Didn’t we all, at some point, dream of a device like the Surface Studio? A designer device with a great display, perfect size, unparalleled inking and a completely new peripheral: the Surface Dial. As it is perfect for creative work and high-level brainstorming, we just had to try CollaBoard on it. Here is how it went.
The Ultimate Designer Device by Microsoft
The Surface Studio is the ultimate designer device. Thanks to its superior inking capabilities with very low latency, drawing and sketching on it feels as smooth as on paper. What’s more, the Surface Studio can be adjusted in a variety of positions, up to 20 degrees, to be used exactly as a drawing board. Also, it comes with the Surface Dial, a completely innovative input device allowing users to simply do more, better.
The Dial leverages haptic feedback to provide a great user experience. Each movement produces a vibration feedback which lets the user be even more precise, as with a smartphone or a joystick. The only drawback is that the Dial does not stick very well when either its base or the screen are dirty. To avoid this, make sure to regularly clean the display with the provided cloth, and the base of the Dial with tape or a lint roller.
The Surface Studio is also only 13 mm thick, perfect to be conveniently carried around in a portfolio case.
Hands-On: CollaBoard on Surface Studio
CollaBoard supports the Surface Dial since the latter launched in late 2016. Still, we just couldn’t wait to leverage all the Dial’s capabilities on the Surface Studio. The user experience is smooth and quick. The best part is the possibility to ink in CollaBoard with one hand while using the Dial with the other.
As the Dial is much more than a simple mouse, it works in synergy with inking on the Surface Studio. Try adding some images in CollaBoard with the Dial as you write a text with the digital pen. Or check your sources by loading a PDF as you add notes to a presentation in CollaBoard. Or load a number of files and rapidly ink on them, as they appear, to categorize them, and so on. There is no quicker way to get work done.
Be Creative, Now
When we think about creativity, we typically imagine some magical process. Yet, being creative means being able to see patterns and apply lateral thinking. This is the process at the root of innovation: thinking outside the box.
The best way to use CollaBoard on Surface Studio is to create a high-level overview of projects and their road-blockers. Then, brainstorm for creative solutions. As you ink and use the Dial to jot down your notes as quickly as you think, your mind will become clearer.
Complete your overview and stop for a minute to look at the whole picture. Then, start thinking about it, first on a general level, then on a deeper level, and the ideas will flow. Also, using both hands on the Surface Studio involves both brain hemispheres in your creative process.
Have you tried CollaBoard on the Surface Studio? Let us know!