With prices starting at £1,500, this isn't a casual purchase – but with its detachable screen, this could be the best Windows 10 power-user laptop going

excellent keyboard; great trackpad; brilliant screen; great stylus; 9-hour battery; fancy hinge; great 2-in-1 compromise; USB A; full-sized SD and USB-C; Windows Hello; Surface Dial support; 8th generation Core i7 chips; discrete GPU

Windows still has tablet app gap; very expensive; relatively heavy; still a bit of play in the hinge; no Thunderbolt 3

The Microsoft Surface Book 2, just like the generation, is a laptop possessed of a unique set of capabilities. It's fast and powerful enough to game on, you can comfortably run any application you care to think of on it and the display is good enough for professional-level photo editing,...

Incredibly versatile and powerful; Good battery life considering the power; Compact and portable

Pricey; Base model isn't worth considering

Reviewing the Microsoft Surface Book 2 is like putting on a pair of comfortable old slippers – that aaahhh feeling of familiarity and comfort as you slip into them. Ray Shaw [email protected] has a passion for IT ever since building his first computer in 1980.

It is unique; for what it is it is nealy perfect

Wish it had Thunderbolt 3

I got the surface book 2 in February, the computer is amazing. From gaming to photo editing. Its a tablet when it needs to be, such as entertainment on a long flight. Its a laptop when working. JB online also made it very easy, thanks again

After a somewhat shaky start (excuse the pun), Microsoft's Surface Book has found its stride. The new and improved Book 2 retains all that was good about the original - including beautiful design, a versatile Clipboard and an excellent keyboard and trackpad - while introducing a handful of...

Beautiful design; Clipboard works a treat; Excellent keyboard and trackpad; Gorgeous 3:2 PixelSense display; Chart-topping battery life; Fanless base specification; Good range of accessories

Doesn't support Thunderbolt 3; Surface Pen not included

The computing device ecosystem, the stage we are at right now, is not exactly headed in one simple direction. There is demand for ultraportable devices which are convenient to carry around. Some users prefer the hybrid model, which gives the flexibility between a laptop and a tablet.

2015 seems to have been a turning point for Microsoft's Surface hardware initiative. Despite the failure of Windows RT and the associated Surface RT, the Intel-powered Surface was beginning to gain some real traction and notoriety with the Surface Pro 3 in late 2014, but was still fairly niche.

Microsoft have been striving to present a stark alternative to Apple's coffee-shop-ubiquitous Macbook line for a while now. In the past, their Surface range of (mostly) hybrid laptops/tablets have hardly been gaming machines, but that's now changed with current range-topper, the shockingly expensive...

Like its larger sibling, the Microsoft Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch) is an excellent device, and one of the most powerful 2-in-1 devices we've tested. It has a premium design, excellent features and is a great showcase for Windows 10 - though it comes at a price.

Very good battery life; Powerful; Feels great to use as a tablet; Fanless design

Very expensive; Not as powerful as 15-inch model; No Surface Pen included

The Surface Book was an odd fish in a sea of 2-in-1 Surface wannabes. It was Microsoft's first attempt at building a proper laptop and it was good if a tad expensive. Now that the Surface Laptop is here, you might have forgiven Microsoft for conveniently shelving its ambitious detachable and...