NOVEMBER 2019 PCWorld 9After years of ignoring USB-C, it’s sort of
hard to believe Microsoft jumped into it with
both feet, but it certainly did. Three ports
that you’d expect to see in a Surface—the
USB-A port, the microSD slot squirreled
away under the kickstand, and the
headphone jack—have all disappeared. It’s a
plus for all those who have made the leap to
Bluetooth earbuds, but ditching so many
legacy ports so quickly is disconcerting.
On the plus side, one of the understated
features of the design is Microsoft’s ability to
squeeze a 13-inch, 2880 x 1920 display into
what it calls a 12-inch chassis. (The tablet
measures 11.3 x 8.2 x 0.28 inches, slightly
smaller than the Surface Pro 7.) The bezels are
extremely thin. One of the Surface family’s
signature features is a bright, pixel-richlive in the bottom of my
backpack. A safe, secure
place to store a digital
pen is absolutely worth
applause, though I’m a
teeny bit concerned that
it will vampirically steal
away power from the
Surface device, which I
consider more of a
priority. Securing the pen
has been a problem
that’s demanded a
solution for years. While
Dell’s Inspiron 7000
Black Edition laptops (go.
pcworld.com/dlbl) got there first, Microsoft
earns second place for the Surface Pro X.
The Slim Pen is flattish, rather than
perfectly cylindrical as the regular Surface Pen
is. It felt comfortable in the hand and inks with
4,096 levels of pressure, which is pretty
standard for competitive styluses. The stylus is
apparently not compatible with the recently
announced Universal Stylus Initiative,
unfortunately, although it is usable with other
Surface devices. It’s a whopping $145 (go.
pcworld.com/w145), though.
Equally appreciated: not one but two
USB-C slots on the left side of the tablet.
Microsoft will still use the Surface Connector
to power the tablet, but it sounds like USB-C
might be an option in a pinch. Each port can
supply 15W of power.
Microsoft’s Surface Pro X reveals a pair of USB-C ports on the side.