Since the Surface Pro 3 hit the market, Microsoft seems to have turned a corner in terms of how much customers appreciate its Surface range of hybrid tablets.  Both the Surface Pro 3 and the cheaper Surface 3 have been getting fairly good reviews and consistently selling well.

Late last year we saw the release of the Surface Pro 4 and Microsoft’s dream machine the Surface Book, both of which seem to be doing well. If Microsoft can take anything from the last two years it’s that the Surface brand instills customers with confidence, and perhaps it’s not surprising people are talking about Microsoft moving phones into the Surface range of devices.

At the same time people seem to love their hybrids. A recent survey compiled by J.D. Power shows that customer satisfaction with hybrids was very high, 11 points higher than that of laptops. Hybrids, it seems, are in fashion, so don’t be surprised to see more of them appearing on the market.

Even though Apple recently recorded its first quarterly decline in revenue and sales in 13 years, the company is, according to the survey, still keeping its customers satisfied. Apple pips Microsoft by one point in terms of customer satisfaction, but what is also interesting is that hybrids such as the Surface Pro range and the iPad Pro are the devices with which customers are most pleased.

Perhaps it will take some time before consumers are more turned on by a Microsoft mobile device than one made by the traditionally a la mode, and until recently, always iconoclastic Apple. Microsoft has not just created a thing of beauty in its later Surface tablets, but with Windows 10 running as the OS you have pretty much the power of a desktop computer. If size is not that important to you, and cost not a problem, then a move to a hybrid might just work out.

Attempting to explain this sudden consumer joy concerning the hybrid, Kirk Parsons, senior director and technology, media & telecom practice leader at J.D. Power, said, “Increasing the number of activities that can be done on a single device has a positive impact on the overall user experience,” adding that the experiences of customers has generally been good, while the power and performance of hybrids is not letting people down.

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