro 2 is even faster it boots up within 4 seconds and resumes from sleep in less than 2 Intel's new silicon helps of course but so does Microsoft's new Windows 8.1 operating system there are improvements everywhere from built-in Bing search to intelligent SkyDrive syncing that helps you make the most of your disk space well this tablet will run your desktop apps unlike the surface 2 there's also new full-screen touch friendly apps available from the Windows Store the store doesn't have nearly every app you'd expect right now though a recent Facebook app in a planned Flipboard app do show developer interest in Windows tablets Microsoft also offers 200 gigs of free SkyDrive storage and skypes unlimited world service for free calling in the US for a year Microsoft really wants people to buy surfaces and it's willing to use all of its products and services to tempt them ultimately the decision on whether to buy a surface pro 2 is down to simply what you're looking to buy and how you plan to use it the surface pro 2 does have some improvements for lap use and has much better battery life but it's basically the same chunky tablet that debuted earlier this year it's heavy for tablet use and it's not perfect for laptop use so it fits somewhere in between though some of its accessories like the docking station do go a long way toward making those use cases easier if you're willing to make a few compromises and usability then you're going to get a tablet that combines touch keyboard mouse and pen input in some really unique ways and is definitely both portable and powerful but each area isn't perfect yet it's a tricky balancing act that Microsoft hasn't totally figured out just yet and for $900 there's some serious competition the surface pro 2 is definitely a tablet that can replace your laptop but there are still better tablets and there are still better laptops you