Surface Pro 6

MULTI-TOOL We find out if Microsoft’s latest two-in-one device has kept pace with the iPad Pro and laptop rivals like the MacBook Air.

The Surface Pro 6 is the latest version of Microsoft’s successful two-in-one tablet-PC combo. There’s not a stack of improvements over the previous generation, but it does up the performance significantly. However, as a creative the question is whether it’s either as good a tablet as the iPad Pro, or a potential laptop replacement that can take on your current ultra-portable device?

The short answer is that no, it’s not as good as a tablet as the iPad Pro. And it doesn’t do as good a job as a laptop when it’s, well, being a laptop. Yet where the Surface Pro 6 wins is in its flexibility as a tablet, a laptop and a fully powered Windows machine that you can dock with a keyboard and monitor when you get to a desk.

Surface Pro 6 starts at £779 for the Core-i5, 8GB RAM and 128GB storage version. You also need to buy the Surface Pen (£100) and the detachable Surface Type Cover (£125) that attaches to the bottom edge of the Surface Pro with a special docking point. This is galling, because both are essential to the Surface Pro experience. The problem with the added extras is that, by the time you’ve added them on, you’re looking at the same price point (or more) for an ultra-portable laptop.