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Surface Laptop vs MacBook Pro: Which one wins the race?

8 min. read

Updated onOctober 4, 2023

updated onOctober 4, 2023

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As a gigantic player in its field, it is natural for Microsoft to want to conquer as many relevant markets as possible. That’s why the company releases a competitor for a new market every year, besides its regular Windows product.

This time, Microsoft aims at the education market with its new streamlinedWindows 10 Soperating system. But that’s not all, as the new OS comes with a new line of devices, designed to run it from day one.

The main highlight of theWindows 10 Sline of devices is definitely theSurface Laptop. But, as the Surface Laptop isn’t a budget laptop, we can’t put it in the education category. It’s more logical to look at the Surface Laptop as a direct competitor to Apple’sMacBookPro. And that’s exactly how people see it.

Microsoft itself advertises the Surface Laptop as a better choice than anyMacBookout there. But, does the Surface Laptop really has what it takes to beat theMacBookPro, or is it just a pure marketing? Well, to find the answer, we’ll have to look at the details, because offers are quite similar, and it really depends on what aspect of a laptop people value more.

So, check out our ‘Surface Laptop vsMacBook‘ comparison, and we hope you’ll be able to find the answer.

Specs

Let’s start with what the majority of people think is the most important thing when buying a new laptop – hardware specifications. And to be honest, it’s not going to be easy to decide the winner, because, as we said above, the difference is in details.

So, for a start, let’s take a look at the raw specs:

As you can see from the table, the piece of hardware we’ll be putting in first battle rows is the processor. Microsoft says that theSurfaceLaptop outperforms any processors found in aMacBook Pro, and provides a faster and better performance. But is it really the case?

AllMacBook Promodels sport 6th generationIntelprocessors, while theSurfacelaptop features the latest, 7th generation, chips. Because of that, theSurface Bookcertainly promises more power, and better experience than the 14-inchMacBook Pro.

That’s not the case with the 15-inchMacBook Provariant, though. Even though theSurfaceLaptop sports the 7th generationIntel’sCPU, Pro’s quad-core processors are extremely fast, and can easily outperform theSurfaceLaptop. At least that’s how it looks on paper. We have to remind you that no one actually tested theSurfaceLaptop yet (at the time of writing this text), so this comparison probably isn’t one hundred percent accurate.

When it comes to other pieces of hardware, the package is pretty much the same. Both contestants come with up to 16GB of RAM (depending on what you’re willing to pay). BothSurfaceLaptop andMacBook Pro14-inch come with integratedIntelgraphics, and once again, theSurfaceLaptop comes with a better one. Just like its the case with processors, the 15-inchMacBook Prohas the advantage, as it comes with dedicated graphics. And another benefit of theMacBook Prois that its most expensive variant comes with 2TB SDD storage, while theSurfaceLaptop’s maximum is 512GB.

Build

Another aspect of theSurfaceLaptop that Microsoft values high (and so should users) is its brilliant design. Maybe theSurfaceLaptop doesn’t win the hardware race with the most expensiveMacBook Pro, but it’s certainly packed into a better box.

When you take a look at theSurfaceLaptop, you’ll get an impression that somebody took pieces of material, and glued them together. Don’t get us wrong, it’s a perfectly stable and reliable device, without any tracks of manufacturing. There are no signs of screws or hinges, so it’s a perfectly ‘silent’ design. The keyboard is surrounded by the Alcantara fabric, and speakers are put underneath it, so you’ll hear the sound more naturally.

With its 14.5mm of thickness and 1.25kg of weight, it’s more portable than anyMacBook Pro. The laptop features a 13.5-inch PixelSense display with 3.4 million pixels (2256 x 1504). Microsoft says it’s the thinnest LED display you’ll find on any device.

What really gives theSurfaceLaptop’s touch-enabled display advantage over the MackBook Pro is that it’s manufactured by Microsoft. Yes, that’s exactly what we mean, theSurfaceLaptop is perfectly compatible with the Surface Pen and other accessories, like theSurfaceDial. So, in combination with the recent features the company brought to the system with the Creators Update, it makes a powerful hub for artists and other creative people.

Software

We’re not going to compareWindows 10andMac OShere, let’s leave that discussion for another time. We’ll just talk about what you get on both devices. As you probably know, theSurfaceLaptop runsWindows 10 S. Microsoft’s newoperating systemdesigned to exclusively run apps from the Windows Store.

That bringsWindows 10 Smuch closer toMac OS, in terms of a concept. But as it appears, for the first time in many years,Mac OShas a better offering of available apps, at least quantity-wise. It’s known that Microsoft struggles with attracting developers to make Windows 10 apps, which definitely makesWindows 10 Ssuffer.

But Microsoft is aware of that, as the companyoffers you upgrade from Windows 10 S to Windows 10 Pro, in case you don’t want to only use Windows Store apps. The upgrade is completely free until the end of December 2017, so you really have nothing to lose if you go for a newSurfaceLaptop. That way, you’ll get a more versatileoperating systemthanMac OS, once again.

Battery life

Long battery life is what really separates theSurfaceLaptop from anyMacBookPro. According to Microsoft, the battery can last up to 14.5 hours of video playback. That’s a great accomplishment when we take into consideration that theMacBookPro can’t even last for full 10 hours.

This aspect of the device is also heavily advertised by Microsoft, but once again, we’ll have to wait for someone to try it, to confirm this claim. Nevertheless, even if the battery lasts a little less that those 14.5 hours, it’s still a sweet deal, which, compared to the laptop’s extreme portability, should be a very attractive offer for all frequent travelers.

Pricing

There’s nothing special to compare here. The Surface Laptop comes with the price tag of $999-$2199, while theMacBookPro is available for $2399-$2799. You do the math, each variant of the Surface Laptop is more affordable than itsMacBookPro counterpart.

But what you get for the price? Taking into account everything we’ve just talked about, the Surface Laptop emerges as a better deal. For $999 you get a beautiful, stable, fast, ultra-portable laptop, that can accomplish more than mostMacBooks.

Of course, if theWindows 10Pro upgrade option wasn’t available, we’d have a completely different conversation here. But since you can upgrade to ‘the regular’Windows 10, the Surface Laptop is the more thorough choice, and we’d take it over theMacBookPro.

Does it really matter?

Everything we just said doesn’t have to mean anything to you. The logic is simple – you’re either an Apple person or a Microsoft person. So, no matter what the comparison says, you’ll end up purchasing a laptop from your favorite brand.

On the other hand, if you don’t label yourself that way, we recommend the Surface Laptop. Because, for a more affordable price, you can get as good as, or even better laptop than theMacBookPro (depending on the variant). And if you combine it with other accessories and features, you’ll get even more possibilities.

Do you agree with our comparison? What do you think about theSurface BookandWindows 10 S? Let us know in the comments section below.

Surface Laptop vs MacBook Pro: Which one wins the race?#

Specs#

Build#

Software#

Battery life#

Pricing#

Does it really matter?#