For the purposes of this post, I'm going to refer to the 2017 Surface Pro as the Surface Pro 4.5 or Pro 4.5 or just 4.5.  I get the marketing behind Microsoft not naming their new computer Surface Pro 5 and for the most part, it's not an issue.  However, when talking to people about it, it does get confusing with the original Surface Pro (mine is still running by the way).

I've been using the Surface Pro 3 for about 3 years and it's still a solid machine.  It has served me well and I didn't feel the urgency to upgrade like I did with the original Surface Pro.  This time, I did not pre-order the Surface Pro 4.5.  I waited a couple of months.

I physically went into the store and I'm glad I did, turns out there is a business bundle. 

The business bundle is not available online and is not mentioned anywhere.  If you're planning on a Surface Pro purchase, you should definitely consider one of the bundles.

There are a couple variants of the business bundle.  I opted for the one that included the keyboard and the "Business Complete" support package.  The important part of the bundle is the "Business Complete" component.

Microsoft's "Complete" packages include their replacement programs.  If my Surface is damaged in any way, Microsoft will replace it.  The standard Complete has a $50 deductible, with the business version you don't pay anything for a replacement.  And the business bundle includes 2 replacements in 3 years as opposed to 1 replacement in 2 years.

Is the replacement plan worth it. Yes. 

I consider myself pretty meticulous with the care of any of my belongings.  So with something I rely on as much as the Surface, I'm especially careful.  But accident's happen and it slipped out of my bag one day.

As luck would have it (said with sarcasm), it landed on the corner, cracked the screen and bent the casing.  A quick trip to the Microsoft Store and they replaced it with a refurbished unit for $50.

The packaging looks great.  Very different from the Pro 3.  The Pro 3 was mostly plastic.  Slick looking but with all the plastic, I would imagine not a environmentally friendly.  The new packaging for the 4.5 was pretty standard.  Slide cover box with info and graphics.

The bundle included either the Alcantara signature keyboard or the type cover with fingerprint reader. I opted for the keyboard with fingerprint reader.  The added fingerprint reader was worth more to me than the Alcantrara covering.

I've been using the 4.5 for a month or so now.  I like it.  The upgrades are subtle but appreciated.  So far, I've done a good amount of writing, some video watching and photo editing.

The battery last's much longer.  Very noticeable when doing photo editing and watching videos.  I used to have to charge the battery after 4 hours or so (I usually charge the battery to about 80-90% and don't run it down past 20%).  I've noticed I now get almost 6-7 hours doing similar work.

Another big difference is the heat.  The 4.5 runs much cooler, which is good since it doesn't have a fan.  Even at it's hottest, it still feels cooler than the Pro 3.

The screen and processing power don't seem to be much different.

The keyboard (Pro 4 Type Cover with fingerprint reader) differs from the older Pro 3 Type cover.  The Pro 4 has island style keys.  Meaning it has spaces between the keys.  It took a couple hours typing with it to get use to the spacing of the keys.

The Pro 4 keyboard sounds much more substantial.  It has more of a thud when you hit the keys.  The Pro 3 was more of a click.  I do notice a squeak sometimes with the Pro 4 keyboard.  The back light is better with the Pro 4 type cover.

The fingerprint reader is a great addition.  It was easy to train and makes logging in faster.  It reads quickly and accurately most of the time.  If I've just washed my hands, the fingerprint reader seems to misread.

The track pad has a much smoother feel on the Pro 4 keyboard.

I do seem to lose Bluetooth connectivity to my mouse (an HP x4000b) quite often.  Haven't figured out what's causing that yet.

The capacitative Windows button is no longer on the screen.  That works for me as I would, on occasion, accidentally touch that button while sketching.

The most disorienting change was the relocation of the volume button from the side of the Surface to the top.  It's disorienting because 1) I got use to it being on the side with the Pro 3 and 2) when it was on the side the on screen volume indicator matched the direction of the volume rocker button: louder was up and softer was down.  Now, louder is left and softer is right but the volume indicator still shows louder/softer as up and down.  

Haven't gotten too much time in with the pen yet. 

Please share your experiences, thoughts or questions about the Surface Pro 4.5 in the comments below.

I decided to start construction of the model with the wood stand.  The assembled stand is pictured to the left.

From my understanding, the wood stand that is included with the model is of the more traditional configuration. 

The other version I've commonly seen looks a bit like the Blair Witch stick figure.

I decided not to glue the stand together so the stand could be disassembled when the armor was stored.  This is also a traditional aspect of wood stands.

You can read more about the construction of the stand in my build diary on the  ModelSpace Forum.

The stand provided with the model includes a nice heavy wood base that provides enough weight to counterbalance the armor.

For my own full size armor designs, I originally used a fiberglass mannequin. However, shipping a mannequin, even just a torso was size and budget restrictive. 

When I started to travel and show my armor designs at expos, I had to rethink my stand design.  That became a project of its own.

I ended up custom making stands. I used PVC pipe as it was readily available and easy to work with.  I could also easily make a stand that could be disassembled for shipping or storage.

My travel stand for full body armor was based around an inflatable mannequin torso with the PVC frame.

The inflatable mannequin provided the bulk to fill out the do (torso) armor but was light weight and portable.  The PVC frame would handle the weight of the armor.

Based on my experience with this model, I'm considering a configuration closer to a more traditional stand.

One of the tricks however, would be avoiding a heavy base in favor of one that is lightweight but could still provide stability.

Please share any thoughts or ideas you have about the design of armor stands in the comments below.