Surface Pro 4

Richard Sands

Are there users here who run BricsCad on a Surface Pro?
I'm interested in one as a replacement for my aging but functional laptop.

Not into heavy 3D stuff, general Cad, and it would not replace my PC.
Actually probably get fairly light use in that area.
I would also hopr to run GIS and graphics programs.

Having used Android Samsung tablet with the S Pen I appreciate just what a delight such a device can be and can only imagine in Windows environs it should shine.
I assume there is a right click button or similar to end a command etc.

Not being able to see one live around my abode makes it a bit difficult to assess.
I have a neighbour with one but it's only an office document type use so limited to know what it could do.

Any comments appreciated thanks.

jlittle2

I use BricsCAD v 18 on my Surface 4. You do have to change things around a bit to use it to the best advantage right now, although I believe that Bricsys will take care of this realizing that Tablets are no longer in the future but here now. You need to change the Toolbar Icon sizes to Extra Large, so that you can see them, and you need to use a mouse to get around the interface. Neither of these have been a big problem for me, I just got a Bluetooth Mouse (no cords no dongle), and everything else works just fine. It will perform 2D without any performance issues, and will do 3D with a minor slowdown, but nothing major. BIM is a different matter.....things really get tough on 4 GB of memory, so you may not want to challenge the Surface with BIM, but otherwise, I am happy with it.

Lukas Fertig

I've been using Bricscad on my Surface Pro 4 for over a year now and often don't even bother to switch on the desktop computer anymore. I have the I7 version with 16 GB RAM. It handles all small to medium sized projects with ease. I mostly do interiors, events, fashion shows and a whole lot of furniture( this with an AutoCAD based Software though). Once scenes get bigger, layerstates, the structure manager and the isolation commands help to keep it running smoothly. I notice a bit of a delay opening the BIM structure tree compared to my desktop, and when importing polygon-heavy blocks for interior furnishing you can easily choke the little machine. Other than that it handles pretty much everything i throw at it (rhino/grasshopper definitions, rendering smaller scenes in vray). Im still trying though, to set up a good BIM workflow that lets me break down building levels and rooms into xrefs, so bigger projects become more workable.

Concerning 2D use, I've received drawings from clients that brought it to a screeching halt: These were mostly floorplans of convention centers with extensive grass/carpet type hatch areas that were exploded on export from the original software. Also buildings floorplans/elevations with exploded dimensions or enormous amounts of individual unnamed blocks (windows/doors/etc), in short: anything that brings in large amounts of individual objects.

All in all its a solid machine, boots fast, has relatively good battery life and is super portable. The screen feels tiny at first, but once you get used to it its pretty good. Without the keyboard its a powerful tablet and using available sketching and photo editing apps and programs you can set up a good design workflow.

Hope this helps you a bit.

Best regards,
Lukas

Richard Sands

Thanks for the comments.
Sorry, I missed these responses.
I ended up getting an HP Spectre x360 i7, 8gb ram, SSD.
It's effortless with Cad, 2d, don't BIM, but handles 300 mb aerial images.
I liked the Surface Pro features, performance etc, but was swayed to the HP by its extra ports, keyboard which whilst it's attached isn't an issue for me.

Yes minute icons but I recently learnt from another post how to handle that.

I haven't made a plunge to sole use, but really appreciate the value of only one device.
Maybe too stuck in old ways, PC is best!!

Regards