A year later, here's why I keep coming back to the Surface Laptop (especially at this price)

ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• The 2024 Microsoft Surface Pro Laptop is connected sale, starting astatine $1,190.
• It's a well-designed Copilot+ PC with a lightweight, stylish signifier origin and a marathon artillery life.
• It mightiness beryllium lacking successful larboard enactment for immoderate users, and an OLED enactment would person made it a small much premium.

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Last twelvemonth was immense for Microsoft. All eyes were connected Windows with the merchandise of the caller Copilot AI feature, followed by a new enactment of laptops moving connected Snapdragon's ARM-compatible spot architecture and a barrage of new, hyped-up AI features. Naturally, some were welcomed, portion others… did not spell arsenic planned (and continue to airs questions).  

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At the halfway of each this are Microsoft's 2 flagship devices, some of which are innovative and amusive to use: the Microsoft Surface Laptop, and the Surface Pro, a tablet/laptop hybrid. ZDNET's Kerry Wan went hands-on with the Surface Laptop, but I wanted to instrumentality a person look astatine this laptop aft the particulate had settled connected the archetypal circular of Copilot+ PCs. 

The archetypal happening I noticed astir the Surface Laptop is its sleek, lightweight design, which would beryllium exceedingly reminiscent of a MacBook if not for the chill bluish color. There's thing precise neutral -- non-descript, adjacent -- astir the Surface Laptop, adjacent portion retaining a unsocial silhouette. Minimal? Doesn't dependable peculiarly Microsoft, does it? And yet, present we are. 

Available successful a 13.8- and 15-inch signifier factor, the Surface's aluminum assemblage comes successful a fewer unsocial colorways. It sports a bright, 120Hz HDR touchscreen display, basal larboard selection, and, astir importantly, the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processor. 

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The show looks great, though an OLED would person truly been the cherry connected apical for this flagship device. I recognize Microsoft's plan prime here, though: marque a good-looking HDR show with a accelerated refresh complaint that looks an OLED but requires fractional the power. It makes sense. 

Regarding the processor, we've discussed the pros and cons of ARM architecture successful Windows each year, and the bottommost enactment remains: it's inactive successful its aboriginal stages, truthful determination is simply a imaginable for compatibility hiccups with definite apps, games, and accessories. 

Windows (mostly) does a bully occupation of emulating programs via Prism, but issues tin arise. I tin say, however, that tons of advancement has been made successful the fewer months since the Snapdragon laptops person been connected the market, peculiarly with creativity apps. 

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Earlier this summer, I retrieve struggling done Adobe Premiere connected immoderate of the brand-new Copilot+ PCs, but lone a fewer months later, things look to beryllium much optimized. Running done immoderate video editing bundle successful Adobe and DaVinci Resolve connected the Surface wasn't 100% flawless, but it was creaseless capable to beryllium considered acceptable to spell for creators. In fact, it performed a small amended connected this instrumentality for maine than connected other, higher-priced models.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

The Snapdragon X Elite connected the Surface feels well-optimized. In our benchmarking of the device, we got numbers comparable to different Copilot+ PCs astir the aforesaid terms point, namely the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x and the Dell XPS 13. 

This spot is what powers this laptop's snappy show and awesome artillery life, and besides what sets it isolated from erstwhile versions successful the Surface enactment (which had alternatively mixed reviews), and different Copilot+ PCs. 

This is simply a laptop that feels accelerated and airy and multitasks with easiness crossed the Windows ecosystem. Web browsing with dozens of tabs, portion connected to an outer show feels responsive and smooth, a indispensable for maine to beryllium considered a main driver. 

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The touchpad is efficient, if connected the delicate side, but well-placed. The larboard enactment is average, with 2 USB-Cs, a USB-A, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Unfortunately, Microsoft chose to support its proprietary charging larboard alternatively of a modular USB-C, which would person fixed the laptop adjacent much utility.

The keyboard is precise satisfying to benignant on, with well-textured and responsive keys that lucifer the device's colour scheme. If there's immoderate laptop wherever the Windows Copilot cardinal would marque sense, it'd beryllium connected this laptop. The Snapdragon X Elite's integrated NPU allows for seamless enactment with the on-device AI that powers features accessible via the Copilot key, your voice, and the taskbar. 

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

I person been integrating Copilot into my workflow arsenic I larn much astir however to usage it effectively, and connected a instrumentality similar the Surface, it feels useful and efficient. I've been utilizing it to summarize the latest emails from circumstantial contacts, and it's peculiarly applicable due to the fact that of its velocity and accuracy successful this task. 

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The Surface's artillery beingness has been fantastic, too. I get implicit 15 hours of usage from a azygous charge, and it has yet to afloat deplete to zero by the clip I telephone a benchmarking test. 

The operation of astute plan with meaningful trade-offs is what gives this laptop its marathon artillery life, and opens it up for a assortment of usage cases from a creator oregon productivity perspective. Basically, this is simply a laptop you tin enactment remotely with for the full time without a charger.

ZDNET's buying advice

I mentioned this before, but the absorption that Microsoft took with this laptop is, well, alternatively uncharacteristic. The 2024 Microsoft Surface Laptop is light, airy, and brings immoderate amusive to the Copilot+ line. I would person loved to spot this laptop with an OLED display, but the 1 we get alternatively is inactive rather nice, particularly with this fantastic artillery life. 

The Surface Laptop is simply a flagship mid-range instrumentality that's well-rounded capable to instrumentality connected a assortment of roles. Despite a fewer trade-offs, it's everything it should beryllium for the price.