iMessage:
More of the same - it is really nice to get your messages on the desktop and be able to respond without reaching for my phone…this is getting to be a very slippery slope despite the continuing concern about one device vs two.
I can do that with my Go2 and Samsung Galaxy Note 10 using the Your Phone App.
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That’s great - but no go if you’re an iPhone user - gotta keep you in the walled garden.
Jury still out on Mac vs SP8 - just miss touch screen and pen one same device.
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Answering calls and messages on my Surface PC as well as accessing my phone apps is great, but one of the best integration examples of android and windows is the universal clipboard feature. I just copy something on my PC and bam! It’s in my clipboard on my phone and vice versa.
If MS continues making their own android phones, I think the integration will get better and better.
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Totally agree, one of the most used features when I had my Duo. and FWIW, my now S22ultra is just slightly more awkward for some reason I can’t quite put my finger on.
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Probably has to do with something Samung one ui does.
There he goes quoting himself again… 
I’m doing this for a reason, however - as I grow fonder of the second MBP14, I still drag my feet over the “two vs one” conundrum. I have chronicled the discoveries I’ve made about the integration, and elegance, of the Apple walled garden, but I keep coming smack dab into that one device convenience of the SP8. In January, my failure was as much about still recovering and getting my feet back under me in my practice. Turns out that MacOS is not such a high mountain to scale for Windows users; I just keep wishing I could “hackintosh” my SP8 to have the perfect converged device - Apple is so d**** stupid and stubborn in this regard.
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im sure you could get hackintosh working on the Sp8, but the effort it takes would be a bit much.
Just for grins I googled - the risk/reward scale was 90% tipped towards risk…
So you’re telling me there is a chance (name that movie quote) 
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No! I’m dumb, not dumber.
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Just a small little UX demo, but shows how little Apple would have to add for true multitasking:
Combine that with multi-monitor support…WWDC, it’s gonna come right? 
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Why are all these concept videos so much better than what Apple will deliver? If I thought they would get this close, I’d bail on the MBP14, hold on to the SP8 and iPP11, and bail on Windows when this improved iPad OS 16 and M2 iPad Pro come out.
A few Saturday morning updates:
MacBook Pro 14
- The refurbs are in the Apple store with $200-$350 discounts depending on size and features
- The MB14 is a bit “chunky” and heavy at 3.5lbs - makes me worry about how the redesigned 2022 MacBook Air will compare - rumored 2.5lbs and nearly as thin as just the system part of MBP14
- Rather than MagSafe I’d prefer a fourth USB-C/TB4, or even better USB-A. Why so much love for MagSafe - are Apple users just klutz’s that are always snagging the power cord and destroying their Macs
- Battery life is great - can work/surf all evening (four hours?) and still show 75-80% battery
- Corollary - fans - where are they (haven’t heard them yet)
- Speed - it is so fast - boots up before screen is fully open; file transfers nearly instant
- Notch - just plain stupid - if not adding FaceID just put decent 1080p camera in a slim bezel
- Screen - only the OLED x360-14 can touch this one - it is great - BUT IT NEEDS TOUCH
- Keyboard - good, but not much better than SP8 and not as good as x360-14
- If you have an Apple Watch you’ll love unlocking the Mac with it - and wonder why in H*** can’t you unlock your iPad with your Watch
- It still is overkill for me - operations, in general, are about same as my SP8
- It is all the “little things” that make the difference - ease if using Finder; “Preview” of almost any file type inside almost any application; customization of the UI; all apps and system have easily accessible “Preferences”; built in utilities (PDF handling); etc.
Some MacOS thoughts
- Not near as intimidating as I feared - if you use Office 365 things look a little different but almost the same
- A LOT of shortcut keys and operations you need to learn, but CMD almost equals CTRL
- Finder IS better than File Explorer but you need to customize a bit
- Not a fan of menus being at the top of the screen for the app in focus - like Windows menu system in each application
Some iPad thoughts
- Sidecar is GREAT - a near perfect second screen without cables
- Universal Control is very good - easy to use your Mac trackpad/mouse/cursor/keyboard on your iPad
- This would be PERFECT device if you could dual boot iPadOS and MacOS - in fact my choice of unicorns
Interesting Observation From Our Friend Lisa (@lisaMobileTechReview)
From a “creator” point of view (beginning at 8:00 in video), she prefers the Surface Laptop Studio - the MBP16 is speedy but basically a “boring conventional laptop.”
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Monday Morning Quarterbacking
This is so much more complicated than I ever thought it would be. I find I’m doing nearly the exact same productivity tasks on my MBP14 that I was doing on the SP8, but: (1) when using my MBP14 I hate the “switch” to the iPad for writing/drawing/annotating chores; (2) I am doing MANY of my iPad type chores (News+, surfing, iMessage, FaceTime, Photos) on the MBP14; but (3) I am loving using the MBP14 more each day, especially since I got Adobe Acrobat Pro DC loaded on it. That leaves me with a big decision to face - I can do 70-80% of everything I do daily on my SP8 with the convenience of touch/pen at all times, all in a much smaller device format - but MacOS and iPadOS have the old tug on heartstrings features (great device integration; iMessage, FaceTime, Photos, Sidecar/Universal Control).I’m even getting used to the interface quirks of MacOS vs Windows 11.
It’s basically down to whether one device is enough anymore, or should I just stick with two…anyone interested in a top of the line two month old Surface Pro 8?
If I do bail on SP8, I’ll offer it here first for cost.
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You’re welcome! Just as a note to all, that ITsavvy well has dried up and all Surface demo units have been set unsearchable publicly. Still, it’s not all bad news. I can help via PM on a need-to-know basis with two other reliable vendors that I have confirmed work. 
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This one is going to be hard to explain, so either bear with me or go on to another thread. TL&DR - leaning back towards SP8.
I don’t even know how to express my predicament. As cool and great as the MBP14 is, I still miss my touch screen and having a pen at all times. Guess I never realized how much I use that pen on a regular basis (notes and annotating), and I REALLY like having a touch screen laptop. This highlights that I need to carry both the MBP14 and iPP11 at all times. If I forget the iPP11 with my MBP14, I’m a bit hamstrung; no note taking and PDF’s lose a lot of their usefulness. If I forget the iPP11 when toting my SP8, no big deal. This is weighing very heavily on me this afternoon as I left the iPP11 on my desk and then had a 30 minute impromptu meeting with a client and had to resort to a yellow pad and scrolling through the MBP14 at the same time. It is not the experience that I want to have. Even when I do bring both the MBP14 and iPP11, it is a juggling act. The iPP11, alone, is just not a solution for those meetings.
The SP8 easily handles ALL my business needs, and the MBP14 and iPP11 can do likewise, but it does take both. The SP8 is not a very good tablet by itself, but Chrome seems to fill the gaps fairly well. On the flip side, iPP11 is a great tablet, and it is very convenient to answer iMessage, FaceTime, and have full access to my iCloud Photo album on all my devices.
Worse still, I am also a touch screen fan. I really like that third input option. much less scrolling and pinch to zoom. A lot to absorb again…especially since I am really enjoying the Mac…
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Well, give him a couple of minutes and he spins like a top…
D*mn you Apple - my son’s family is in Hawaii on spring break and he just sent a bunch of pictures and videos with the kids (10 and 6) and looking at them in iMessage on my MBP14 made me cry…for real… I’ve been looking through the wrong end of the scopes - if I can get my business stuff completed equally on both systems (and I am learning MacOS surprisingly well) then why not enjoy all my personal stuff in a much better environment.
DECISION MADE - staying in the walled garden and SP8 goes up for sale when I get back from New Mexico after Easter. I will post it here first, at my cost (ITSavvy special) and will throw in my spare Surface Dock 1, Surface Keyboard, and Surface Mouse.
Sure hope Apple keeps adding to iPadOS to make the M1 iPP11a more complete solution for my client meetings though.
Sorry to be such a PITA with all of this back and forth, especially spinning on a dime. If I can apologize further, I took my second COVID booster yesterday (Moderna, all others have been Phizer) and it knocked me on my b*tt today, further fogging my brain.
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I love New Mexico. Have a safe and enjoyable trip.
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Would the SP8 with an iPad mini work? All the benefits of a Surface with a convenient super portable sidekick for family stuff.
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