The Surface Book has a dGPU custom 960m chip. It will run FFXIV, a 5 year old game optimized for the PS3 at max, even with DX11. They played Gears Of War on it flawlessly at the keynote.
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Surface Pro Gaming.
- Thread starter bomblord1
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They played a video of gears of war. Get a grip man.
BigTnaples
Todd Howard's Secret GAF Account
A video of the game being played on one.. It's safe to assume they weren't flat out lying.
It's just the apple fanboys invading every Surface thread. The book has broken them.
I don't know exactly how the CPU components compare (SP4 should have an advantage but how much is uncertain), but in terms of GPU the SP3 i7 has an HD 5000, which is rated at ~700 GFLOPS but has no dedicated memory. By comparison the SP4 i7 has an Iris 540 which is rated at ~800 GFLOPS and has 64MB of EDRAM.
That should give the SP4 a pretty sizable advantage in gaming. Should be able to play most last gen games at 1080p, assuming it doesn't throttle. We'll have to wait and see about that last part.
what are the odds that the SBook runs Witcher 1-2 at any setting?
I bought those games years ago and have 3, I should would check them out if I could play it on my laptop on the go and whatnot.
My desktop has gone to shit, and since I move all the time I rely solely on laptops and my phone for my computer tasks. Would be nice if the SB could be used as a lite gaming machine.
I bought those games years ago and have 3, I should would check them out if I could play it on my laptop on the go and whatnot.
My desktop has gone to shit, and since I move all the time I rely solely on laptops and my phone for my computer tasks. Would be nice if the SB could be used as a lite gaming machine.
I am not debating it SHOULD run it, but lets wait and see how it performs under pressure.
I have the pro 2 256 and my boss has the pro 3 i7 256, his is a pile of SHIT compared to mine. His tablet is like a portable oven and throttles to shit all the time. Its useless if gaming is your concern. That is microsofts last flagship tablet performance. Let us wait and see how the pro 4 does before declaring it good for all types of games. My pro 2 is magnificent when it comes to gaming and emulation. Love it to bits. Pro 4 has to prove itself in the real world.
My 3 throttles like that too but talking about the book not the sp4.
Wait for it to come out, read reviews and see for sure before putting down the funds. A lot of people got burnt (literally and figuratively) with the pro 3.
Right, and again, i'm saying wait and see what real world results are going to be like. Don't give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to your cash. Let the product prove itself worth, then if it is, buy it knowing you are getting what you want.
I can't see a 960m MAXING that would mean all AA turned up as high as it can go, all settings cranked, grass and shadows as high as they can go and running at 60fps. I don't see it maxing FFXIV.
I completely agree this should be able to do mid-high and look great keeping 60fps in busy areas I guess my only hitch was simply the word "Max". So yea it should run it great.
Muffin Awesome
Member
Even more to your point the chip is said to be a modified 8m series chip:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2989906/laptop-computers/here-are-the-details-of-the-surface-book-and-surface-pro-4-chips-and-why-they-matter.html
At the bottom of the article it references a statement by nVidia spokesperson about the chip inside the Surface Book.
With only a GB on a modified structure, I would take a wait and see as well. Sounds quite neat, but I think only 1 GB of ram may be challenging for most current games and not sure how sharing core system ram will be affected by the set up of having the GPU housed in a separate unit. Again could be nothing, could be impactful, tech is so new that for the money I would have to wait and see, if you have the cash I can understand the hype this type setup is what I want for bed time gaming haha.
I wasn't talking about the surface pro 4, I was talking about the surface book which has a dedicated GPU
it'll definitely run FFXIV at max
NeOak
Member
Enjoy 2 years waiting then.
So my i5 8GB SP2 runs Tales of Zestiria wonderfully when windowed. I was thinking about upgrading to an i7 16GB RAM SP4 but I'm wondering if it's really worth it when I can just get a SP3. How much better is the i5 SP3 compared to the i5 SP2? We still don't have details on if the i7 SP4 throttles yet right?
LukasTaves
Member
It's actually the same processor, with a higher frequency potential when boosting, but with worse cooling so it performs worse on sustained workloads.
I7 sp4 has significantly better integrated graphics. And hopefully from the internals we've seen, significantly better cooling than the SP3
With DX12, apps/games can use both Intel and the Nvidia GPU together to maximise performance.
I'm wondering if Microsoft chose 1GB because of the additional help form the Intel GPU. But Apps and Games will have to be built with DX12 to take advantage of the two GPUS.
Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book reviews are out. Here's a quick Pro 4 review http://www.engadget.com/2015/10/21/surface-pro-4-review/
Surface Pro 4 actually doubles the 3's 3D mark 11 score which I assume is mostly due to the better cooling.
Edit:
Cnet: http://www.cnet.com/products/microsoft-surface-pro-4/
Engadget: http://www.engadget.com/2015/10/21/surface-pro-4-review/
Tech Radar: http://www.techradar.com/us/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/microsoft-surface-pro-4-1290285/review
Ars Technica: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015...-that-still-doesnt-quite-replace-your-laptop/
Surface Pro 4 actually doubles the 3's 3D mark 11 score which I assume is mostly due to the better cooling.
Edit:
Cnet: http://www.cnet.com/products/microsoft-surface-pro-4/
Engadget: http://www.engadget.com/2015/10/21/surface-pro-4-review/
Tech Radar: http://www.techradar.com/us/reviews/pc-mac/tablets/microsoft-surface-pro-4-1290285/review
Ars Technica: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015...-that-still-doesnt-quite-replace-your-laptop/
Let us know how it goes for you. No review I've read mentions throttling so we may be able to get the full power of the integrated GPU this time.
troopershades
Neo Member
I have the surface book i5 dGPU. All I've had time to mess with is Rocket League which looks outstanding at 1920x1080. I'll load up more and tinker with it this week. If anyone has any requests of anything shoot me a PM. If have it I'll post impressions and/or shots.
Thanks Added.
On an unrelated note do you think i should keep the Surface Pro 1 section up in the OP? It's reaching the point where it's a little bit crowded and that system isn't really relevant any longer.
I have the device set up and configured to my liking. Coming from a the original Surface Pro, this thing is super sleek. The SP4 is so light and thin, it's crazy to think that it's actually substantially more powerful than the one it's replacing. And man, the new type cover is so comfortable and smooth.
The only game I ever really played on my SP1 was GTA3 (I know, weird choice, but driving around has always been perfectly satisfying to me).
The only game I ever really played on my SP1 was GTA3 (I know, weird choice, but driving around has always been perfectly satisfying to me).
That would be a heckuva upgrade Let us know how you like it. Try some consecutive benchmarks to see if it throttles.
Does it play Cities!?
Philtastic
Member
Just checking in to say that I got my Surface Pro 4 Core i5, 256 GB, 8 GB RAM yesterday from Microsoft Store pre-order. Compared to the SP2 I have, it is so sleek. I really like the contrast between the metal matte case and the highly reflective Windows logo (which is already getting finger prints all over it 
). The screen looks amazing with its high resolution as well as vibrant but not oversaturated colours. The pen is much improved over the SP2's pen even though, on paper, they have the same pressure sensitivity: the cheap plasticy SP2 pen was probably holding it back. The textured nib on the new pen makes it feel so much more like you're drawing on a frictional surface rather than gliding over glass. The edges are still a problem where, in the outer 1.5 cm, the cursor starts lagging a ton behind where the pen actually is.
From what I've read from the Anandtech review, thermal issues have been resolved from the SP3 where CPU usage only brings it up to ~60 degrees Celcius (compared to 80+ degrees on SP3). In my own use, even running at 100% CPU, it's not that uncomfortable to handle. The fan, however, is about as loud as it's ever been.
One last thing I want to touch on is the incredible PCIe SSD that's in there. That thing is incredibly fast given that it's in a tablet. I can basically confirm Anandtech's CrystalMark bench that has the sequential read speed at 1500'ish MB/sec. My sequential write speed was a little slower than Anandtech's at 300'ish MB/s but my SP4 was already filled up to 45% so that might have affected the write speed. To put this into perspective, my SanDisk Extreme Pro 960 GB SATA SSD (admittedly kind of full at 75%), which is still one of the fastest consumer SATA SSDs, benched 275 MB/s for sequential read & write. Basically, this thing boots instantly and loads programs incredibly fast.
So, yeah, first impressions but I'm quite happy with what they've put out. I haven't tried any games on it yet since I'm still installing actual work-related stuff on it but I'll try some out later
). The screen looks amazing with its high resolution as well as vibrant but not oversaturated colours. The pen is much improved over the SP2's pen even though, on paper, they have the same pressure sensitivity: the cheap plasticy SP2 pen was probably holding it back. The textured nib on the new pen makes it feel so much more like you're drawing on a frictional surface rather than gliding over glass. The edges are still a problem where, in the outer 1.5 cm, the cursor starts lagging a ton behind where the pen actually is.From what I've read from the Anandtech review, thermal issues have been resolved from the SP3 where CPU usage only brings it up to ~60 degrees Celcius (compared to 80+ degrees on SP3). In my own use, even running at 100% CPU, it's not that uncomfortable to handle. The fan, however, is about as loud as it's ever been.
One last thing I want to touch on is the incredible PCIe SSD that's in there. That thing is incredibly fast given that it's in a tablet. I can basically confirm Anandtech's CrystalMark bench that has the sequential read speed at 1500'ish MB/sec. My sequential write speed was a little slower than Anandtech's at 300'ish MB/s but my SP4 was already filled up to 45% so that might have affected the write speed. To put this into perspective, my SanDisk Extreme Pro 960 GB SATA SSD (admittedly kind of full at 75%), which is still one of the fastest consumer SATA SSDs, benched 275 MB/s for sequential read & write. Basically, this thing boots instantly and loads programs incredibly fast.
So, yeah, first impressions but I'm quite happy with what they've put out. I haven't tried any games on it yet since I'm still installing actual work-related stuff on it but I'll try some out later
This is a channel that does games with the SP4 i5. I find it quite interesting to see how games do, as I intend on picking up a SP4 later this month.
https://www.youtube.com/user/josher14/videos
https://www.youtube.com/user/josher14/videos
Guardian Monkey
Member
I just have a normal surface 3 the non I version but has real Windows 10 for better battery but less power of course. Streams from steam desktop at 1080p @60 on ultra with no notible lag anywhere in house 
I know it probably can't do a lot standalone but anything that is mobile is always going to be crippled in some form.
I know it probably can't do a lot standalone but anything that is mobile is always going to be crippled in some form.Just checking in to say that I got my Surface Pro 4 Core i5, 256 GB, 8 GB RAM yesterday from Microsoft Store pre-order. Compared to the SP2 I have, it is so sleek. I really like the contrast between the metal matte case and the highly reflective Windows logo (which is already getting finger prints all over it
From what I've read from the Anandtech review, thermal issues have been resolved from the SP3 where CPU usage only brings it up to ~60 degrees Celcius (compared to 80+ degrees on SP3). In my own use, even running at 100% CPU, it's not that uncomfortable to handle. The fan, however, is about as loud as it's ever been.
One last thing I want to touch on is the incredible PCIe SSD that's in there. That thing is incredibly fast given that it's in a tablet. I can basically confirm Anandtech's CrystalMark bench that has the sequential read speed at 1500'ish MB/sec. My sequential write speed was a little slower than Anandtech's at 300'ish MB/s but my SP4 was already filled up to 45% so that might have affected the write speed. To put this into perspective, my SanDisk Extreme Pro 960 GB SATA SSD (admittedly kind of full at 75%), which is still one of the fastest consumer SATA SSDs, benched 275 MB/s for sequential read & write. Basically, this thing boots instantly and loads programs incredibly fast.
So, yeah, first impressions but I'm quite happy with what they've put out. I haven't tried any games on it yet since I'm still installing actual work-related stuff on it but I'll try some out later
Great impressions thanks. The pen thing you mentioned is HUGE to me. Gliding my pen over the surface pro 3's glass vs a piece of paper feels considerably different and my hand writing actually suffers because of it. Writing the same letters on the Pro 3 vs Paper turns out completely different because the paper has actual friction.
I just have a normal surface 3 the non I version but has real Windows 10 for better battery but less power of course. Streams from steam desktop at 1080p @60 on ultra with no notible lag anywhere in house
You'de be surprised cherry trail has pretty capable little integrated GPU. 5+ year old 3D games should run on low at 720p although I obviously haven't tested it myself. Go ahead and try something on it and let us know.
It's compatible with PC as a platform so I would have a hard time finding a reason it wouldn't. Obviously haven't tested it myself.
Roberto Larcos
Member
Looking through the GOG sale. Interested in The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky, Raiden 3, Rayman Origins, and the older Elder Scrolls games. Reckon there will run okay on lowest settings on an i3 SP3?
And would I be right in assuming that Saints Row: The Third is a complete no-go?
And would I be right in assuming that Saints Row: The Third is a complete no-go?
Philtastic
Member
Haven't tried much on my Surface Pro 4. I ended up having to exchange it because the keyboard port died. I just tried Diablo 3 and it's about what you'd expect the Intel 520 to do compared to the Intel 4400: I can run things at the same settings but bump up the resolution (ie. 1280x720p 16:9 on Surface Pro 2 -> 1440x900 16:10, a pixel increase of 40%) with a more consistent framerate (25-45 fps, tends to stay in the 30-35 range whereas the SP2 4400 would drop into the high 20's fairly often). The black bars at the top and bottom of the screen are fairly small using a 16:10 screen resolution (maybe lose about 1 cm on both sides).
Game looks great on the SP4 screen!
Game looks great on the SP4 screen!
That's great glad there's a clear performance bump
I posted most of this in the main SP4 but figure I might bump this thread with more detailed impressions. Got the i5 8GB.
DMC4 - Runs like butter at 720p, 2xMSAA, Max setting. Consistent 60fps during gameplay though cutscenes drop into the 50s. Could probably push the settings a little harder than that.
Ikaruga - Again, butter smooth, expect this time at native resolution. It's insanely crisp. God bless the Dreamcast. Also plays really nicely with just the keyboard cover, no controller needed. On the downside, whilst you'd think a tablet would be perfect for running the game in vertical mode, it's actually pretty cumbersome and not really worth the set up time.
Dark Souls - Don't even bother, game runs like pure ass, even after using DSfix to reduce the resolution and disable effects. Never even got close to 30fps and that was in an empty room in the Undead Burg. I shudder to think of what Blighttown would be like. From really did screw up this port.
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes - I was hoping this one would run well given how well optimised it's considered to be but looks like it's CPU limited. Getting a nice cinematic 24fps at a variety of graphical settings, including dropping everything to it's lowest. Drops to 20 during fire fights. A bit of a shame, given the game runs on last gen systems.
DMC4 - Runs like butter at 720p, 2xMSAA, Max setting. Consistent 60fps during gameplay though cutscenes drop into the 50s. Could probably push the settings a little harder than that.
Ikaruga - Again, butter smooth, expect this time at native resolution. It's insanely crisp. God bless the Dreamcast. Also plays really nicely with just the keyboard cover, no controller needed. On the downside, whilst you'd think a tablet would be perfect for running the game in vertical mode, it's actually pretty cumbersome and not really worth the set up time.
Dark Souls - Don't even bother, game runs like pure ass, even after using DSfix to reduce the resolution and disable effects. Never even got close to 30fps and that was in an empty room in the Undead Burg. I shudder to think of what Blighttown would be like. From really did screw up this port.
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes - I was hoping this one would run well given how well optimised it's considered to be but looks like it's CPU limited. Getting a nice cinematic 24fps at a variety of graphical settings, including dropping everything to it's lowest. Drops to 20 during fire fights. A bit of a shame, given the game runs on last gen systems.
A shame on those last two seems only the most optimized of ports run well on Intel HD graphics. Thanks for the impressions.
gAg CruSh3r
Member
Same here. I had high hopes for something better gaming wise with the SP4. Now I'm thinking getting a gaming PC laptop with a touchscreen. Any possible suggestions? Or something that can also go into a tablet? This stinks because I love the surface :/.
LukasTaves
Member
The i7 one should pack quite a bit more punch, due the higher speceed integrated gpu.
NinjaMouse
Member
For anyone here with a Surface Pro 4, have you tried running Metal Gear Rising? I can't seem to get it to launch. I wonder if it's something to do with Windows 10 or the wonky Intel HD520 graphics driver, but it just will not start. It should work, as far as I know, because there are youtube vids of people playing MGR on their Surface Pro 3.
Any advice?
Any advice?
Ok just tried out a couple more games.
The Binding of Isaac Rebirth - Contrary to what Tyrone at Nicalas would have you think with his recent coments, the game runs fine.
Darksiders - No options in this one to play around with other than resolution and v-sync (which doesn't even work). Thankfully this is not too much of an issue as at 720p the game runs over 30fps a vast majority of the time, though with occasional dips into the high 20s. Cutscenes run well over 500fps for some reason, which is kinda weird.
Edit: I'm starting to get the impression that this thing is about on par with a PS3/X360, which is pretty impressive, given the 15W TDP. The Achilles heel of course is of course software optimisation, which varies radically from title to title.
The Binding of Isaac Rebirth - Contrary to what Tyrone at Nicalas would have you think with his recent coments, the game runs fine.
Darksiders - No options in this one to play around with other than resolution and v-sync (which doesn't even work). Thankfully this is not too much of an issue as at 720p the game runs over 30fps a vast majority of the time, though with occasional dips into the high 20s. Cutscenes run well over 500fps for some reason, which is kinda weird.
Edit: I'm starting to get the impression that this thing is about on par with a PS3/X360, which is pretty impressive, given the 15W TDP. The Achilles heel of course is of course software optimisation, which varies radically from title to title.
I should probably add these to the OP at some point xP
Anyway thanks for the testing I wonder if the i7 is significantly better. The latest intel HD graphics in this system should be noticeably above the ps360 obviously the TDP and heat is what's holding it back.
troopershades
Neo Member
I only have SF4...would that help at all?
Edit:
I loaded up Fallout 4 on my surface book. It set everything to low but it runs and looks fine to me.. I only played about 15 minutes before class started. Decent frame rate. I'll get more details this week over the holiday.
RowdyReverb
Member
I'm also curious how LOTV runs.