The success of the Microsoft Surface has proved that there’s a market for tablets that can replace your laptop. We loved the Surface Pro 4 for its sharp screen, excellent Type Cover keyboard and precise Surface Pen – and it’s still the benchmark for Windows tablets today.
However, the Surface Pro 4 is not cheap. The Pro 4 starts at $899 (£749, AU$1,349), but configuring the tablet with a faster processor, more RAM and storage bumps the price up quite significantly. This doesn’t account for the extra money you’ll need to drop on the Type Cover and Surface Pen.
Acer, capitalizing on the premium price of the Surface Pro 4, has created a rival device called the Switch Alpha 12 that is significantly cheaper. With a starting price of $599 (£599, AU$780) which includes a keyboard, the Switch Alpha 12 is a Surface clone that most of us can afford. But is good enough to be a Surface alternative? Let’s find out.
Design and display
There’s no doubt the Acer Switch Alpha 12 was designed to look and feel like the Microsoft Surface. Both tablets have kickstands built in, a thin removable keyboard and support styluses. While Microsoft chose to make the Surface into a single slab of magnesium with aggressive angles, Acer chose to give its aluminum clad tablet rounded edges and a kickstand frame.
The kickstand features a ton of articulation so you can choose the most optimal screen angle. There’s a rubber strip on the bottom of the kickstand to stop the tablet from sliding around. Overall, the kickstand hinge is very sturdy and did not flex when using touching the screen.
The screen of the Switch Alpha 12 is slightly smaller than that of the Surface Pro 3, 12 inches vs 12.3 inches respectively. The Switch Alpha 12 also features more prominent bezels that are about an inch wide, which is good for holding the tablet without triggering the touch screen but they can be a bit of an eyesore compared to slim-bezeled devices out there.
As for resolution, the Switch Alpha 12 features a 2160 x 1440 LED backlit display that makes colors pop, offers deep blacks and gets very bright for outdoor use. Contrast isn’t as good as OLED panels but you wouldn’t expect an OLED display on a budget machine like this.
For reference, the Surface Pro 4 features a slightly higher 2,736 x 1,824 resolution, something you’re not likely to notice in day to day use as text, images and video are crisp on both machines. Both tablets feature a 3:2 aspect ratio that makes the tablets ideal for design work and reading.
Keyboard and stylus
To get the Switch Alpha 12 to be cheaper than the Surface, Acer had to cut costs somewhere. That somewhere turns out to be the keyboard. Typing on the magnetically attached keyboard is pretty bad, featuring a ton of flex, rattling keys and a small trackpad.
It’s a stark contrast to Microsoft’s excellent Type Cover, which features a quieter – but, not silent – typing experience due to its increased rigidity. However, you will have to fork over $129 (£110, AU$199) for a Type Cover for the Surface Pro 4, whereas it comes included with the Switch Alpha 12. Microsoft also offers a more expensive Type Cover with a fingerprint reader, something Acer doesn’t have.
Other quirks of Acer’s keyboard include small Page Up and Down buttons that are placed frustratingly close to the left and right arrow keys. This led to many mis-presses when trying to select text.
While Acer includes a keyboard with the Switch Alpha 12, you’ll need to fork over $50 (£30, about AU$ 67) for the Acer Active Stylus. The Active Stylus feels great in the hand and acts much like a normal pen. It features 256 levels of pressure sensitivity, which you’ll notice when using apps like Fresh Paint to create different brush strokes.
Compared to the Surface Pen, the Active Stylus lags behind in accuracy and sensitivity. The Surface Pen features 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity and less of a delay than Acer’s pen. This translates to a more natural feeling writing and drawing experience on the Surface Pro 4.
Acer does include a few handy tweaks in its software though, allowing you to hover over the screen to quickly launch apps like OneNote and Windows Journal.
The Active Stylus is a nice accessory to have if you plan on handwriting or using it for illustrations, but it’s by no means a necessity.
Bring your dongles
Like the Surface, the Switch Alpha 12 has a limited port selection. You get one USB-A sized port with 3.0 speeds, a microSD card reader and a single USB-C port. Where the Surface features a mini DisplayPort for connecting a monitor to without a dongle, you’ll have to bring your own USB-C adapters if you want to hook up the Switch Alpha 12 to an external monitor.
Liquid core
While the Switch might pull a lot of inspiration from Microsoft’s legendary tablet, it makes a statement for itself as the world’s first liquid cooled tablet.
Thanks to this cooling method, the Switch forgoes the cooling vents found on most other Core i-powered tablets while featuring a similar fanless design seen on the HP Spectre x2 and Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 700. However, as a trade off the Switch is also a denser and larger than most rival slates and other devices.
Acer’s 2-in-1 comes in relatively bulky 11.5” x 7.9” x 0.6” (29.21 x 20.06 x 1.52 cm; W x D x H) compared to the Surface Pro 4’s 11.5 x 7.93 x 0.33 inches (29.21 x 20.14 x 0.84 cm).
Compared to slim ultrabooks like the Apple MacBook Air, which comes in at 11.8 x 7.56 x 0.68 inches (32.5 x 22.7 x 1.7cm), the Switch Alpha is more compact and easier to transport. However, the convertible Asus Zenbook Flip UX360 is even thinner than the Switch Alpha 12, coming in at 12.71 x 8.66 x 0.54 inch (32.28 x 21.99 x 1.37 cm).
Performance and ports
In terms of value, the Acer Switch Alpha 12 offers a better value over the Surface Pro 4. The base Surface Pro 4 comes with an Intel Core m3, 128GB SSD, and 4GB of RAM for $899 (£749, AU$1,349). The base Switch Alpha 12 comes with an faster Intel Core i3, 128GB SSD 4GB of RAM, and keyboard for $599 (£599, AU$780).
Our test configuration comes in at $750 or AU$1,729, and in the UK the closest model comes with half the amount of storage for £749. A comparably configured Microsoft Surface costs $1,299 (£1,079, AU$1,999) before you add a Type Cover or Surface Pen. Acer definitely has the stronger value proposition here.
Although the Microsoft Surface is quite a bit more expensive, there’s something to be said about Microsoft’s build quality, better accessories and in-store support. If these things don’t matter to you, the Acer is a no-brainer.
Performance
In order for the Switch Alpha 12 to be a true productivity machine, Acer went with the Intel Core “i” series of processors instead of the lower powered, more battery efficient Core M. This means the Switch Alpha 12 can tackle just about everything you throw at it, except for gaming and video editing, which is no surprise since the tablet doesn’t have a dedicated GPU.
With Chrome and Firefox open with 10 tabs each, the Switch Alpha 12 had no issues keeping pace. The 8GB of RAM helped with keeping the browsing experience speedy and the SSD loaded apps quickly.
As you can see from the benchmarks, the Switch Alpha 12 is plenty capable, though it struggles with 3D graphics. Video editors and gamers should check out the Microsoft Surface Book instead, which features a dedicated graphics card in its keyboard.
I also used Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom with no issues. The apps loaded quickly and image exports were speedy as well.
Battery life
Another thing you’ll notice from the benchmarks is that battery life is pretty poor. The Switch Alpha 12 only managed 3 hours and 19 minutes in the PCMark 8 battery life test. I found this estimate to be spot on with my daily workload.
However, looping a 1080p movie locally resulted in a more impressive 6 hour and 29 minute battery life. But most people won’t have big movie files stored locally on the SSD. Once you start streaming anything, whether it be music or video, battery life drops significantly.
This is the Achilles heel of the Switch Alpha 12. The tablet is well designed, performs strongly and is a great value but its middling battery life will give many users pause, especially when there are alternatives that last a whole day away from the charger.
For comparison, the HP Spectre x360 lasted 4 hours and 38 minutes in the PCMark 8 battery test. Another convertible, the Asus Zenbook Flip UX360 managed 5 hours and 51 minutes in the same PCMark 8 battery test.
Stowaways
If you hate bloatware, you’re going to hate the Switch Alpha 12. To keep costs down, Acer has partnered with a ton of software makers to bundle their apps with the tablet. For example, Firefox, Dashlane, McAfee, Music Maker Jam, and WildTangent are all pre-installed.
Acer also includes its own apps with the tablet, some of which are useful – but most aren’t at all. The most useful software revolves around the stylus, letting you customize quick actions. There's also a blue light filter for reading at night, but the other apps Acer includes are either redundant or not useful.
If you decide to buy the Switch Alpha 12, set aside an hour or two to uninstall apps and clean up the operating system.
We liked
The Acer Switch Alpha 12 is an unabashed Microsoft Surface Clone, but it’s a very good one. For a fraction of the price, the Acer replicates the form factor and most important features of the Microsoft Surface. It’s aluminum body may not be as light or premium feeling as the Surface’s magnesium, but it’s hard to complain too much for the price.
Reading and watching movies on the Switch Alpha 12 are a pleasure because of its bright and vibrant screen. Its resolution is high enough that text always looks crisp, though you do trade battery life for such a pixel-dense display.
Multitaskers will be satisfied with the Switch Alpha 12’s performance and while its stylus is not as accurate or sensitive as the Surface Pen, most non-professionals likely won’t notice.
We disliked
Below average battery life makes the Acer Switch Alpha 12 hard to recommend for users who can’t be around an outlet constantly. For many, it may be a deal breaker.
While the Switch Alpha 12 is a good value compared to the Microsoft Surface Pro 4, you’ll notice cost cutting when it comes the to included keyboard. It’s noisy, flexes and its trackpad struggles with multitouch gestures. The Surface Type Cover is much better.
Lastly, Acer’s included bloatware ruins the unboxing experience, especially when McAfee starts hounding you to pay.
Final verdict
Want a Microsoft Surface Pro 4 but can’t justify its high price? The Acer Switch Alpha 12 is your best bet. It undercuts Microsoft’s offering by hundreds of smackers and manages to replicate its performance and features. However, battery life is short which will be a disappointment for many who aren’t around an outlet all the time.
But if you’re in the market for a tablet that can actually replace your laptop, the Switch Alpha 12 isn’t a bad choice. Its screen produces gorgeous colors and its high pixel count makes reading and watching movies a pleasure. Its includes speakers are a bit weak so you’ll want to use headphones.
Is the Switch Alpha 12 as good as the Microsoft Surface? No, but if you can live with its compromises, it’s a great deal. Just remember to bring your charger with you.
