Overview Chuwi SurBook - an inexpensive alternative to Microsoft Surface Pro 4

For the production of the company Microsoft Surface Chuwi budgetary counterpart launched a fundraising platform on kraudfandingovoy Indiegogo. The project was so interesting that the developers quickly gathered almost a million dollars.

In early September, Chuwi SurBook first samples went to the customers who make reservations. Now the device is available to the public in store Chuwi on AliExpress.

Specifications

At the heart Chuwi SurBook lies SoC family Apollo Lake, which is intended for use in laptops, budget, subnotebooks devices 1 and 2 in the plates. Intel Celeron N3450 processor can not be called productive, but its capacity is enough for office work, surfing, graphics, entertainment.

Integrated graphics HD Graphics 500 (Apollo Lake) is Intel Gen9 architecture with DirectX 12 support. It is easy to cope with simple games and playing high-definition video.

Particular note must be a large amount of RAM. 6 GB should be more than enough for the operating system and most applications. I am glad the availability of version with 128 GB of internal memory. On such a device will fit not only Windows, but also games, movies and photos.

Packaging equipment

The tablet comes in a simple box made of recycled cardboard. Company Chuwi kindly provided us with a model with 128 GB of internal memory, providing its keyboard and stylus. So we will tell not only about the tablet, but these accessories.

In the box we found the tablet power supply supporting documentation and protection for the glass screen. On the screen is already pasted protective film, so that the glass can be left in reserve.

Design and build

The housing plate is made of a durable metal alloy silver. The thickness of the device is 9.4 mm. On the right side there are two full-size the USB-port. There is also a USB port Type-C and headphone jack.

Located on the upper side power button and volume rocker. They are sitting tight in their nests, no backlash or rattling is not observed.

The speakers are placed at the bottom of the left and right edges. This location is convenient only if you are using the device on the table as a notebook. If you use them in the air, then shade the lattice dynamics hands, that they drown instantly. However, given the device a rather big weight (about a kilogram), we can assume that in the tablet mode, it will be used rarely.

On the back cover of the tablet has a metallic flip leg. It is quite tight, but is securely fixed in position. This is achieved by special hinges that as the manufacturer promises, keep their properties for several years.

The maximum opening angle of the stand - 125 °. Through this Chuwi SurBook can be used in different situations - from typing at your desk to watching movies on the couch.

The keyboard is attached to the magnetized area on the bottom edge of the tablet. It securely fastened by means of two protrusions. The keypad can also be used as a cover plate. Therefore, all its surface, except for the keys and the touchpad is made of soft-touch fluffy material.

The keys have good travel and are comfortable for typing. Provided their lights, making Chuwi SurBook an ideal gadget for all users, who sit up late at the computer.

However, the keyboard has two drawbacks. First, in the normal position, it's a bit springy, so it unstick it from the case and put directly on the table. Secondly, it is not printed on the Russian letters. Stickers issue is not correct, as this will be gone the meaning of the built-in illumination. So what have the owners Chuwi SurBook learn to touch-type.

Screen

Screen - one of the strongest sides Chuwi SurBook. It has a color reproduction quality, wide viewing angles and a sufficient level of brightness.

The display resolution is 2736 × 1824, the aspect ratio of 3: 2. Work on such a screen with text and graphics - is a pleasure.

Test programs is determined that the device uses the matrix Samsung 123YL01-001. Yes, it is this worth in Microsoft Surface Pro 4, so it is not surprising that the picture quality just fine.

Screen Chuwi SurBook has good sensitivity, therefore it is possible to use a stylus to operate. Specifically for the tablet stylus company Chuwi developed HiPEn, having a thin tip and two buttons on the body.

HiPEn 1024 discriminates pressure level and can be used at an angle of 30 °. Powered stylus from one battery type AAAA.

Sound

Sound Chuwi SurBook, like the keyboard, and leaves a pleasant impression. At maximum volume level of the device would be enough to sound a little party (if there is no one to talk loudly). And some tracks clearly audible bass!

If we put aside the irony aside, the Chuwi SurBook demonstrated fairly good sound considering the fact that this is still the tablet. This impression is strengthened even more when listening to music on headphones.

Performance

Intel Celeron N3450 processor can not be attributed to the efficiency of the solution. Nevertheless, he is able to cope with the majority of user tasks. Those readers who appreciate the exact figures, we offer a look at the screenshots below. With their help, they will be able to evaluate the possibilities Chuwi SurBook and compare it with competitors.

For everyone else, we inform that the tablet feels great in office applications, you can work with simple graphics, watch the video without brakes in high resolution and open dozens of tabs in the browser.

In Chuwi SurBook used qualitative cooling system (was here handy solid metal casing), which allowed to do without a cooler. So that the device operates silently and even at the highest load does not burn his fingers.

However, do not use it as a gaming laptop. he still cope From simple games, but something more Chuwi SurBook not enough.

autonomy

The tablet is set battery capacity 10,000 mAh. This is almost two times more than the Surface Pro 4, which the company Chuwi chosen as a prototype.

According to the manufacturer, the tablet should hold about 8 hours if using it for not too heavy task: to surf the Web, listening to music, reading. Our testing has shown that this figure is somewhat exaggerated: watching videos c YouTube lasted about 7 hours. But even this result can not be called bad.

Charging time Chuwi SurBook strongly depends on whether you use the device at this time. If not, the tablet is fully charged in 2 hours. On the manufacturer's website says that it has a built-in fast charging PD 2.0, however it does not support a complete charger. A strange decision, which requires further study.

results

Whether it will turn out Chuwi SurBook full clone of Microsoft Surface Pro 4?

Obviously not. Some parameters Chuwi SurBook no way inferior to the eminent competitor. He looks great, well assembled and uses quality materials. Chuwi SurBook screen is identical to Microsoft products, and the battery is even superior.

But the performance of these devices is very different. Iron fillings Chuwi SurBook prevents threaten to complex tasks such as editing professional graphics or video editing. Lovers of modern computer games is also better to get this tablet side.

In all other Chuwi SurBook it may well be used as a replacement of conventional mobile laptop. It has a compact size, good autonomy, gorgeous screen and costs at the same time much cheaper Microsoft Surface Pro 4.

At the time of writing tablet price is 26 155 rubles for the version with 64 GB and 30 830 rubles for the version with 128 GB of internal memory. Separately, you can also purchase keyboard and stylus.

The author expresses his gratitude to the company Chuwi for providing the test device.