Whilst there is nothing new or standout about the Surface Go 4, it is the latest version of Microsoft’s small 10-inch tablet which is ideal for use at home, as a companion device, when travelling or when away, Surface Go is also extremely popular in education, Heathcare, front-line and field operations, retail and in call/contact centres. Surface Go 4 ships with Windows 11.
Being a huge fan of the Surface Family and being a fan of the Surface Go 2 LTE and Surface Go 3 for traveling and working on the go, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the Surface Go 4 and put it through the paces to see how much compared to the previous version.
Introducing the Surface Go 4
The Surface Go 4 is looks very much the same when compared to its predecessor, the Surface Go 3 – Infact, the design hasn’t really changed since the original Surface Go. It measures 245 x 175 x 8.3mm and weighs just 529grams. It has a 10.5inch, 1,920 x 1,080 IPS screen with high quality, solid magnesium body, complete with “any angle” kickstand, single USB-C port, Surface Connect Port and headphone jack port and optional Surface Pen and Type Cover Keyboard. You can find the full spec here:
Being the same overall size and dimensions, the great thing if you are upgrading from a previous generation Surface Go is that it is fully compatible with the any Surface Go accessories such as keyboards or cases you may have. This iteration does get an upgraded chipset and therefore performance lift over the 2021/22 version and is still built with high-quality magnesium alloy body with a premium finish making it feel like a premium device – which Surface is. I do wish, fours on however, that Microsoft would have reduced the oversized black screen bezels a little as it does look a little dated compared to other tablets.
Surface Go is used a lot in education and with frontline workers. This is one of the reasons for the larger screen bezels. This makes it much easier to hold without accidently touching the screen.
Signature Look and Feel
As you expect with Surface 2-in-1 devices, Surface Go 4 gives you the familiar kickstand which is built into the back of the device and can be easily folded out to various angles making it extremely versatile as a tablet or a laptop with the optional (and not included) keyboard. The kick stand is smooth in operation and very sturdy.
On the underside of the kickstand, you can find a MicroSD card slot. On the sides of the device, you will find the familiar Surface Connect port, a headphone jack and a USB C 3.1 port which can also be used for charging the device as well as connecting to a range of peripherals, docks or displays.
Camera, Video and Windows Hello®️
You get two cameras. At the back of device, there is an 8-megapixel camera which is good medium range camera for a rear camera on a laptop. At the front you get a 5-megapixel webcam which performs really well in various light settings on video calls and when recording in apps like PowerPoint and Clip Champ. Unlike the Surface Laptop Go, you do also get the additional sensors for Windows Hello and light adjustment and as always Windows Hello works incredibly fast.
Repairability and Sustainability
Microsoft have continued to improve on the repairability and sustainability of their devices and supply chain. Surface Go 4 is more repairable than ever, with the display, battery and back cover, kickstand, motherboard, microSDXC card reader, type cover connector, front, rear and Windows Hello camera, and speakers all being replaceable.
Screen
Surface Go 4 has the same 10.5-inch 10-point multi-touch, PixelSense display as its predecessor and has an aspect ratio of 3:2. Microsoft consistently uses this aspect, and it remains the perfect ratio for office or schoolwork.
Screen resolution supports 1920 x 1280 pixels, meaning you get a Full HD resolution on a 10.5-inch screen which makes it look super sharp and clear. The screen is bright, and colours are vibrant, and you also get great viewing angles. Gorilla Glass 3 also protects the screen. Touch is accurate and responsive as always.
For a late 2023 device, it's a shame that Microsoft didn't upgrade to a 120Hz panel as they have in the latest Pro and Laptop range. I would have also liked to have seen anti-glare screen options to help in outdoor or bright conditions.
Audio and Sound
Yoi get stereo sound with speakers located on the left and right of the display. Whilst sound quality is not studio level like you get on the Surface Laptop Studio, it is more than good enough for calls and watching videos when away or watching in bed. making it a great all-rounder and fine if you want to use it as an entertainment device.
Power and Performance
Microsoft Surface Go 4 is powered by an Intel N200 processor and comes with 8GB of RAM as a standard. This an improvement over the previous models which started at 4GB RAM which was simply not enough in my experience. Storage starts at 64GB SSD storage and provide options of 128GB and 256GB too. Strangely there is no LTE/4/5G version this time round.
According to benchmark reports I have seen, performance of the Surface Go 4 is slightly better than the Surface Go 3 due to the slightly updated chipset and is also more powerful than the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE tablet. It falls short of the Apple iPad 9. which is to be expected.
Performance, like many things is subjective though. The Surface Go 4 (I have been using the 8GB/256GB) version which was more than sufficient for multi-tasking office apps and personal social media and video streaming apps.
Usage and Experience
Surface Go 4 is positioned as a work or school device and not designed (unlike a high-end iPad) for video editing or playing video intensive games. That said, for office apps and web applications, I noticed no performance lags at all and the device multi-tasked well. Microsoft’s Office apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote run smoothly and I was able to have many Edge tabs open at the same time with any issues.
Surface is also a great device for watching stuff on YouTube, Netflix, Disney +. This combined with good performance for multitasking with business or school apps, makes Surface Go 4 an affordable, practical, light weight and fully featured 2-in-1 device. I find this great when I travel or work away without having to take two devices.
Type Cover Keyboard
All previous generations of the Microsoft Type Cover for Surface Go are compatible with Surface Go 4 and the design has not changed with version 4. You can of course buy cheaper (non-Microsoft covers) or USB keyboards, but don’t. Microsoft’s Type Cover keyboard is excellent.
In case you are not familiar; Microsoft’s Type Cover keyboard is extremely high quality. It is made of plastic but has a very high-quality finish and a fabric-like surface. It includes a backlight and is magnetically attached to the tablet and protects the display when folded. Due to the slight angle of the keyboard that the magnetic connector creates, it makes it feel much more like a laptop than cheap ‘flat’ keyboard.
The keyboard is relatively large for a small 10-inch tablet but does not feel small to use. I can easily touch type on this without effort or having to change how I type. The Type Cover is comfortable to use and much better than some of the cheap tablet keyboards I have used in the past.
There is a touchpad under the keyboard, which, while not a big as some laptops, is a good balance of size and usability whilst helping to avoid accidental touches on the touch panel.
The Surface Pen
For me, a touch screen and pen are a non-negotiator when choosing a device for work or home. Once critiqued by Apple saying that “no one would ever need to use a pen with a tablet”, Surface Pen has been a stable companion to the Surface Pro since the first Surface in 2012.
Surface Go 4 supports all previous iterations of Surface Pens (expect the ones that shipped on the first Surface Pro 1 and Surface RT devices) including the Surface Slim Pen and Slim Pen 2. The Surface Pen is very responsive and precise, and it’s fun to take handwritten notes with it. The lates
Whilst optional to buy, Surface Go 4 together with the Surface Pen and writing and graphics apps like OneNote, MS Paint, Designer, Edge, PDF etc, are what make Surface standout. Yes, you can do this on most tablets, but Surface is by far the best (and original) 2-in-1 device in my experience.
With the latest update to Windows 11, there is now also support for inking anywhere you can type in dialogue boxes.
Windows 11 brings Surface to Life
Everyone knows that Windows is not an OS designed for tablet only devices. Windows 8 tried too hard to make Tablet mode work (and was awful) and Windows 10 had various attempts at tablet mode, but Windows 11 has actually (finally) done a half decent job of adapting the OS to work with tablet devices. This includes 2-in-1s like Surface Go 4.
With Windows 11, tablet mode is switched on automatically when the keyboard is disconnected or folded back to use the device in tablet mode.
In tablet mode, the Windows taskbar becomes significantly larger so that it is easier to use with your finger or pen and the customisable on-screen keyboard opens whenever you click/tap in a text field. If have a Surface Pen, then you also get quick access to the Windows Inking features.
Within Windows, some apps are also tailored for use with Tablets, and some even adapt based on the use mode. OneNote is a good example. When using OneNote in tablet mode, the canvas gets simplified and decluttered, making it much easier to use with pen and ink.
Using Surface with Android Apps
While a Windows thing more than a Surface thing, Windows 11 supports the use of many Android apps via the Amazon App Store. To use this, you need to install the Amazon Appstore via the Microsoft Store.
You can then install a vast number of apps and games such as angry birds or City Mapper and use them just like any other app. Whilst you don’t get the full library of native Android apps you get in the Play store, there are thousands, and it works seamlessly once installed from the Microsoft Store.
Surface is even better with Windows 365
Windows 365 is Microsoft’s desktop as a service which is delivered as a SaaS service to business/corporate users. It is a dedicated Cloud PC which is provisioned, used, managed, and updated just like a physical PC but runs in the Microsoft Cloud. Windows 365 provides an “instant on” desktop environment than can be accessed securely from any device (or browser) and allows you to pick up where you left off, providing a seamless experience with all your corporate applications and files available wherever you need it. Since Windows 365 is a Cloud Service, access to it is secure, instantly provisioned, upgraded or updated and since it can be used on “any” device avoids the need for hardware upgrades, protects against device loss and theft and removes the data security / leakage risk of having corporate information on physical devices.
So why Surface Go 4 and Windows 365? Well, I have recently got myself a Surface Go 4 for home and family. The kids love using pen and ink and we use a Microsoft 365 Family subscription for personal, school and work stuff.
When I’m away from the office or traveling with my family, I often need to access work-related files and applications. Windows 365 allows me to securely multitask on our shared device without having to install and download apps, set up complicated VPN services, or compromise company security or confidentiality by using a personal device for work. With Windows 365, I can use my personal device as a work device and switch back seamlessly as needed. Plus, if my kids want to play with Designer or watch YouTube, I can pause what I’m doing and resume later without worrying that they will mess up any of my work.
I’ve written other posts on Windows 365 before, and for more information on Windows 365 you can check Microsoft’s official sites here.
My Conclusion
Starting at £549 in the UK (pen and keyboard separate), Microsoft Surface Go 4 is a well priced, versitile allrounder that is great for home, work, school or a combination of all (maybe combined with Windows 365).
Surface Go continues to be a great choice if you need/want a “proper” Windows based PC type device rather than “just a tablet”. This is not a device for intense gamers or graphic designers, but for everything else, it’s a great device that is well built, offers high quality, is super repairable and includes full multipoint touch, pen support and a full and versitle type cover ketboard.
The only dissapointment was battery life. Windows devices in my experience just dont have the power efficienicies that Apple iPads offer.
If you have a Surface Go 3, I would not reccommend rushing out and upgrading (unless you have an etry level one with 4GB RAM). If you do not need a Windows device or just want a tablet to watch films on and browse social media, then Surface Go may be wasted on you.
Surface Go is also a great second device. If you have a desktop for work or home (or a chunky, heavy laptop), Surface Go is a grwat choice as a flexible second device that can also be used for work with or without Windows 365 (see above).
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