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[Editor’s Note: The above hardware specifications are only for the 13-inch models of each product. Also, the specs listed above for the MacBook Air reflect the version we fully tested for its review, not its starting loadout.]Portability: It Doesn’t Get Much Thinner Than ThisApple and Microsoft have laser-focused on weight and thinness in their laptops. The incumbent 13.6-inch MacBook Air weighs 2.7 pounds and measures 0.44 inches when closed, while the 13.8-inch Surface Laptop is just a tad heftier at 2.96 pounds and 0.69 inches thin.
(Credit: Joe Osborne)
When you compare the 15-inch models, the MacBook Air is barely thicker than its smaller sibling (0.45 inch) and tips the scales at 3.3 pounds. Again, Apple out-trims Microsoft, as the 15-inch Surface Laptop is 0.72 inches thick and weighs 3.67 pounds.Winner: MacBook AirComponents and Performance: A Spec Sheet ShowdownWe must admit up front that we haven’t been able to run our standard benchmarks on the new Surface Laptops, which will be available on June 18. So, for now, this comparison will focus on each laptop’s internal hardware and claimed capabilities.Luckily, Apple’s and Microsoft’s notebooks use the same respective processors for their 13- and 15-inch variants, so this contest is purely Apple M3 versus Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite. The Apple processor is an eight-core CPU that operates at 4.05GHz, while the Snapdragon X Plus in the base 13.8-inch Surface Laptop runs at 3.4GHz with 10 cores. The Snapdragon X Elite, optional in the 13.8-inch and standard in the 15-inch Surface Laptop, is a 12-core chip clocked at 3.8GHz.Apple focuses on driving faster frequency across fewer cores, whereas Qualcomm seems to favor slightly slower clock speeds with a higher core count. Which is the better approach? Only real-world testing will tell.
(Credit: Brian Westover)
As for graphics performance, the Apple M3 is available with either an eight- or 10-core integrated graphics processor (IGP), but the company doesn’t publish specific output figures. Conversely, Qualcomm brags that the Snapdragon X Elite’s Adreno IGP is capable of up to 4.6 trillion floating operations per second (TFLOPS), but the company doesn’t reveal how many graphics cores its IGP silicon includes.Now for the other side of performance: memory and storage. Apple equips its base-model MacBook Air laptops with 8GB of memory and a 256GB solid-state drive and lets buyers opt for up to 24GB of RAM and 2TB of storage. Microsoft’s baseline is 16GB of RAM, which can be doubled to 32GB, and a similar 256GB SSD, which can go up to 1TB.While it’s too early to make a final call, Microsoft earns a point for bumping its base models to 16GB of RAM for the same price as before. Qualcomm’s focus on core counts over raw speeds might also see the Snapdragon chips win out in some key benchmarks and applications.Winner: Surface Laptop (tentatively)Battery Life: Which Laptop Lasts Longer?Apple has often (and justly) bragged about its laptops’ battery life, rating the latest 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air M3 systems for up to 15 hours of wireless web browsing apiece. In our battery benchmark, which involves looping a locally stored video file, the two Airs lasted 21 hours and 38 minutes and 17 hours and 11 minutes, respectively.
(Credit: Joe Osborne)
Again, we haven’t yet tested the new Surface Laptops, so we can only report Microsoft’s claimed runtimes: up to 13 hours of wireless web use for the 13-inch and up to 15 hours for the 15-inch model. (Microsoft also promises up to 20 and 22 hours of local video playback from the 13-inch and 15-inch models, respectively.) If those figures hold, the smaller MacBook Air may edge its 13-inch Surface rival, and the 15-inch laptops may be neck-and-neck. We’ll get to the bottom of this in formal testing, but it’s safe to expect 15-plus hours of video playback for all four of these Arm-based laptops.Winner: Too early to tellDisplay: Sharpness vs. SpeedScreen technology is another area on which Microsoft and Apple have lavished immense amounts of time and money, and it shows. Apple’s MacBook Air models flaunt the company’s famous Retina displays, LED-backlit in-plane switching (IPS) panels with a rated brightness of 500 nits. While the two 16:10 aspect ratio screens have different resolutions or pixel counts, each achieves 224 pixels per inch (ppi).
(Credit: Brian Westover)
Microsoft has its own fancy name for the Surface Laptops’ 3:2 aspect ratio touch screens, PixelSense Flow. These are also LED IPS panels, not quite as sharp as Apple’s at 201ppi but twice as fast in refresh rate at 120Hz. (Apple reserves 120Hz refresh for its ProMotion MacBook Pro displays.) Microsoft has yet to disclose the PixelSense Flow screens’ brightness in nits. Of course, their biggest differentiator from Apple’s displays is touch support.At least for now, it’s impossible to suss out which manufacturer boasts the better screen. If you need the sharpest and perhaps brightest display available, you may favor Apple. Consider Microsoft if you want a higher refresh rate for smoother video playback and gaming.Winner: TiePorts and Features: Microsoft Commands a Lead With CopilotConnectivity is one area where the two rivals are evenly matched, with the Surface Laptop edging ahead. Microsoft made a minor sacrifice in thickness to fit more ports onboard.Both the 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air feature two USB4 ports that support up to Thunderbolt 3 data-transfer speeds, system charging, and DisplayPort video output. Apple’s MagSafe power port and a 3.5mm audio jack are included, too. The Airs’ wireless networking follows the Wi-Fi 6E standard.This is Microsoft’s time to shine. While the 13-inch Surface Laptop features a similar duo of USB4 ports plus an audio jack and the Surface Connect power port, it also includes a single USB Type-A port. The 15-inch model matches that and adds a microSD flash-card reader. In addition, both Surface Laptops connect wirelessly using Wi-Fi 7.
(Credit: Brian Westover)
What makes this comparison interesting is that Apple reserves legacy connections such as SD card readers and HDMI monitor ports for its upscale MacBook Pro line. It gets even better for Microsoft regarding features, which boil down to operating system tools and functions. Besides offering touch screens, Microsoft might have an ace in the hole with Copilot. The latter is a ChatGPT-powered onboard AI chatbot that can carry out several tasks that previously required far more digital digging.Apple’s MacBooks have Siri, of course, but that voice assistant is by no means a generative AI tool in the same way Copilot or even Google’s Gemini is. Rumor has it that Apple is working on catching up with the help of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, but the Surface Laptops hold the AI advantage for now.Winner: Surface LaptopPrice: Surfacing a Strong Budget PlayThis is the most straightforward comparison to break down because Microsoft has priced the new Surface Laptops directly against the MacBook Air incumbents. For the 13-inch Surface Laptop, you’ll pay $999.99 for a base model with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of solid-state storage, while the Cupertino camp charges $1,099 for half the memory and the same-size SSD. Both vendors’ 15-inch models start at $1,299 with 256GB of storage, though Microsoft again offers 16GB of memory versus 8GB.The 13.8-inch Surface Laptop reaches a peak of $2,399.99 for a Snapdragon X Elite model with 64GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. A comparable configuration of the 15-inch model costs $100 more.
(Credit: Brian Westover)
If you want to throw money at Apple instead, a fully loaded 13.6-inch MacBook Air costs $2,299 with 24GB of memory and a 2TB SSD. The 15-inch version has the same memory and storage ceilings and peaks at $2,499.While Windows 11 and macOS indeed have different memory requirements, it’s hard to refute Microsoft’s value play here, with 16GB of RAM as standard (and coincidentally the new minimum for handling AI tasks). Plus, Microsoft was smart in bringing the entry-level model in $100 below the competition (although Apple still sells a MacBook Air M2 for $999).Winner: Surface LaptopEarly Verdict: Watch Out, Apple…Microsoft and Qualcomm Have You in Their SightsWhile we can’t pass final judgment without thoroughly testing the new Surface Laptops, it’s clear that Microsoft has been working hard on its latest attempt to upset the Apple cart. The attack is three-pronged: price, hardware capacity, and features. Not only is the 13.8-inch Surface Laptop cheaper than the 13.6-inch MacBook Air M3, but the 15-inch Surface Laptop matches the price of the 15-inch MacBook Air. Microsoft’s higher standard memory and Copilot AI functionality buoy this aggressive pricing. Suffice it to say that Apple has its work cut out for it. We’re looking forward to seeing exactly how things shake out as soon as we get the Surface Laptop into PC Labs for testing.
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