Microsoft Surface Book 2 to ditch 2-in-1 form factor

[HEXUS]

It will be a simple clamshell design and be priced "much lower" say industry sources.

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[TheAnimus]

That's so dumb if true.

The point is you buy it and you don't need a surface. You don't need a large tablet. It's both, done for you.

The reason I like my surface is I "dock" if I'm using it for more than say 2 hours. This normally involves slaving a second surface to act as a second screen, using a logitech portable keyboard. It's a much better setup than you can get with a laptop.

The Surface Book was supposed to be for people who like to use a clamshell for a long period of time (weirdos) but also want a tablet factor for when lounging on the sofa.

[SciFi]

As an owner of the SB I can say I will not be upgrading if this is true.

[Valantar]

Yeah, I completely agree. If this is true, it's a bad choice. Is the SB expensive? Sure, but it's a one-of-a-kind premium 2-in-1 laptop. It's a brilliant design, and worth the price. I don't believe for a second that it's cannibalizing SP4 sales, or the other way around. No way. Different products, different audiences. Different price ranges.

I can understand launching a traditional notebook as a parallel design, but not as a replacement, no way.

[jab701]

I have owned a surface 3 (10"), and now a surface pro 4....I was going to get a surface book partly because it is much more like a laptop in that it will sit more stably on your lap and it is a bit more powerful but can be undocked and used as a tablet when say...sitting in bed...*sigh* so many companies come close to making the perfect machine for me and screw it all up right at the end somehow...

[Freebo]

Well I guess the surface pro is the 2 in 1

[plexabit]

My guess is they're going to keep the hinge design but remove the 2-in-1 capability and make it a "yoga" style laptop to consolidate the processor/battery/etc in the base instead of half of it being in the screen. This would probably eliminate the annoying balance issues as well.

[Zhaoman]

This is pretty terrible news in my books. I forked out for the pricey Surface Book because I thought it looked like everything I wanted in a laptop and I figured I'll just have to pay through the nose for a great design. The amazing thing is in almost every way it has surpassed my expectations. The laptop on its own is exquisitely designed, the hinge is beautiful and allows the keyboard to have more travel and be more comfortable than every laptop I have ever used. It is fast and powerful enough for everything I need in a laptop. And then I can detach it seamlessly for when I just want to hold a tablet for reading on the sofa or watching videos. This news just makes me sad and makes me even more glad I took the plunge when I did. The only thing I wanted in a new Surface Book was Thunderbolt connectivity so I can dock a full blown GPU - that would give it desktop-like gaming performance, laptop portability and tablet convenience which would take it to the next level of perfect-for-my-needs. It looks like I'll be using my Surface Book for quite a while yet until a suitable successor comes along.

[bledd]

I almost bought a Surface Book, but was put off by the 3:2 ratio. Still rocking my Surface RT, which is very long in the tooth now.

Strongly considering the Razer Blade at moment.