The main advantages of our Core i7 SKU versus the Ryzen 5 SKU include Wi-Fi 6 compatibility, faster storage performance, faster CPU performance, integrated AI acceleration, faster gaming performance, and higher performance-per-Watt.

full performance on battery power; good performance sustainability; faster storage performance; no DPC latency issues; long battery life; generally quiet

hardware-based AI acceleration has yet to be exploited; no card reader or Thunderbolt 3; PWM at lower brightness levels; barebones set of features; no vPro or WWAN

This was meant to be it. After working with AMD on Xbox, Microsoft was going to unleash an AMD-powered laptop that would blow the figurative doors off every laptop held back by having Intel silicon.

Metal appearance is far better than cloth; 3:2 display; Points for giving AMD a run; Nice keyboard

Disappointing battery life; One side vacant of USB ports

As you might have noticed, each of these options forces you to make a compromise. That's where the Surface Laptop 3 finds its niche, because as an ultraportable laptop with a large display, there's nothing else like it.

Slim; lightweight chassis; Attractive metal design; Bright; vivid 15-inch display; Loud; clear speakers

Mediocre battery life; Underwhelming performance; Slow; expensive SSD; Limited ports

The 15-inch version of the Surface Laptop 3 represents the biggest change to the clamshell laptop since Microsoft launched the first Surface Laptop in 2017. And yet, it is remarkably similar to the prior models, despite the fact that it’s bigger and has a completely different processor.

Excellent keyboard and trackpad; Sturdy build quality; Good performance for everyday productivity tasks; 3:2 aspect ratio screen is great for productivity; Relatively little bloatware out of the box; Windows Hello facial login works great

Only two USB ports; No Thunderbolt 3 ports; Below average battery life; No SD card slot; Matte black model gets full of fingerprints almost immediately; Struggles editing and even playing back 4K video

“The 15-inch Surface Laptop 3 is a beautiful laptop, but its mediocre performance limits its potential.”

Large 3:2 display; Build quality is rock solid; Comfortable keyboard and touchpad; Stays quiet and cool

Not powerful enough; Graphics are disappointing; Bezels are large

The Surface Laptop 3 is a striking-looking laptop that may disappoint with its performance.

Elegant metallic design, Excellent audio, Bright, colorful screen

Middling performance, Slow SSD, Unimpressive battery life for the price

Awesome has everything thats needed

We expected the Surface Laptop 3 15 to be a MacBook Pro 15 rival, but it can't deliver the compute or graphical performance that Apple's high-end machines can. Then there are laptops like the XPS 15 that offer more power for the same or less money.

Brilliant keyboard and trackpad; lovely display; clean aesthetics.

Expensive; no Thunderbolt 3; middling battery life; the custom AMD chip doesn't offer zen-like performance.

The 15-inch Surface Laptop 3 has some of the best battery life we’ve experienced in a 15-inch laptop, which should be lauded. But, this laptop falls well short on both the power and versatility that most would expect from a 15-inch device, making it a disappointing followup for anyone who was hoping...

Excellent battery life; Exciting AMD flagship debut

Far too few ports; Lacking in power; Steep mid-range pricing

Having being hamstrung on desktop, Intel needs a win and is eager to highlight its advantages in the mobile space, where efficiency, Wi-Fi capabilities and battery life are more pressing concerns than sheer core count.

15in 3:2 PixelSense display; Sleek; robust aluminium chassis; Outstanding keyboard and trackpad; Choice of Intel or AMD configurations; Enough GPU power for casual gaming; LPDDR4X and Wi-Fi 6 on Intel model; Silent at low load; quiet when pushed

Middling battery life on AMD model; Lacks support for Thunderbolt; Limited port selection