Microsoft Surface Laptop 4 - Should you buy it?

Microsoft rolled out their new laptop, the Surface laptop 4, two weeks ago.Technically, the laptop is the same as it’s previous generation, but with new and more efficient chips inside.Very little has changed in terms of appearance and feel since the previous century. Sure, there are some differences: the Laptop 4 is slightly smaller, and a new “Ice Blue” colour variant is available. However, the 3:2 touchscreen, port selection, and design are all the same.

The major changes have taken place on the inside. Both the 13.5-inch and 15-inch Surface Laptop models can be configured with either Intel's 11th-Gen or AMD's Ryzen 4000 processors. These enhancements, according to Microsoft, would result in substantially improved performance and battery life than the previous Surface laptop generation.

As a result, the focus of this review will be on the new system's results. But comparing the 15-inch Surface Laptop 4 to its predecessor is not a priority.

For one thing, the Laptop 3 set a low bar for efficiency — it had poor battery life and couldn't even play a 4K 60FPS video without stuttering, so even a reliable budget laptop would blow it away. But, more significantly, Apple, with its Arm-based M1, recently made a massive chip update to its flagship models, which has left most other 2020 chip updates in the dust.So, when it comes to AMD's latest Ryzen 7 Surface Edition (also known as the AMD Ryzen 7 4980U Microsoft Surface Edition), the big question is: Will it beat Apple's M1?

We can definitely say - No.It's still not as efficient, or powerful, for the most part. However, for the time being, this might not be an issue for Surface Laptop 4 buyers.

The AMD Ryzen 7 Model

Let's take a look at the Ryzen 7 Surface Edition first. This isn't AMD's top-of-the-line chip; it's from the Ryzen 4000 generation, and the Ryzen 5000 smartphone series has been available for a while. It's a little surprising that the Surface still uses older Ryzen chips, given that most of the latest generation is built on a new architecture (Zen 3, as opposed to the 4000 series' Zen 2) that has provided performance gains.

Of course, this isn't to say that the Ryzen 7 4980U is a mediocre processor. Across the board, Ryzen 4000 processors outperform Intel's 10th Gen Comet Lake processors.The AMD Radeon integrated graphics in the 4980U are particularly good. It has eight cores.The M1 chip has eight cores as well, but they aren't all the same. AMD's chip has eight all-around-pretty-good cores, while Apple's chip has four high-performance cores and four lower-performance cores.

Price

The 15-inch Surface Laptop 4 model which has 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage in addition to the processor will set you back at $1,699.This is also the price of the most equivalent M1 MacBook Pro. If you don't want to invest so much, the 15-inch Laptop 4 with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage can be had for as little as $1,299, putting it on par with the entry-level MacBook Pro but with a larger screen. Starting at $999 for a Ryzen 5 4680U, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage, the 13.5-inch Laptop 4 is more competitively priced than the fanless MacBook Air.Then there's Intel's line of products. A 13.5-inch system with a Core i5 processor starts at $1,299 (plus 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage) and a 15-inch system with a Core i7 processor starts at $1,799 (plus 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage) (16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage). Since it's all so complicated, buying from Microsoft's website is the best choice.

Surface laptop 4 (Ryzen) vs MacBook Pro

Most people who want a 15-inch screen aren't concerned about whether or not a better-performing 13-inch machine is available. In addition, the MacBook Pro 16, which is similar in size to the Surface Laptop 4, is considerably more costly and uses older Intel processors.

However, the Ryzen-powered Surface Laptop 4 may also have two significant advantages over a 16-inch M1 MacBook. The first consideration is battery life. When used as a primary driver, most people get an average of 10 hours and 52 minutes, which is among the best battery life ever seen from a 15-inch laptop and one of the best results seen from a laptop this year. That outperforms all M1 MacBooks, as well as the 16-inch Intel MacBook. This is one of the areas where Microsoft really makes its case.

Thermal efficiency and Performance

The Laptop 4 blows the competition out of the water when it comes to cooling. The fans on the Laptop 4 did an outstanding job of cooling the device. The chassis stays ice cold during the typical workload of office multitasking. The CPU stayed in the mid-70s (Celsius) during the more demanding tests, with occasional spikes up to the mid-80s — jumps to 90 were uncommon. Exporting and rendering in 4K too, is possible without causing any issues.

Design

If you like the style of the 15-inch Surface Laptop, you'll be delighted to discover that it hasn't changed much. With a thickness of 0.58 inches and a weight of 3.4 pounds, one of the major advantages of this unit is its thinness and lightness. It's about half a pound lighter than the lightest Dell XPS 15, and almost a pound lighter than the 16-inch MacBook Pro. It's just slightly heavier than a 13-inch MacBook Pro.

Display and Ports

Those who aren't diehard Surface fans, however, may find the Laptop 4's architecture a little aged. The bezels around the 3:2 screen, in particular, are very thick. That makes sense on a convertible computer like the Surface Book 3 or Surface Pro 7, which you need to be able to hold as a tablet but won't fit in a clamshell. When you compare the Laptop 4 to any of the XPS models, you'll notice how much sleeker and more modern the latter is. That isn't to say the Laptop 4 is unattractive; it's just that it is lagging behind other Windows laptops year after year.

.The port options are also the same, which is both good and bad. The Laptop 4 retains a USB-A port, which I continue to believe is a requirement for modern laptops (unlike Apple and Dell). However, there is only one USB-C port, and neither the Intel nor AMD models support Thunderbolt on their lone USB-C ports, which is disappointing for a laptop at this price point. Even though it competes in terms of numbers with Apple and Dell, the Surface Laptop could use more port options. (A headset jack and Microsoft's proprietary charging port are included in addition to the USB-A and USB-C ports)

Camera and Audio

The Windows Hello webcam is satisfactory, providing a serviceable picture, and the dual far-field microphones picked up my voice with ease. The speakers, which now support Dolby Atmos 9, sound very loud, with plenty of volume and audible bass and percussion (though not booming).The Laptop 4 didn't come with Dolby Atmos software or anything similar to tune the audio, despite having Atmos speakers.

Keyboard

The keyboard is the least appealing aspect of this laptop. It's all a little mushy and plain. Of course, some people prefer larger, flatter keycaps. However, the majority of them would prefer an XPS 15, MacBook, or Surface Book keyboard over this one because it isn't as sensitive or satisfying.

Generally speaking, finding a true rival to the 15-inch Surface Laptop 4 is difficult. As compared to a Windows workstation like the $1,200 Dell XPS 15, the Surface comes out on top in terms of power, battery life, and weight. It's a good buy for someone who wants a 15-inch chassis with excellent efficiency and multicore performance but doesn't need the power of a discrete GPU.

Should you buy?

However, the window of opportunity might be closing, as a larger M1 MacBook Pro is almost certainly on the way. There's a fair case to be made that people in the above community (who don't need a computer right now) should wait and see what Apple does in the coming months before committing to Microsoft's machine, assuming they don't have a strong preference for operating systems.

Even if the larger MacBook Pro is spectacular, the Laptop 4 will retain some advantages and some it will almost definitely retain (it will be lighter than the MacBook Pro 16). And, of course, many people are in desperate need of a laptop right now. The Surface Laptop 4 is a pretty damn good buy in today's market, among today's 15-inch laptops. Microsoft didn't make many changes on the outside, but it did a fantastic job on the inside.

Hope you found value,

Thanks for reading!