Surface Studio 2 review: Smart upgrades make this the most desirable PC (a lot of) money can buy

Let's get one thing direct virtually the new Surface Studio ii – it's not a PC for your average user, nor someone looking to stretch their dollar. Instead, Microsoft'southward second version of its behemothic tablet-like PC is built for professional architects, engineers, designers, and artists. But if yous look at one with envy thinking it could be the best experience on a Windows 10 PC, well, you would be right.

While the price and the lackluster processor is off-putting, these are beside the point of the Surface Studio 2. It represents all that is Windows ten in 2022 in single, minimalist expression that is powerful enough for gaming.

Ultimate PC

Surface Studio 2

From $3,499 at Microsoft

Bottom line: While the 7th gen Intel processor is disappointing the powerful NVIDIA GTX 1070, faster storage solution and overall improved user experience brand the Surface Studio 2 still one of the nearly amazing PCs ever to be created. Information technology just comes at a steep price.

Pros

• Best PC display on the market.
• Serious GPU horsepower.
• Faster SSD and quality RAM.
• Everything is now instant on.
• Unique drawing and bear on experience.

Cons

• CPU is old and not hexa-core.
• No Thunderbolt 3.
• Extremely expensive.
• Non upgradeable.

Same design, new hardware

What's new with Surface Studio 2?

Post-obit the trend of Surface Pro half dozen and Surface Laptop 2, the new Surface Studio 2 is an evolution more than than a radical redesign.

For that, it ways ditching the poor hybrid solid-state drive (SSD) and hard-disk storage solution for a zippier pure-SSD ane. It's also about getting rid of the old mobile GPU for a proper graphics card that justifies the very loftier price tag.

Here's what'due south new:

• Intel i7-7820HQ processor.
• NVIDIA GTX 1060 or GTX 1070 GPU.
• Toshiba NVMe SSD in ane or ii TB options.
• The brandish is 38 per centum brighter with 22 pct increased dissimilarity.
• USB Blazon-C instead of a mini DisplayPort.
• No Core i5 version anymore.

Other than that Surface Studio 2 has the same chassis blueprint, aforementioned Curiosity Wi-Fi chipset, same Surface camera, and overall look and feel of its predecessor.

At that place are simply 3 models all with the aforementioned Cadre i7 processor, but 2 different GPUs. The $iii,499 model (16GB of RAM, 1TB storage) uses an NVIDIA GTX 1060 while the $iv,199 (32GB of RAM, 1TB storage) and $4,799 models (32GB of RAM and 2TB storage) both utilize an NVIDIA GTX 1070.

By the numbers

Surface Studio ii specifications

For 2022, the Surface Studio ii keeps things minimal with just 4 USB Type-A ports, Ethernet, headphone jack and the new Type-C port (which does not back up Thunderbolt 3).

Category	Specification
Display	28-inch Pixel Sense brandish x point multi-touch) sRGB, DCI-P3, and Vivid Individually color-calibrated display
Display resolution	4,500 ten 3,000 (192 PPI)
Software	Windows 10 Pro
Processor	seventh Gen Intel Core i7-7820HQ
Storage	1TB or 2TB SSD
Memory	16GB or 32GB DDR4 2,666 MHz
Graphics	NVIDIA GTX 1060 with 6GB of GDDR5 NVIDIA GTX 1070 with 8GB of GDDR5
Front photographic camera	5.0MP front-facing photographic camera with 1080p Hard disk video Windows Hello facial authentication
Speakers	Stereo 2.1 speakers with Dolby Audio Premium
Ports	4 x USB 3.0 (i high power port) Full-size SD card reader (SDXC) ane 10 USB Type-C Gigabit Ethernet port 3.v mm headphone jack
Accessories	Surface Keyboard, Surface Pen, Surface Mouse (all in box)
Security	TPM 2.0
Pen	Surface Pen
Weight	21lbs (9.56 kg)

A stunning visual journey

Surface Studio 2 brandish

Arguably, the most critical feature of the Surface Studio two is its display, so it'south great to run into some improvements to it compared to the original version. The bar is already set high considering there is no other display similar this on the marketplace with support for inking, 3:two attribute ratio and a resolution just over 4K.

Information technology's a glorious and stunning achievement.

For Surface Studio 2 the brandish is noticeably brighter equally it now boosted to effectually 600 nits (we measured 588 nits to be precise). That's around the minimal levels to achieve HDR although this is not a certified HDR brandish.

Dissimilarity is too improved in our measurements, which also revealed 100 percent sRGB colour accuracy and 90 percent Adobe RGB. Microsoft notes that each Surface Studio 2 is color calibrated at the manufacturing plant. Of course, some users may desire to fine-tune for their ain needs.

Color profiles include sRGB, DCI-P3, and Vivid, with the concluding one making things a scrap punchier with higher contrast.

While there are more than color accurate, high-resolution displays on the market – some of which run $800 or more – none also back up bear upon or inking, nor move into a drafting table-like position.

The hinges that connect the display to the base are still polished metal that is designed in such a manner as to never reflect light at your eye. This attending to detail is what makes Surface Studio 2 just as much fine art as a PC. The "floating display" works amazingly well as it lets you move the display with simply ane hand to any position. All the cables for the screen, affect input, camera, infra-carmine lens, and audio all go through those hinges too.

Sometime CPU, crawly GPU

Surface Studio 2 hardware

The base of operations of the Surface Studio 2 is even so the same size, which is most one-half that of a total gaming laptop. It packs the GPU, CPU, SSD, motherboard, ports, and a fan into a very compact area.

Ports are all in the rear, including the SD bill of fare slot. This is a design-over-office choice so that all visible holes are never seen directly past the user. It's non terrible, but if you are used to using or removing external peripherals, you will want to invest in an extender.

The new Blazon-C port is decent. It can handle display out, data, audio, charging, and more. Connecting a hub up to it makes it even more than useful. The Type-C replaces a mini DisplayPort, which was helpful for daisy-chaining displays to the Surface Studio. Users now volition need to either use a new monitor that supports Type-C or selection up a Type-C hub with multiple brandish outputs to attain the same event.

You yet cannot use the Surface Studio two every bit a dummy brandish. Connecting the Surface Go to the Surface Studio 2 via Type-C lets the Surface Studio 2 charge the Surface Become.

Windows Mixed Reality headsets will require an HDMI-to-Type-C converter with the secondary cablevision going to ane of the 4 USB Type-A ports. The Blazon-C port when used every bit a hub tin can't solitary power a Windows Mixed Reality headset, which is a shame. Still using Windows Mixed Reality on the Surface Studio 2 was a boom with the operation fix to the highest level with no hiccups.

Heat and fan racket are non too different compared to the previous Studio. Temperatures peak at effectually 145 degrees F (63 degrees C) as hot air is vented to the right of the computer base. Normal temps hover approximately ninety to 100 degrees F (32 to 38 degrees C) when idle or for light computing.

Fan racket is all-time described as aural, just not loud or annoying if sitting in front of the Surface Studio ii. The noise levels are around 38 dB (like a refrigerator hum) virtually of the time during calorie-free computing. For gaming, the fans will get significantly louder peaking around 47 dBs (only below a house fan). The tone of the fan though is not loftier-pitched; it'southward more of a whooshing, which is preferred.

The forepart photographic camera is the aforementioned equally used in previous Surfaces at 5MP and a full Hd video resolution. It's an splendid camera, but at this price betoken, you lot might too splurge for the superior Logitech BRIO 4K if you're serious well-nigh conference calls.

Windows Hello works brilliantly and is faster than the last generation. That is likely due to some other modifications like the storage and the overall improved organisation responsiveness, but coming out of sleep the Surface Studio 2 takes just 2 seconds. Again, it's experiences similar these that add upwards to set the Surface Studio 2 apart from other all-in-one PCs. Information technology feels similar it is e'er on with no waiting.

A mini powerhouse

Surface Studio 2 benchmarks

The overwhelming comeback effectually the Surface Studio 2 involves that boost in the GPU and the new SSD. The processor is near an afterthought giving just a small increment over the previous version.

CPU GPU SSD PCMark 3DMark

CPU

The Intel 7th generation Core i7-7820HQ is almost two-years sometime at this point. Equally a 45W bit information technology was used in loftier-terminate laptops in the fifteen-inch workstation range (not Ultrabooks). It's an OK processor with meridian speeds around 3.9GHz.

Geekbench 4.0 benchmarks (higher is better)

Device	CPU	Single core	Multi core
Surface Studio 2	i7-7820HQ	iv,443	15,772
Surface Studio one	i7-6820HQ	four,200	thirteen,323
Surface Book 2	i7-8650U	five,036	14,237
Dell XPS 15 (9570)	i7-8750H	5,002	21,761
Surface Laptop 2	i5-8250U	4,203	thirteen,233
Surface Laptop	i7-7660U	4,714	nine,535
Surface Pro 6	i7-8650U	v,048	13,869
Surface Pro five	i7-7660U	four,513	nine,346

GPU

The GTX 1070 is a creature of a GPU, and it will be good for many years. Even the lower-stop Surface Studio 2 packs an beauteous GTX 1060, which is about 20 percent less powerful, but still miles alee of the GTX 980M, which is quite meager by comparing.

Geekbench 4.0 OpenCL (higher is meliorate)

Device	GPU	Compute score
Surface Studio two	GTX 1070	170,827
Surface Studio one	GTX 980M	85,580
Surface Studio I	GTX 965M	53,685
Surface Book ii	GTX 1060	138,758
Dell XPS 15 (9570)	GTX 1050	76,948
Surface Book	GTX 965M	64,108
Surface Laptop 2	UHD 620	35,473
Surface Pro 6	UHD 620	36,283
Surface Pro 5	Iris 640	30,678

SSD

Not only did Microsoft use a pure-SSD storage solution, just the Toshiba drive is quite skilful with 3,000 MB/s read speeds – more than doubling the last version.

CrystalDiskMark (higher is amend)

Device	Read	Write
Surface Studio 2	three,094 MB/s	952 MB/s
Surface Studio	1,327 MB/s	512 MB/s
Surface Book two	2,428 MB/s	730 MB/s
Surface Laptop 2	1,509 MB/southward	811 MB/s
Surface Pro 6	one,632 MB/south	814 MB/s
Surface Volume	1,018 MB/southward	967 MB/south

PCMark

PCMark is more CPU-heavy, which is why the Surface Studio 2 closely matches the score of the Surface Book ii. That'south non terrible, but information technology is what yous go when you jam so much hardware into a tiny space.

PCMark (Domicile Accelerated 3.0)

Device	Score
Surface Studio 2	3,374
Surface Studio 2	3,260
XPS fifteen (9575)	four,451
Surface Book 2	3,399
Surface Laptop 2 (i5)	3,451
Surface Pro half-dozen (i7)	3,451

3DMark

Timespy is a GPU-intensive exam, and here you tin come across the Surface Studio 2 nigh matches that of the Razer Bract Pro – a 17-inch gaming laptop with a GTX 1080. Not bad at all.

3DMark (Fourth dimension Spy one.0; College is better)

Device	Score	GPU
Surface Studio ii	5,250	GTX 1070
Razer Blade Pro	five,591	GTX 1080
Surface Book ii	3,538	GTX 1060
Surface Studio	ii,862	GTX 980M
Surface Studio	1,531	GTX 965M

The i7-7820HQ'due south quad-core compages is good for a heavier payload, but it pales to the current eighth generation Intel which goes beyond iv.0 GHz and has six-cores. More threads may non thing for full general productivity, but for those who do a lot of data crunching or rendering that spans long durations, those extra cores would make a difference.

It'due south a shame that Microsoft could not put in an 8th generation processor every bit it would have added even more than power to the Surface Studio ii and made it more than valuable for years to come. Nevertheless, if yous do GPU-intensive tasks, the GTX 1060 or GTX 1070 is a juggernaut.

The RAM is no slouch, and it is DDR4 at ii,666MHz and available upward to 32GB. When combined with the quality SSD, GPU, and acceptable CPU the overall experience of the Surface Studio 2 is so far ahead of the original i it'south difficult to quantify.

Fragging for fun

Surface Studio two equally a regular or gaming PC

The Surface Studio 2 is a professional person-level PC designed for as a specific audience of users. The pricing and feature fix don't lend itself to your regular consumer equally a realistic purchase. Still, for those with deep pockets and who's hearts flutter when they see the Surface Studio ii the question is obvious: Is it any good every bit a regular or gaming PC?

The reply is a resounding aye.

Considering Microsoft finally ditched the dull hybrid-storage solution in add-on to adding a real GPU the Surface Studio 2 is one of the fastest desktop PCs – as far as getting work done, non raw power. Combined with the enormous 28-inch touch display which has the best visual accuracy of any PC display I have used, the relatively quiet fan and the excellent audio the Surface Studio two is everything a desktop PC should be. Information technology's a completely immersive experience.

Destiny 2 at 3,000 x 2,000 resolution and 60 FPS is amazing.

Microsoft crammed iv speakers (ii on the right, two on the left) in the display of the Surface Studio 2 and a subwoofer in the base of operations. There are no speaker grills or visible. That may seem trivial, but it's that kind of adroitness that is absent from whatsoever other desktop PC. Information technology's likewise a hidden cost that helps bulldoze up the price of the Surface Studio 2, merely one less affair to purchase and it keeps a clean wait.

The Surface Studio two is a completely immersive experience

For those who already use a Surface product the familiar iii:two aspect ratio is unique when diddled up to 28-inches. The screen is big plenty to work comfortably with two apps side-by-side (carve up view) and is ideal for productivity.

Gaming may seem an odd matter to brag almost, just Microsoft did once more include Xbox Wireless Controller support. It uses Microsoft'south proprietary wireless connectedness (instead of Bluetooth) which as well enables haptic feedback (rumble support) and the ability to utilize the headphone jack on the controller to be truly wireless.

Because of the NVIDIA GTX 1070, the Surface Studio two handled any game I threw at it. Compared to original Surface Studio with its (at the fourth dimension) superlative-end GTX 980M, the new Studio 2 blows it away. Here is a comparing using Gears of War 4 (Microsoft Store)"

Gears of War iv

Device	GPU	Resolution	Graphics	Frame rate
Surface Studio 2	GTX 1070	2160x1440	Ultra	75 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 980m	1920x1280	Ultra	49 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 965m	1920x1280	Ultra	xxx FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 980m	1920x1280	High	63 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 965m	1920x1280	High	38 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 980m	1920x1280	Med	70 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 965m	1920x1280	Med	42 FPS

Not only does it now hit 75 frames-per-second (FPS), but it'south doing it at a significantly higher resolution than the maxed-out Surface Studio one at just full HD.

Playing Destiny 2 also yielded fantastic results with a vertical-synced 60 FPS at 3,000 ten ii,000 resolution with settings at loftier and ultra. Native resolution is also doable though frame rates drop to between 35 and 45 FPS – which is still playable.

Rising of the Tomb Raider (UWP)

Device	GPU	Resolution	Graphics	Frame rate
Surface Studio ii	GTX 1070	4500x3000	High	thirty FPS
Surface Studio 2	GTX 1070	1920x1440	Very High	74 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 980m	1920x1440	High	56 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 965m	1920x1440	High	33 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 980m	1920x1200	Loftier	63 FPS
Surface Studio	GTX 965m	1920x1200	High	39 FPS

The same story is constitute with Rise of the Tomb Raider, which can play at native resolution with graphics set to high while just reaching 30 FPS. Dialing information technology down to 1920x1440 the 74 FPS of the Surface Studio ii at very high graphics blows away the 56 FPS of the older version, which is only set up to high graphics.

If all you desire to know is if the Surface Studio 2 can now really game, it absolutely can

Other games like Sunset Overdrive and Forza Horizons four look stunning and play with graphics prepare to high too.

Of course, there'southward a lot more to a gaming PC than just operation. Having a 144Hz or 240Hz display instead of 60Hz plant here goes far when playing first-person shooters. And for the price, you lot could hands build a much more than powerful rig. Nonetheless, doing it yourself yields a PC with an abundance of messy cables, larger footprint, external speakers, and a display that will never come close to that of the Surface Studio 2 (forget inking and touch on).

Gears of War 4 on the Surface Studio 2 with GTX 1070 is a fantastic experience.

But if all you desire to know is if the Surface Studio 2 can at present act like a real gaming PC then consider information technology confirmed. Information technology's an awe-inspiring because of that display.

A stunning accomplishment

Surface Studio ii: The lesser line

The Surface Studio 2 may not look so different from the first version, but the internal changes effectively re-make the computer. There is no longer any lag from a spinning hard-disk drive, the mobile graphics processor is gone, and fifty-fifty the DDR4 RAM is respectable.

The GTX 1070 found in the mid- and upper-tier Studio two is the sugariness spot for graphics. Information technology's powerful plenty for serious data crunching or loftier-end gaming, notwithstanding Microsoft was able to absurd information technology down while non melting your desk or using a loud fan.

The processor is the biggest letdown. Six cores are e'er better than four, and it would make swallowing the $iii,500 starting toll easier. Nonetheless, in day-to-day usage and gaming, I tin can't say that the CPU ever caused me frustration. Everything nigh the Surface Studio 2 – particularly compared to the original – is only faster. Putting aside comparison to the quondam version, the Surface Studio 2 even holds upward against my HP Omen gaming desktop setup.

The Surface Studio 2 is the ultimate PC to experience Windows ten

Getting fixated on specifications (like the lack of Thunderbolt 3) is easy to do, but it negates the chief point of Surface: enjoy the thing. I discover it difficult to believe someone would find fault with the actual performance of the Surface Studio 2. Like all Surface devices, the Studio 2 is almost how the culmination of its parts that effect in a profoundly unique and satisfying experience. That's accomplished hither.

That said, the Surface Studio ii pricing is absurd. Starting at $three,500 (the model tested for this review is $iv,200) is then much more than a cocky-built kit. But again, such an approach misses many hidden costs. For its ridiculous price, the Surface Studio 2 at to the lowest degree includes a Surface Pen ($99), Surface Keyboard ($75), Surface Mouse ($50), two.1 speaker organization, GTX 1070 GPU ($450), 32GB of RAM ($230), and a 28-inch color-accurate 4K+ touchscreen — all in one bang-up bundle.

You lot're paying for a one-of-a-kind, minimalist PC that just has no rivals in the calculating earth, and for some people that is worth the cost. If you're non one of those people, that's OK too.

It's important to annotation that no much how much coin you salvage in buying another system or making your own it will never do what the Surface Studio ii does with its hinged display. Nor can you buy whatever screen that looks this good in this form factor.

If none of that matters to you, so the Surface Studio ii should not even be a consideration, just for those who need such a setup, they will undoubtedly be amazed. The Surface Studio 2, similar all this year'southward Surface releases, is incredibly close to perfection. There are a few areas for improvement similar the CPU and Thunderbolt 3, but otherwise, the Surface Studio 2 is, for now, the ultimate desktop PC to experience Windows ten.

The ultimate desktop PC

Surface Studio 2

There'due south nothing like it.

Featuring an NVIDIA GTX 1070 GPU and brighter display the Surface Studio 2 now performs every bit you would wait. The ane-of-a-kind display and PC experience are pricey, only Surface Studio 2 is all the same incomparable to any other computer in the world.

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What is the futurity for Microsoft (and Windows) mixed reality? The latest written report from Business organisation Insider sheds some light, simply this all comes dorsum to one major problem for Microsoft: No mobile Windows OS. But what near a future headset that is cloud-based? Some thoughts on what could happen for Microsoft mixed reality.

Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/surface-studio-2

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