I’ve been an avid iPad user for 30 months and counting. I still love and use my Pad a lot, but I also bought a new Surface RT. Will my Surface ever completely replace my iPad? I don’t know yet, but I’d love to find out. This blog series is aimed at comparing the two devices in all sorts of situations, from work to home, and analyzing the pros and cons of each. You can read other entries in the series using the links below.
- From iPad to Surface:
- Bonus Post: You Want to Buy a Surface, but What is Windows RT?
- Bonus Post: Developing Apps for Microsoft Surface, Windows 8, Windows RT and Windows Phone 8
- Bonus Page: Infragistics NetAdvantage for Windows UI – Developer Controls for Windows 8 & Windows RT
Default Orientation
There is a fundamental difference between the iPad and the Surface. Look at these two device shots and tell me if you can see what this difference is:
Notice the location of the Home / Start buttons? That’s right. Apple designed the iPad primarily to be used in Portrait mode, whereas Microsoft designed the Surface as a Landscape device. Sure, both devices support both orientations, but the placement of that Home / Start button speaks volumes.
The iPad features a 4:3 screen ratio. It seems old school given it’s the old pre-HD TV format, but it’s also the same aspect ratio as a standard sheet of paper or a book, things we’re all very familiar with. This aspect ratio choice was actually quite smart because it feels natural to us in both Landscape (TV) and Portrait (book) mode.
The Surface screen has a 16:9 ratio. It’s ideal for watching movies, and the Start screen shines with its Live Tiles and horizontal scrolling in Landscape mode. Switch to Portrait mode and the Start screen will immediately feel “odd”, the screen just feels too narrow & tall. Landscape is clearly the default orientation on Surface. In fact, many popular apps don’t even support Portrait mode (yet), including USA Today, NBC News, ABC News, Engadget, and many others. Even the first-party Xbox Gaming Hub doesn’t work in Portrait mode.
Which orientation is best? None really (at first). Here are common typical scenarios for each mode:
- Portrait: Reading, Web Surfing, reading/writing email, reviewing documents, etc.
- Landscape: Watching TV/movies, browsing folders & emails, master/detail navigation, etc.
Email is a toss-up. Reading / writing individual emails feels better in Portrait mode, but Landscape can show you multiple folders or the email list. In fact, any notion of master list / detail view works better in Landscape mode.
So why do we care about which might be best? My personal answer is simple: Typing.
Typing in Landscape vs. Portrait Mode
The Surface is designed around landscape mode because it runs Windows RT, Windows 8’s sibling. Since desktop and laptop computers running Windows 8 all use landscape screens, it made sense to design a landscape-friendly ecosystem. This is also why virtually every marketing photo of the Surface shows the TypeCover attached to it. The Surface is a tablet, but it definitely shines as a replacement for a netbook, Ultrabook or a cheap laptop.
Sooner or later, you’ll want to do some real typing on your tablet. Whether it’s for email, document editing, or tweeting, tablets are productivity devices that feature many apps that require typing. The three primary positions for typing on a tablet are:
- Tablet propped-up at an angle with an attached keyboard, typing as you would on a laptop, whether the tablet is on a desk or on your lap. The keyboard covers & kickstand on the Surface make this scenario really easy. You can do this on the iPad too with the help of third-party keyboards like the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover. In this scenario, the tablet is almost always in landscape mode.
- Tablet lying flat on a table or lap where the user types with an on-screen keyboard. The Surface supports this well, and the iPad makes it even easier with the smart cover you can fold into a triangle to prop-up the iPad at a slight angle. Landscape mode also works well here since the keyboard will be bigger and easier to use. Portrait mode is still usable if you prefer.
- Tablet in your hands, usually when standing, sitting on a couch, or lying in bed. While you can technically hold the tablet with one hand and single-finger your way through your text with the other, tablet-typing is best done with hands holding both sides and typing with your thumbs.
This third scenario is the one that bugs me on Surface. Here’s why. Look at the iPad when typing in Portrait:
The blue overlays represent the average keyboard coverage with your thumbs when holding an iPad with both hands. This shows how easy it is to type when holding the tablet up. Now, when typing on a Surface, this is the default experience:
In landscape mode, the full keyboard is way too big for two-thumb typing. My thumbs can barely reach the letters e-d-c on the left and p-l-comma on the right. That leaves a huge space in the middle completely unreachable without moving one hand.
There is an alternative using the split keyboard:
However I just cannot get used to this mode. I’ve tried, time and time again, and I just can’t feel comfortable with this split keyboard. Is it just me? Have you tried it? Do you like it?
What’s wrong with Portrait mode then?
“Nick, stop complaining and use your Surface in portrait mode then.”
I wish I could. The problem first of all is that awkward feeling you get when holding the Surface vertically. It’s just too tall. Maybe lawyers will love it since they love legal-size paper, but it just feels weird to me. I had the same feeling when I started using an Asus Transformer Android tablet and I tried to type in portrait mode on it too. It just doesn’t feel right.
The other problem is how most Windows Store apps are primarily designed to be used in landscape mode, since that’s the “default experience” on Surface and in Windows 8. While many apps don’t even support portrait mode, others do support it but don’t support it well. I’ve observed that some apps made an effort to redesign the functionality when in portrait mode, but in doing so, they are providing fewer features or a lesser experience. Tweetro is one such example.
On an iPad, I can read & type emails in portrait mode really fast, and with a simple left-to-right thumb gesture, I can reveal the email list from the edge to select another email. On Surface, I am forced to tap a small arrow at the very top-left to go back to the email list. There are dozens of little details like this here and there that cheapen the Surface experience when used in portrait mode.
I want those annoyances to go away. I want better portrait apps on Surface.
Summary: Calling all developers
The lack of proper portrait mode typing on the Surface is a show-stopper for me. This is why I find myself reaching for my iPad when I go through emails in the morning or at night in bed, and also when I’m comfortably tweeting from my couch or when working out on my elliptical in my basement.
Some people will be just fine with the landscape-first experience on Surface, but I think it’s fair to say that some others will be put off like I am. There is still hope for the Surface to be a portrait-friendly tablet, but it’ll require extra attention from all Surface developers to offer a premium experience in both orientation. If you’re a developer and you prefer landscape mode, don’t just design the app for yourself, think of all the other users that will try your app. The more inclusive you are, the more popular your app will be. This includes Microsoft too, starting with much needed changes in the highly disappointing Mail app.
Bottom line: Resolution-awareness is not a checklist feature, it’s an entirely different user experience. Design your app with this in mind.
If you have any questions about Surface, including suggestions for future topics to explore in this series, questions about my experiences with the Surface vs. iPad, or any other tablet, feel free to ask them in the comments section below, or contact me on Twitter at @ActiveNick.
If you’re a developer interested in building apps for Surface, Windows 8 and Windows RT, Infragistics has the right tools for you with the new NetAdvantage for Windows UI. You should also follow @infragistics on Twitter.
Did you buy a Surface or other Windows RT tablet? Are you waiting for the Windows 8 Pro tablets? What are some of the key apps you want to see on Surface? When using a tablet, do you find yourself more often in landscape mode or portrait mode?
Let me know.