Because the iPad doesn't allow you to do many things the way you would on a Mac or PC, Apple has spent the last few years struggling to define whether or how well the iPad might substitute for a laptop for many users, even as the iPad's core components have certainly improved to a level where they should be able to. Microsoft has the opposite problem Apple does. If traditional Surface applications are driving your purchase decision, then it is harder to make the case for the Surface Pro X versus the road more traveled. And, just as with the iPad Pro, some professional apps are experiencing some lateral growing pains adjusting to an ARM-driven world. Its lightness, long battery life, and sleek industrial design make it one of the strongest competitors to the 12.9' iPad Pro since Apple released the version that it said it always wanted to make. But the Surface Pro X shows that Microsoft has not given up. The Surface Pro was a tablet, but it was commonly used that way for only a handful of tasks and vertical apps.Īlso: The very best tablets to buy in 2019 Whereas Windows 8 had left Windows' desktop interface frozen in its Windows 7 form, developer audiences erupted in applause as Microsoft announced improvements in the Windows 10 desktop UI and terminal app. Unable to develop a touch-driven ecosystem to rival the iPad's and reacting to the market's shift away from pure slates, Microsoft consigned the Surface Pro - and Windows that runs on it - to mostly doing the same kinds of tasks PCs always had.

The very best Cyber Monday deals and sales from Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and other retailers.

Cyber Monday 2019 deals: Business Bargain Hunter's top picks

Surface pro touchscreen not working