Surface Pro 3- i5 vs i7 for virtual machines?

[racerrex9727]

I am thinking of getting a Surface Pro 3. Considering support for Linux (particularly Ubunut/Linux Mint) is not perfect yet particularly with keyboard support, I figured I can buy a Surface Pro 3 with very high specs (i5/i7 with 8GB of RAM) and run Linux as a virtual machine.

I primarily want to run Ubuntu or Linux Mint as a virtual machine and of course have Windows 8.1 as the host (the native OS for the Surface Pro 3). Should I get an i5 or i7 configuration if virtual machines are my main concern? I use VirtualBox currently for my VMs.

 

[viewtyjoe]

The i7 is going to offer more logical cores and possibly better virtualization support, I'm not 100% on that last one because I forget which processors do and don't have all the Intel doodads turned on.

 

[rhysiam]

This question grabbed my attention as I have just done exactly what you're describing on my Surface Pro 3. I ended up with the i5 8GB/256GB model. Used VirtualBox to boot to a Mythbuntu (based on Ubuntu 14.04). It works amazingly well. I was a bit stunned to find that enabling the 3D Acceleration in VirtualBox even exposed the OpenGL options in MythTV to enable hardware accelerated video playback. The virtual machine is handling 1080p blueray rips at the native SurfacePro resolution with hardly a dropped frame.

You definitely want the 8GB model as a minimum. I wouldn't be trying to run VMs of 4GB RAM. In terms of the i7 model, with the options 512GB SSD, it really depends on what you'll be doing with the virtual machine and whether you need the extra performance or storage. If it's just for basic tasks, the i5 is plenty IMHO. You can always add a quality USB3 pen drive, external HDD or SSD if you need extra space, which would be waaaaay cheaper than the massive markup MS adds for the 512GB model.

Hope these experiences and suggestions/thoughts are helpful.

 

[racerrex9727]

This question grabbed my attention as I have just done exactly what you're describing on my Surface Pro 3. I ended up with the i5 8GB/256GB model. Used VirtualBox to boot to a Mythbuntu (based on Ubuntu 14.04). It works amazingly well. I was a bit stunned to find that enabling the 3D Acceleration in VirtualBox even exposed the OpenGL options in MythTV to enable hardware accelerated video playback. The virtual machine is handling 1080p blueray rips at the native SurfacePro resolution with hardly a dropped frame.

You definitely want the 8GB model as a minimum. I wouldn't be trying to run VMs of 4GB RAM. In terms of the i7 model, with the options 512GB SSD, it really depends on what you'll be doing with the virtual machine and whether you need the extra performance or storage. If it's just for basic tasks, the i5 is plenty IMHO. You can always add a quality USB3 pen drive, external HDD or SSD if you need extra space, which would be waaaaay cheaper than the massive markup MS adds for the 512GB model.

Hope these experiences and suggestions/thoughts are helpful.

That is damned impressive. I was kind of hoping the i5 would be enough. The heaviest task I would ever consider throwing at Ubuntu much less a VM of Ubuntu is multimedia conversion. I was look at that exact same model. I'm an enterprise developer and not an extreme gamer or someone running more than one VM at once (I may do two if I'm messing around with security and white hat hacking). This is very helpful, thanks!

 

[rhysiam]

Glad it could help.

Media conversion would definitely go faster with an i7 over an i5, but it will work fine with either. Depends whether it's worth it to you to pay the extra $$s to have an encode finish a little faster.

Make sure you install the guest additions on the VM, as that does make a difference. I also found I needed to reprogram a few of the shortcut keys as VirtualBox has many of these linked to RightCTRL, which the Surface Pro keyboard doesn't have. I should also say that I've only used it with the keyboard attached (Type cover), I suspect it would be a nightmare trying to use the onscreen keyboard with a windowed virtual machine. Otherwise, it all worked seamlessly for me.

Good luck.

 

[racerrex9727]

Glad it could help.

Media conversion would definitely go faster with an i7 over an i5, but it will work fine with either. Depends whether it's worth it to you to pay the extra $$s to have an encode finish a little faster.

Make sure you install the guest additions on the VM, as that does make a difference. You'll also need to reprogram a few of the shortcut keys as VirtualBox has many of these linked to RightCTRL, which the Surface Pro keyboard doesn't have. I only done it with the keyboard attached (Type cover), I suspect it would be a nightmare trying to use the onscreen keyboard with a windowed virtual machine. Otherwise, it all worked seamlessly for me.

Good luck.

Of course! I have no intention of using Linux without the Type cover lol. And with multimedia conversion, I usually throw those tasks at an old desktop or laptop. But thank you this was extremely helpful and I'll head to the mall this weekend to pick one up.

 

[9933]

Just wanted to say that I have great success running VirtualBox with linux Mint 14 and Windows XP virtual machines. I only have the i3 processor. I initially purchased the i7, but the thermal cpu throttling was so bad that I took it back and got the i3. I do not notice a real world performance difference between the i3 and the i7.

I use a 64gb ADATA USB 3.0 flash drive for extra storage (even run the XP virtual machine off of it).

I do wish I could have purchased more memory. I often have lots of applications running at the same time, and more memory would likely have a positive impact in switching apps and letting the virtual machines run with more memory.

But as far as the processor goes, the i7 (and likely the i5) is a waste of money, in my experience. The only thing that would really increase performance is memory, and even that is going to be dependent on what you are trying to do.

 

[9933]

Duped post.

 

[MyDocuments]

See my answer in this related thread http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/answers/id-2314409/questions-mobile-chips-surface-pro.html#15134085 on how the i5 and i7 stack-up against each other.

Due to the 8Mb memory model starting with the i5 processor and larger memory is normally the best option for virtual machine use-cases, I'd say your starting choice is clear.

Clearly from my previous answer on the subject and given this use-case, I think the i5-8Mb RAM (256Mb storage) is the sweet spot.

 

[IamThePilot]

Honestly why you would run VBox on Windows? That's like buying a Lambo and putting kerosene in the tank instead of 100LL. You will be far better served by OS X (Unix) on any Mac. Add LibreOffice or OpenOffice and skip the 500$ for MS office. Plus, in 5 or 10 years the product will still be working. My '08 MacBooks run great, as does my '12 retina and 2 iMacs. Never had a single failure. One way or another you'll find yourself in Mac Land if you want serious performance.

 

[USAFRet]

Honestly why you would run VBox on Windows? That's like buying a Lambo and putting kerosene in the tank instead of 100LL. You will be far better served by OS X (Unix) on any Mac. Add LibreOffice or OpenOffice and skip the 500$ for MS office. Plus, in 5 or 10 years the product will still be working. My '08 MacBooks run great, as does my '12 retina and 2 iMacs. Never had a single failure. One way or another you'll find yourself in Mac Land if you want serious performance.

OK...can we lose the Mac fanboyism on a several month old thread?
Not everyone wants OSX as the primary OS. Like me.

I run VirtualBox on a Win 8 host system just fine. Couple flavors of Linux, Windows Server 2012, etc, etc...
(this on a system almost 3 years old now)

 

[9933]

Some updates after using the Pro 3 for a few more weeks: If you are using the Pro 3 as a mobile tablet, but still do most of your real work at a desktop, then I think the i3 is more than enough. I love having it in the car for finding directions or research on the go (just like a phone but without a zoolander-sized screen). I like having it when I go out of town and need to work remotely for a few days (because it does give me full power, including VMs that I need to connect to clients and for OS-specific tools).

I think I agree with MyDouments, that if you are going to try and use the Pro 3 for a full time desktop replacement, then the i5/8gig model is probably more appropriate.

Personally, I think trying to do "real" work on any tablet-sized machine for a prolonged amount of time is going to be a painful (ergonomically) and frustratingly slow experience. It will depend on the job at hand, but be sure to take an honest look at how much time you will actually be using the device for different tasks. If you are going to be doing a lot of typing/editing/multiple windows, for long periods of time (programming? web design? even just lots of email? remote admin?), then you might want to consider something bigger (or you'll always be carrying around a second monitor and maybe a keyboard and mouse). The cost of shipping your full-sized desktop might easily be made up in the added productivity, if you're going to be working a lot.

For me, the Pro 3 is the best hardware design available on the market. Except the rear camera sucks all the way to uselessness. It is still my biggest gripe after the limited hardware configuration options and i7 performance sham. Oh, to be able to use this thing for e-deposit or scanning receipts (you can't, the camera sucks that bad)!

But would I rather have a Mac? No. I think the Mac-troll was implying that LibreOffice or OpenOffice were only available for OS X (they're not, I use them on Windows and linux), and that Apple makes more reliable products. They don't:

https://arogatechnologies.wordpress.com/2013/07/19/the-apple-reliability-myth/