Surface 3 upgrade to Windows 10: Pain and joy

The Surface 3 tablet has finally abandoned the unloved Windows RT operating system and instead comes pre-installed with the standard Windows 8.1. It will also be able to be directly upgraded to Windows 10 in the future. So what will it be like to run Windows 10 on it?

Foreign media Neowin recently tried out the upgrade and had a mixed experience.

First of all, a reminder: if you plan to buy one after it is released, it is better to stay on Windows 8.1 for the time being. Windows 10 is now relatively stable, but it is not yet finished and has many problems. It is not recommended to use it as the main system for daily use.

The upgrade process was painful. With the help of Microsoft's upgrade tool, the first step was only to upgrade to Windows 10 Build 10041, which took more than 2 hours. Although the Surface 3 uses the most powerful model Atom x7-Z8700 of Intel's 14nm Cherry Trail platform, it also has four cores, but after all, it is a low-power architecture and the system is also fanless. It is inevitable that it is a bit powerless to perform heavy tasks, and the CPU is also prone to overheating and frequency reduction.

Next, it took about 45 minutes to upgrade to Windows 10 Build 10061 again.

After that, everything went smoothly. The system ran well without any major problems. After all, it was Microsoft's own hardware and drivers, so there was no compatibility issue.

Of course, bugs are inevitable. For example, the virtual keyboard on the login interface always disappears when entering the password. It will blue screen from time to time (but not freeze), and you have to click the power button to restore it. Occasionally, some applications will crash.

The Type Cover keyboard is fully supported, the stylus pen works smoothly, and the system responds quickly and accurately.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.