Microsoft Surface Go: First impressions

The Surface Go, along with the Type Cover and Surface Pen

This is the higher-specced Surface Go with 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM.

The box is enough to protect the tablet in transit, easy to open, and easy to recycle once it has done its job.

Not the best fitment between the display and metal chassis I've seen.

Rear of the Surface Go, showing the kickstand.

Despite the magnesium chassis, the Surface Go feels flimsier than the Fire HD tablet, which makes use of a plastic chassis.

This is where they keyboard attaches.

The kickstand is nice, and makes the Surface Go a lappable device, but it is a bit wobbly.

It is nice to have a kickstand that works at any angle.

Yes, there are physical buttons on the Surface Go.

The fit-and-finish feels a bit poor, even given the cheap price.

The display is magnificent. No complaints from me there.

Since typing on the screen is a bit hit-and-miss, this is a must for anyone pounding out words on the Surface Go.

The Type Cover and Surface Go come together nicely.

This is a nicely engineered keyboard that's an absolute joy to use.

The Surface Go comes with a beefy charger.

The connector on the charger feels cheap and flimsy and I worry about long-term durability.

Unwrapping the Surface Pen.

Beautifully engineered. The overall finish and aesthetics feel much better than that of the Surface Go itself.

I don't like the face that the Surface Pen requires a disposable AAAA battery.

The Surface Pen is a joy to use. I see this as a must-have accessory for the Surface Go.

The Type Cover connects well to the Surface Go, and feels secure both in use and when moving the device about.

No, the keyboard doesn't fall off if you pick the tablet up. This is nice.

The charging port is conveniently placed on the side of the Surface Go.

I did find that it was possible to easily dislodge the charging connector by moving the tablet or cable, which is something to bear in mind during use. Also, the plastic nature of the connector gives me concern relating to durability.

The finish of the Type Cover does collect a lot of dirt and debris very quickly.

That said, it does look nice too.

Yes, even a headphone jack!

There's a lot of rattle from the buttons, and they feel vague and imprecise.

No complaints about the rear camera, except the fit-and-finish between the camera strip and the chassis is poor.

Little touches like a magnetic attachment point for the pen is nice (although, this does seem like a good way to end up losing the pen!).

Right out of the box and the kicksand has a wobble, which adds to the cheap feel.