Surface Pro 11 OLED vs IPS

Best Buy IPS model:howl.me/cmBf0a...
Best Buy OLED model:howl.me/cmvuR5...
Surface Pro Keyboard:howl.me/cmvuTv...
Here is my first comparison of the Microsoft Surface Pro 11 IPS display vs. the OLED model.
-TDD

[@davidneale530]

Really caught me out at the start with which was the OLED! Thanks for being the first to do this comparison.

[@williamcopeland2617]

Me too. LOL....

[@actual_random]

lol how its so obvious just from brightness

[@davidneale530]

​@@actual_randomWell yes, like many others I expected the brighter one to be obviously the OLED. I do now have an IPS pro 11 and also some OLED laptops. The pro 11 screen is really good and significantly brighter than previous generations.

[@tk-qg5mm]

Shouldn't it have been the same wallpaper for the sake of comparison?

[@jacblac67]

Some early reviews on Reddit have mentioned the s11 oled having issues along with a decrease of an hour+ of battery life and the snapdragon X elite issues makes the cheaper surface a winner.

[@iu1191]

Great video. It really makes sense to ask the question Q: Do you need the OLED? As the differences are so small, especially where it matters. This machine s about battery life - That's it. I have an SP9 and have NEVER complained about the screen. In fact it has always been amazing. At 13inchers - what am I doing spending $500 on a "better" screen when I am not feeling like I am missing something on the SP9. If the screen was leaps and bounds better and a high end OLED - that might be different but with a difference that is this close - I am wondering what would make me NOT chose the IPS screen. That $500 would be used for the keyboard or something else like an SSD. Lookingforward to more insights as you continue to test in your 30 days.

[@marekonbike9291]

Thanks, got the IPS and when watching dark scenes in dark room, was bit considering... should I get the OLED? Now you made it clear.... I made the right choice, upgraded to 2T ssd and now its all I need....

[@sau7148]

Where did you get the SSD?

[@luc7976]

I noticed at 14:50 you have HDR turned off for the IPS model but the video you played was in HDR (not sure if it did a fallback to non-HDR format). I would match that to be sure it's played back correctly. I compared side by side with that same HDR video and I did see peak brightness go much higher in some spots on OLED so something is off here. That said I'd still go for IPS model...

[@markg5664]

Your screens aren't calibrated or something. The dark areas on that particular demo you say aren't rendered, show up perfectly fine on my OLED screen. Color accuracy and gamut is also superior on OLED as are the viewing angles.

[@TheDigitalDigest]

This is the second oled model that has exhibited this issue.

[@duffyanneal]

I have the OLED model and just watched the demo video. At 20 seconds the tea pot on my SP11 looks closer to the LCD display on the left. Interestingly enough out of the box my SP had HDR enabled.

[@kalin4444]

Did u disable the hdr to improve it?

[@duffyanneal]

@@kalin4444No, I didn’t change anything.

[@random-ik7gz]

i have been waiting for such a video, since the release, thank you a lot

[@amirabdollahi1449]

hey you saved me. I was trying to convince myself to get OLED model but turns out XPlus with flex keyboard and pen is a perfect match.

[@lancebrune4454]

Display is Samsung, not LG. And 900 nits peak. And do you see the same issue side by sid at full brightness with areas barely rendering in the OLED? Id imagine it isn't as useful to put both at 50% brightness when OLED has such a larger range of brightness for both extremes. The 50% mark may seem standardized but I think it might be arbitrary. I'm glad you're doing this test because I've been tempted to order the base model myself and compare it with my elite chip, especially with how good the reviews are of the plus chip.

[@aliendroneservices6621]

5:59 6:06

[@olenabanders2319]

Really enjoyed your review! Thank you for the honest one as well! 💯

[@TheDigitalDigest]

Thanks for watching!

[@Johnmims65]

@@TheDigitalDigestwould you get the lcd surface pro over the iPad Pro 13 m4?

[@a.nonamouse2986]

Thanks! This has been my exact question. Just saved me a lot of money.

[@abrahamroberts2040]

WOW! I actually liked the visuals on the left better. Surprised me as well.

[@mac3864]

Try reducing the gamma setting on the oled under the windows manual colour calibrations setting. It seems like it is clipping the blacks. Also, it would be interesting to compare the video quality at the max brightness also

[@maddada]

Yes, seems to me like doing an HDR calibration and setting the HDR settings correctly could fix this clipping issue.

[@luc7976]

I did exact same video test at Bestbuy and checked HDR was enabled for both and they were much more similar than here. I could see more color gradations/range on OLED and higher peak brightness in spots. That said otherwise on same wallpaper they were pretty close (in bright conditions).

[@jirikocman]

I picked up base model and it is great device. I cant utilize performance of elite plus. OLED should be nice, but for that price hike. I can live with IPS and use OLED Galaxy Tab S8+ for HDR movies. But that IPS is really good, very good contrast, not grey instead of black.

[@kent52584]

Thank you so much for this review. I am totally surprised lol. I almost about to spend more money to get OLED for better display.

[@luc7976]

Make sure to run 'Calibrate Display Color' and adjust brightness and W/B as outlined in those steps. I think the IPS model also has greenish tint here which is common which you can adjust that way. After that make sure that in Settings > System > Display Color Profile is set to 'sRGB display profile ... derived from Calibration' is selected. I think default is Vivid which isn't natural. Last I wonder if HDR was set for both to auto (I see it's turned off for IPS). It's weird that brightness is not higher on OLED. I saw the opposite with LG demo in store. I did compare side by side at Best Buy and I did see more dynamic range in the wallpaper on OLED panel. But black levels under these bright conditions were about same.

[@albertol1529]

You do realise that it’s a lot easier to guess since in the ribbon at the top the identity is revealed. Additionally, you’re wrong about the colours. The cherries’ colour on the OLED is much more accurate. By the way, the panel is Samsung.

[@GoingVroom]

Does the video on the right have HDR turned on, its hard to read the label, but it looks like it does? You said at 5:38 you said you disabled HDR on both.

[@PhilOut-sq3fm]

@TheDigitalDigest ping

[@jamesecurtis1705]

Wow! I am in shock at bow much better the IPS looks over the OLED. I could tell the one on the right was OLED because of the blacks. But other than that the IPS Display blew it away.

[@ahmedalsadi0010]

Tbh i liked the left. I was trying to see the black but couldn't know whats oled

[@bmwjs1]

I figured it would be the old baiting switch, but here’s a couple of issues like somebody said did you color calibrate the monitor well the surface itself do you have a color calibrator and most importantly if you’re not already on the old screen watching this you probably can’t even view the details that he’s talking about properly at the very least you kinda need a mini LED with dimming zones like an iPad has over 1000 dimming zones so for anyone here chances are you could make your screen color, accurate or more color accurate by going into settings or buying the professional gear to make sure you get the screen to be color accurate most professionals make sure to take that step first most screens are not color calibrated the way it needs to be straight out of the box, but I will say immediately I thought the lead was the left, side, but then I thought this is my old bait and switch and I was correct but other things come to play as well anti-glare coating in a surface does get super black levels that I am sure of someone also pointed out that HDR is off one and one has HDR on. You gotta make sure you’re comparing apples to apples.

[@bmc1222]

I expect Crystal clarity from the screen when I spend $1,499. Microsoft shouldn’t have been cheap. The screen door effect is definitely observable at normal viewing distances especially if you have relatively good vision.

[@thatsaloadofcrap]

Thanks, great comparison. I think Surface Pro's are mostly business/work computers. I had an early model loved it. I agree it's not a photography/videography machine. Screen type is personal preference. ...don't see a reason to go OLED. Not sure if there's a difference in battery life.

[@arondyte318]

That black crush reminds of the early OLED displays that Samsung uses on their older Galaxy Tabs so yeah Microsoft might've cheaped out on the quality of OLED panels it used

[@TheDigitalDigest]

my thoughts exactly, as stated in the video.

[@KimSevern]

Thanks for the video. How does the same video look at the missing teapot frame on a really good tv?

[@AAJJ007]

What we really need this fall (the sooner the better really) is a comparison between the ARM and the Intel Lunar Lake SP11! 😜 Just kidding. We already know what the major differences will be. I'll take the laptop with 1/3 less battery life and minimal compatibility issues any day. No system works 100% of the time. It's annoying enough when your Intel system doesn't work as it's supposed to. Can you imagine compatibility issues cropping up multiple time every day? I don't have time for that. I'll switch in three years IF most people have done by then. You almost always want to be on the system the majority of people use.

[@ferrarifox9552]

Hi , great video as always with best wishes for the best ! Though pls can u make a comparison between the surface pro 11 oled with iPad Pro m4 oled ! Is there any difference between both ! Thank you

[@stuffiesforces7189]

Would you be able to do comparison of the brightesses of the panels as well as comparing the panels at different viewing angles and with some background glare? Also a review comparing the keyboards would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[@WorldTravelerNX01]

I went to Best Buy this weekend. I was unimpressed with the Surface Pro OLED display. The screen door effect was noticeable when viewing web sites on Edge. Wouldn't spend 400-500 dollars more for a worse viewing experience.

[@TheObi-WanFunobi]

I think your missing the point of the OLED. The OLED is supposed to be that black when you compare it both at 6:00 whats happening on IPS is that light bleeds to the rest of the scene and that causes the pot to be more lit, i think from the creators perspective the OLED is the way that the film maker intended to present this scene to the viewer. But yeah the brightness on the OLED could be better, one thing you could’ve tested is viewing angles of both panels. I would’ve liked to see some scenes from John's Wick movies playing out on both since the movies are pretty dark i do believe it would look better on OLED without the backlight bleed from the IPS, but yeah good review btw.

[@TwistedFoo]

very glad I got the ips version! thank you!

[@xionpentagast]

Best review discussing the difference. Thank you.

[@PixogenPixels]

You had one of them in hdr and one not, you can see it on the youtube button where it say HDR. It may not work correctly yet in windows arm? Also calibrating hdr on arm windows used to be wonky, you'd have to use regedit to setup hdr correctly. Also many cheap panels like the steam deck oled/switch oled can do pixel off but not the lower 10% of grey to black. Also refresh rate/brightness plays a big part with how it renders on these cheap panels. On the steam deck going to 45hz and 40% brightness will give the full black back but 90hz raises it.

[@fgclava7280]

Looking forward to your final review before ordering! (:

[@davidemesina3909]

Great comparison, thank you!

[@user-dd7gi3kd2o]

can u put a standard OLED next to new surface pro? may be from samsung or ipad?! for ips vs MS OLED vs Apple OLED then we will know the standard OLED quality

[@mariosaternus]

Hey. Great to find someone to compare the screens. Unfortunately, I think you should do the test again. I have the iPad Pro 13 inch 2024 and the Surface Pro 11 with the OLED screen. Without HDR the colours look flat and strange. And unlike macOS (I have a MacBook Pro 14 inch 2021) HDR contents will not be brightened automatically. Please enable HDR in the Settings and do minimum 60% Brightness. In my comparison the Surface is not on the iPad Pro level - especially in terms of the blackness. But it was very good.

[@TheDigitalDigest]

This test was also done with hdr enabled, and the results were the same.

[@mariosaternus]

@@TheDigitalDigest interesting. Maybe there are different panels? Unfortunately, I do not have the equipment to record my observations and share via KZbin.

[@davidemesina3909]

Hi, have you noticed any screen door effect with the OLED display? Many people have been complaining about it.

[@gongfan5181]

I went to the store and found what you claimed was NOT true! The OLED panel is significantly better than the LCD one in terms of color and brightness. You need to adjust the HDR content display brightness in the Display Settings to have a better HDR display on the OLED panel.

[@jmoo876]

It’s not 500 dollars better. End of story

[@RegiiPad]

You didn’t turn on HDR and you dare to compare results?

[@ChaseT9862]

This is the exact comparison I needed. I (and my bank account) thank you!

[@n.a.1397]

The OLED in this is terrible, grainy and poor quality for office work/text.

[@jeanbaptistelabelle]

What is heavy liftint? I am doing photo editing (Capture One Pro) ot video editing in Resolve without much issues...

[@Nellysdomain]

Great video now looking at these differently .. hoping for 5G model

[@vasudevmenon2496]

Yeah they ruined the OLED by making it color accurate like a TN panel. Had to rewatch couple of times just to confirm my eyes aren't broken. Feels like panel defect since brightness wasn't uniform. It seems notebook check review sample had a better screen. IPS panel they used on both Pro and laptop has very slow GTG responsiveness and worse. Thought the OLED would be good value

[@SeanSantos-bs9ir]

Microsoft had the potential to be the best Tablet(?) this year but the issues with OLED killed it..

[@jeremygelderman]

Really great and honest video. Thanks a lot

[@celina.berger]

Hey, currently trying to figure out which Surface Pro 11 I should buy.. the more I inform myself the more it‘s getting clear it shouldn‘t be the OLED version. The base version with 256gb would cost me 1079€, the version with 512gb costs me about 1350€ and the OLED with 512gb 1619€.. i‘ll be using it for uni and i really don’t know what to do. Does anyone has advice for me? Thank you! :)

[@liam560]

Not gonna lie, was pretty gagged when you said the IPS screen was on the left

[@TheDigitalDigest]

You're not alone...

[@psills]

Did you calibrate either? This is a simple task with a colorimeter. I would not expect these to be calibrated from the factory. Without that, your comparison is meaningless.

[@davidemesina3909]

How to calibrate pls?

[@luc7976]

@@davidemesina3909 quick way without colorimeter (good enough for most): windows key, then type Calibrate and select 'Calibrate Display Color' and adjust accordingly. The other setting to check is sRGB (in control panel or settings display).

[@J.I.R.A]

How many people calibrate their screen at home with a colorimeter though? I'd say this test is more meaningful than a calibrated test because most people don't have a colorimeter nor take the time to calibrate their screen at home. The screen should come properly calibrated in every Surface Pro 11 from factory.

[@DonaldHawk]

Thanks. I think you saved me some money

[@telchor7931]

Do you have infos about the difference of SRGB , DCI P3 and AdobeRGB?

[@luc7976]

See notebookcheck review. They did a lot of display tests. Contrast is much better and I'm not sure this test was correctly done since it's an HDR video and at least IPS model had this setting disabled. I compared exact same video at Best Buy and OLED had higher peak brightness. That said IPS is pretty good and much better value.

[@jackpenrod2452]

did you switch it to wumbo?

[@jmoo876]

Oled version not worth the extra 500 bucks

[@xionpentagast]

LG makes better OLED though

[@SSkymonn]

Thank you for the video, otherwise I would not have learned such important information. I am a designer by the way.