As a change after a week of imaging features, let's go to something completely different. Even away from smartphones, but staying within the Windows world. Now, the most recent Surface hybrids have had Windows Hello cameras in their top bezels and compatible fingerprint scanners in their optional Type covers. But what if you wanted fingerprint access to your older Surface device?
With most of us taking two things everywhere we go - our smartphones and our wallets - an obvious question to ask at some point is "Why not put the two together?" Now, while there have been 'folio' cases for many smartphones for years, usually with a few token card slots inside the front flap, this brand new Noreve accessory takes the concept and dials it up to 11. With understandable caveats for bulk and (here) price!
Bizarrely, the FYE-3 featured here is actually a development of the FYE-4 reviewed previously. Perhaps Blitzwolf is working down the numbers, not up?! Regardless, it's an Apple Airpods competitor for the rest of the smartphone world - and, unlike the FYE-4, it does a lot of things right (including acting as a part time power bank), even though it too ultimately falls down when considering audio fidelity.
Although this can apply to Windows 10 phones as well, it's less likely than for the Surface Go, which is more likely to need to hook up with USB accessories. Either way, this is an ultra lightweight, cheap way to expand a single USB Type C jack to four USB-A jacks. It only weighs 35g, costs just over £8 (including shipping), and is a no-brainer to pick up if you have a Go. Or indeed a recent Macbook or you just like having adapters and dongles in your kit bag!
Apple announced something like this a year ago, but have yet to ship it. Meanwhile, Choetech has come up trumps with a 5-coil array that can handle the most casual charging positions or, side by side, can wirelessly fast charge two smartphones/gadgets at the same time, at up to 2A each (depending on the recipient's capabilities). And it works exactly as advertised, with a theoretical 20W total output.
Just scraping into 2018, this is the final review part (for now) of one of the most impressive mobile computing devices I think I've ever used. Not a smartphone, not a laptop, not even a tablet, but something in between that encompasses most of their roles. True, it's too big to be pocketed, and true, it's probably too small to be used as an all-day computer, but embrace the Go lifestyle and you can do more while (literally) on the 'go' than ever before. Microsoft has got (almost) everything right in this new Surface product, with perhaps the only significant caveat being battery life - you'll probably need to take a USB power bank on long trips!
Following on from the first part of my main review of this relevant ultra-mobile computing device, part 2, concentrating on the Type Cover and the laptop experience, part 3, with comments on performance in daily use, and part 4, looking at imaging, here's part 5, looking at the optional Surface Pen, adding another dimension to what you can do on this tablet/laptop hybrid.
Following on from the first part of my main review of this relevant ultra-mobile computing device, part 2, concentrating on the Type Cover and the laptop experience, and part 3, covering the particular 'S mode' default configuration of the Surface Go and comments on performance in daily use, here's part 4, looking at imaging. Yes, imaging on a tablet - but not just any old tablet. The Go is light enough and portable enough that any imaging potential is well worth exploring, even if it's not going to be your primary shooter.
Following on from my Gallery of the Surface Go review hardware kit, the first part of my main review of this relevant ultra-mobile computing device, and part 2, concentrating on the Type Cover and the laptop experience, here's part 3, covering the particular 'S mode' default configuration of the Surface Go and comments on performance in daily use.
Following on from my Gallery of the Surface Go review hardware kit and the first part of my main review of this relevant ultra-mobile computing device, here's part 2, concentrating on the Type Cover and the laptop experience. And you'll forgive the gushing praise, but the Alcantara Microsoft Type Covers are just spectacularly high quality. Snapped onto a Surface Go, this gives you the Windows laptop experience at not much more than 700g.
