Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

Amazon is blowing out prices on the original Surface Book, starts at $790

By
Add as a preferred source on Google

If you just love Microsoft’s innovative notebook-first 2-in-1, the Surface Book, then you’re probably eyeing the newest member. The Surface Book 2 ups the performance in a big way, while also upping the machine itself with a new 15-inch model. However, as with the original, the Surface Book 2’s pricing is also up — in the stratosphere, that is. Which is what makes Amazon’s blow-out prices on the original model so attractive.

The discounts start with the entry-level Surface Book, at $790 for a Core i5-6300U CPU, 8GB of RAM, a 128GB solid-state drive (SSD), and integrated Intel HD 520 graphics that is down 47 percent from the original $1,500 retail price. Other options include:

  • Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, integrated graphics: $945
  • Core i5, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, discrete Nvidia GPU (Microsoft’s custom version of the GeForce 940M): $970
  • Core i7-6600U, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, discrete graphics: $1,150
  • Core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, integrated graphics: $1,625
  • Core i7, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, discrete graphics: $2,719
Recommended Videos

We liked the original Surface Book quite a bit, noting its good performance and great battery life. Of course, Surface displays are also excellent and the original model uses the same panel as the current Surface Book 2. That means you get outstanding brightness and contrast, solid color gamut support, and touch and Surface Pen support.

If your wallet is a little fatter, then you can always consider the Surface Book 2. That machine brings the line up to speed with up to the latest Intel eighth-generation quad-core Core processors, a choice of Nvidia GTX 105o or 1060 GPUs, and a number of other enhancements. But the pricing also starts at $1,500 for the 13-inch model with a seventh-generation Intel Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD, and ramps up to $3,200 for the 15-inch model with the eighth-gen Intel Core i7, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD.

You’re giving up some power by going with the earlier model, but such things are relative. The original Surface Book will run today’s productivity apps just fine, while providing the same hybrid detachable tablet and clamshell notebook experience. And, unlike the Surface Book 2, a Surface Pen is included.

Mark Coppock
Mark Coppock
Former Computing Writer
Mark Coppock is a Freelance Writer at Digital Trends covering primarily laptop and other computing technologies. He has…
Topics
Look, the MacBook Neo is a fine machine for building apps. And yes, I am utterly surprised
I am talking about apps with a generous dose of AI wizardry happening in the background.
MacBook Neo in yellow.

In a span of just one week, I have built a full-fledged Android app for my Galaxy Z Fold 8 foldable phone, three Mac apps, and an iPhone app. And here's the fun part. The entire journey of creating these apps actually started on a phone, jumped to my MacBook Neo, compiled just fine, and ran flawlessly, without making me want to tear my hair off. The latest example? 

It built my calendar-clipboard hybrid app in Terminal within 20 seconds, and an on-device transcription app with a retro look in roughly 15 seconds. I used to think building desktop software would have me burning the midnight oil. The MacBook Neo did it in less time than I can pour myself a can of soda and take the first sip. 

Read more
AI could be doing to our tolerance for hard work what social media did to our patience
Even brief AI use may make unaided work feel more frustrating once the help disappears.
ChatGPT on iPhone

It is no secret that social media, and especially the rise of short-form content, has played a major role in the declining patience many of us have for anything that takes too long to get to the point. A few seconds without something interesting happening is enough to make us swipe away and look for the next thing. AI appears to be doing something similar to the way we approach work.

A new peer-reviewed study found that people who used AI for around 10 to 15 minutes were more likely to struggle and give up once the AI was taken away. The researchers ran three randomized experiments with 1,222 participants who were given math and reading-comprehension tasks. AI helped them perform better at first, but their performance tanked once they had to solve the problems on their own.

Read more
Microsoft wants Copilot Notebooks to handle the work that comes after an AI answer
Built-in Office editing gives users somewhere to revise what Copilot produces
Copilot graphics

Microsoft is bringing Office editing into Copilot Notebooks through its Frontier preview. Users can work on Word, Excel and PowerPoint files alongside their project references, making changes themselves or asking Copilot to handle them.

Generating a report or presentation with AI still leaves someone responsible for getting it ready to share. The October update puts editing tools where that work begins, though having a document neatly formatted doesn’t make its contents correct.

Read more